How awesome was Sunita & Brian’s Monterey wedding? Let me count the ways.

The weather was perfect. The venue, The Perry House, was beautiful. The ceremony elicited both tears and laughter. There was custom-made home-brewed beer. The schedule stayed on track and I had plenty of opportunities to shoot portraits of the happy couple. The food was delicious and the cupcakes by The Wild Plum Cafe got devoured and the dance party at the end was epic. It is safe to say a good time was had by all.

I’ve known Sunita for a long time — we were coworkers at my old newspaper, The Salinas Californian. She’s always had a great sense of humor, cracking people up with her dry wit. After fighting back tears while she entered her wedding ceremony with her mom, she switched on the funny and had her guests laughing out loud at a few well-placed one-liners.

During the reception, it became apparent where Sunita got her humor from when her mom gave a speech that had everybody cracking up. She recounted the story of Brian asking her permission to propose to Sunita — a request she responded to by asking for a dowry involving a number of farm animals. Brian immediately got the joke and said it would be no problem: He grew up on a farm.

Brian stirred a few emotions himself, with his heartfelt vows and a speech during a reception in which he acknowledged that the wedding was not just a meeting of two families, but also a meeting of cultures.

Sunita & Brian’s first dance was to a song played on guitar and sang by Brian’s best man Travis. I later learned, to my amazement, that it was Travis’ first time ever performing in front of a group of people, making his beautiful performance all the more incredible.

This Monterey wedding had many beautiful details and moments. Check the gallery below to see my favorites.