Dia Rao Photography

Dia Rao Photography Featured on Style Me Pretty

This morning we were so pleased to find that Bree & Nick's Wedding was featured on the fabulous Style Me Pretty. Such an honor for such a fabulous wedding blog!  If you haven't already been to the blog, it's a must stop for any wedding planning.

We love the idea that Abby from Style Me Pretty says that "This is one of the sweetest weddings I've ever seen." And we couldn't agree more. Thanks Bree & Nick for having us be a part of your wedding day!

Location: Hacienda De Las Flores, Moraga, California

Florist: Anne Mendenhall

Catering: Miraglia Catering 

Handmade Wedding

Lauren & Steven

Theme: Black White, Tourquise + Red
Ceremony: Santa Barbara Presidio
Reception: Rockwood Women's Club
Florist: The Bride

Lauren & Steven's wedding is one of my favorites, because of the amount of detail that Lauren, the bride, took to hand make each and every one of the florals for the day. Colored tissue, cut into flower-like shapes were wrapped around wires and hand tied with ribbons and lace to make these beautiful bouquets.  She even made all of the Groomsmen boutonnieres, the table Centerpieces, and the beautiful hairpiece that she wore in her hair. I also love the black satin shoes that she opted to wear, and the flirty and fun black lace cocktail dresses her bridesmaids wore.

The Ceremony took place at the Historic Spanish Mission style adobe building in downtown Santa Barbara. This chapel is so cute, you even have to see the detailing inside to be transported back in time.  Also one of my favorite details of the day was the couples use of the Groom's father's classic car to drive them around for the day. The car made a great backdrop for some vintage photos and was a fantastic mint green color!

Anyways, I'll be posting more on detailed information on how each of the flowers were made, and some interview from Lauren in the future, so check back soon. For now, here are my favorites from the day:

The Brit & The Santa Barbara Girl meet in NY

Sarah & Neil - 7/24/2009

Theme: White, Black + Silver
Where It all Happened: Montecito Country Club
Rehearsal Dinner: Stella Mares
Coordinator: Events by Philippe
Florist: Nico Designs
Music: DJ Gavin Roy
Lighting: Bella Vista Designs
Hair + Makeup: Mishay Salon & Spa

This wedding was extra special and fun for me, because Sarah and I both worked together in the Restaurant Biz in Santa Barbara, many years ago. So, having the opportunity to watch her and Neil tie the knot held a special place in my heart.  Although Sarah is from Santa Barbara, her and Neil currently call NY home.
And I remember the days when I was her first guest in her tiny little NY Apartment that cost an arm and a leg!  Fast forward to 2009, where her and Neil now live in a fabulous Brooklyn Pad.

Also, I have to say that this was the first time having worked with Philippe from Events from Philippe. Although his reputation precedes him, I have to say that his jovial personality, classic charm, and genuine kindness certainty exceeded my expectations. And is definitely someone you want to have on your team for your next wedding or event.

Here are a few of my favorites from the day:

 

To view the Slide Show from their day, Click Here.
Just FYI, it's a tear jerker!

Featured on the Knot!

I'm so excited to hear that Karen & Joey's wedding from last year will be featured on The Knot Real Weddings!  I'll be sure to post a copy of the layout as soon as it is published.

But since I couldn't wait to share the news, I've attached a few of my favorite images from the day.

Karen & Joey got married at the coolest venue, this 100 year old rustic farmhouse in the back country hills of Santa Barbara.  It was quite the trek to get there, over 45 minutes from the closest town, but so worth the drive.

The other neat part about the venue was that Karen & Joey rented to whole house (with hot tub included!) for the whole weekend. Allowing a bunch of their friends to spend the weekend at the farmhouse with them.

The Details:
Location: Figueroa Mountain Farmhouse
Florist: Kaleidoscope Flowers
Caterer: Creative Services Catering
Venue can host up to 200 guests, with 7 beds available.

Sayulita, Mexico

We're back from Sayulita, Mexico. Patrick and I had an amazing time photographing Julie & Andrew's wedding, and spending the rest of the week exploring this little town.  It was a great trip, and thank you to everyone that we met a long the way.

Believe it or not, Patrick went to school with one of the groomsmen and we didn't even know he was going to be there. It just reminds you what a small world we live in!

We didn't have phone, tv, or internet for a whole week!  It was great to disconnect from the world for a week, and remember what it was like pre-cellphone and internet!

Here are a few of my personal favorites from the trip. We ended up renting a jeep the last day to explore San Francisco, the little town north of Sayulita, and also we drove down to Punta Mita and had dinner at the Four Seasons. Talk about luxury, the beach at the Four Seasons was so incrdibly manicured, I think they must have combed it everyday! You can see they have the most beautiful infinity pool. 

Also, I thought I'd share a sneak peak of some of the wedding photos. The ceremony was at Don Pedro's Wedding Palapa up on the hill just past our hotel, the Villa Amor, overlooking the town. It had the most beautiful 180 degree views of the ocean and hills. 

They even offer yoga up at the wedding palapa, and I was totally stoked to do my first outdoor yoga with such a great view.

Our first night there, we had dinner at Don Pedro's on the beach, and were suprised to see our waiter, Ruben and the rest of the waiters working as the catering staff at the wedding the next night!

I also want to thank Andria and her assistant of Sayulita Dream Weddings for all of their help the day of. There's a small photo of Andria and her assistant in the collage below.

I'll be sure to post some more when the wedding collection is complete.

Gracias!!

Dia

San Ysidro Ranch

Here is one of my favorite weddings from my hometown, Santa Barbara.

Rebecca and Matthew chose a destination wedding at the beautiful San Ysidro Ranch.  The San Ysidro is part of the Rosewood Hotels Luxury 5 star hotels, and is nestled in a beautiful private spot in the foothills of Montecito. 

The couple chose to have their wedding on a Sunday afternoon, amongst only their closest family and friends; approximately 40 guests or less. With the ceremony on the lawn and the reception dinner in the Coleman Cottage.

I personally love photographing these intimate weddings. The couples have more time to spend with their guests, the speeches are intimate and real, and the day is just more relaxed for all. 

Here are a few of my favorites from the day...

 

Vendors:
Florist:  SR Hogue & Co Florist - 525 San Ysidro Road, Montecito, Ca - 805-969-1343
Location & Catering: San Ysidro Ranch - Willow Fish
Dress: Carolina Herrera

Legion of Honor Wedding

Ok!! I apologize for being a delinquent blogger these past 4 months!! I t has been an extremely busy season, but I know that's not an excuse for leaving everyone hanging.

The good news is that I have so many wonderful weddings to blog about in the next months that we'll be sure to have lots of fun new stuff every Friday for the next couple of months!  So please check back or join the mailing list to get updated on new posts.

A lot has happened since June, and I'm so excited to share all of the news, including photographing phenomenal weddings across California as well as being published!!  So, I'll be sure to share the news in the next couple of months.

To start, I would like to share with you some amazing photos from Angie + Craig's wedding at the Legion of Honor Museum in San Francisco's Lincoln Park. This site is absolutely stunning, and really feels like you're at a wonderful Paris museum (D'Orsay or Louvre)....

So, here are a few of my favorites from the day!

Angie put together a fabulous group of vendors for the day:

Kristin Lauria & Marie Cooper of Boutique Events

McCall Catering

Flowers Claire Marie

Brian of Associated Entertainment

Thomas Hughes Video

Inspiria Productions

Paso Country

Christi and Rich tied the knot last month at the beautiful Villa Toscana in the heart of Paso Robles Wine Country. The girls spent the night before and the getting ready at the beautiful Winemakers Residence at Villa Toscana. While the reception took place in the ballroom of the historic Paso Robles Inn. Here are a few of my favorites from the day!

  

With the help of Christi's vendors the day went off without a hitch.

Coordinator: Mary Allegretta - Villa Toscana & Martin Weyrich Tasting Room
www.myvillatoscana.com/

Florist: Julia's Flowers and Gifts - 835 12th St,  Paso Robles, CA 9344
Phone:  (805) 238-2522

Hair & Makeup: Pure Elements Salon - Jessica
Phone:  (805) 238-1115

DJ:  Phase 1 Moble DJ -  DJ Bob
http://www.p1dj.com/

   

Carmel Wedding

Brenda and I had a great time photographing Stephanie & Brent's wedding last month in Carmel. The ceremony took place in the beautiful Carmel Mission Basilica, with the reception following at the Monterey Plaza Hotel.

Stephanie had a great team of vendors:
Florist: Christine Cater, At the Heart of the Matter
Hair/Makeup: KIm Larson Bridal Makeup and Hairstyling  (831)-659-3972
Cake: Monterey Plaza Hotel

Here are a few of my favorites from the day.

 

Katie & Zack Album Design

Well, I just finished the layout for Katie and Zack's album design. I'm really pleased with the rough draft and thought I'd share a few of my favorite pages with you!

Thanks for looking...If you'd like to see the entire album layout, click here for the slide show!