It wasn’t until I was in my car heading south to photograph Kristie and Casey’s Big Sur wedding that I realized why they were having it on a Wednesday at the end of February … It was Leap Year day!

Silly of me, I know. But I was so excited about all the other details of the wedding that I didn’t dwell on the fact that it was on a weekday. The wedding was to be a small gathering, just a few people, in my favorite place on earth, Big Sur.

I met Kristie through my dear friend Belinda, who owns the barn where my wife Amber and I got married. On Kristie & Casey’s wedding day, we all met at the barn, where the couple was staying for the week, and did some of the day’s first photos there and at nearby Pfeiffer Beach. We knew that rain was a possibility, so Kristie prepared by buying some umbrellas and rubber boots that would look good in pictures. They were troopers as we braved the wet and wind at the iconic Big Sur beach, and came away with some great pictures.

The wedding ceremony was at Sofanya White’s Dome, the “Jewel in the Forest” on Palo Colorado Road. Sofanya, a Big Sur artist and officiant, has an outdoor space for weddings and other events, but the rain kept us indoors. Which turned out to be perfect: We were in a cozy but open room with subdued warm light for a relaxed, intimate ceremony, family seated on couches and chairs in the living room, vows exchanged in front of a large window that looked out into the surrounding redwood forest.

Considering that one of the things Kristie, Casey and I all have in common is our love of the book The Wild Trees, about redwood forests, we were excited about being surrounded by the tall trees for the ceremony. And we finished the day in another redwood grove, a spot at Deetjen’s Big Sur Inn, where they ended their wedding day with family dinner.

The whole day was a great time with a wonderful couple who put together a beautiful wedding day in a place that’s extra special to them. I know they’re looking forward to returning to celebrate their anniversary … four years from now!