Shannon Montez Photography Blog » San Jose's Family and Child Photographer, Shannon Montez, captures all aspects of family life: Families, newborns, children, babies, high school seniors, and weddings.

Busy… but good! That pretty much describes things around here right now. I have some very exciting news:

I’m opening up a studio space in Downtown Campbell!

I couldn’t be more excited. I *love* the vibe of the city there, and there is so much going on, from farmers markets to art walks. It is so alive. And so cute! It’s been a dream of mine for a long time, so I’m excited to see this coming true. It’s close to my home, so it will be so nice to be able to pop over when I need to meet clients… this will be a great way to help people figure out what products we offer and what will look best in which size and so on. FUN!!

We’ve already leased the space and are working hard to make it match my vision.  One more coat of paint, and all the fun stuff: furniture and pictures… and then I’m ready to share. But trying to get all that done on top of a busy month full of sessions and kids and homework and, well, life in general, has made things pretty crazy sometimes. So please bear with me.

And while I’m here… let’s share a recent session! The adorable Davis family. Davis was my high school, and the middle name of my oldest son, so I have to love them, right? It was easy. I wanted to bring this little guy home with me. I’m fresh out of 16-month olds of my own, and I miss them.

He was so busy, I love watching them explore the world.

Even the dogs got into the action for a couple shots.

Can I just say again how much I love what I do?

Today my family went to visit the cousins… everyone except me. I had a fun session this morning, then took the afternoon wandering antique stores. I bought a couple of old cameras. I’m excited to play with them. I had takeout, had control of the remote, I cleaned the house and it stayed clean. It’s been a long time since I had a whole entire day of my very own to fill. I had so much fun! Just had to record that.

And while I’m here, I might as well post a session! This one was from this summer. It was a large family group. Large family groups can be intimidating and rather hard to work with. There’s not a whole lot outside the “class photo” sometimes, but we had fun! I did take a few shots that were just for me.

I LOVE these doors.

And these ones.

These two said they hadn’t kissed so much in a while… I think he enjoyed it, don’t you? I like it when I have that effect on people. I’m trying to make the world a better place.

Yi-Lin and Lingzhi are so much fun. Genuinely happy people… it’s impossible not to smile when you’re with them. Both of them came to the US for college… they met here, fell in love, and are starting their lives together on American soil. So their wedding was a fusion of their old homes and cultures and their new home and cultures. I loved getting a chance to learn more about them!

We started at a sister’s house for the tea ceremony. Yi-Lin was already looking beautiful when I got there.

The guys met downstairs and chatted while drinking tea and a special soup. They even gave me some of the soup… for good luck. It was very interesting.

Both of them looked very happy that day.

They thanked her parents for raising her so well.

Her father covered her face with the veil.

I love the glowy warmth of this shot of her leaving…

I thought this next part was fun… As the limo drove off, Yi-Lin threw a fan out the window. This was to symbolize leaving her bad temper home, and taking only her good temper to her new home.

I hope the bad temper isn’t actually transferred with the fan…

Once they reached the destination, Half Moon Bay Golf Links, they waited in the car until someone brought oranges for them to touch. I think this was to bring good luck.

The venue was gorgeous, overlooking the ocean.

During the ceremony…

Just Married! Doesn’t Lingzhi look delighted?

We headed out for some picture time!

Sorry Lingzhi, I had to take a couple pics of Yi-Lin looking amazing in her dress in that scenery…

But all of the pictures were bridals. We got some fun ones of both of them too.

I was getting tired of the sun overhead and the harsh shadows, so I set up a white backdrop for this one. Just kidding.

And somehow, there was nobody on the beach on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. Just kidding again. Thanks, photoshop.

On to the party! The reception was in Foster City at ABC Seafood Restaurant.

Instead of a first dance, Lingzhi and Yi-Lin opted for a first Karaoke. It was great.

For some reason, I really dig this shot of Yi-Lin’s dad during his speech. Everyone was really moved by his speech (I’m not sure what he said, but it must’ve been good… I could feel it)

They did dance, eventually. And Yi-Lin changed into a red dress during the reception. I loved it.

Last one… after the cake cutting. I thought this kiss was so sweet, his hand (with the new ring!) on her arm, his other hand in her hair…

Whew! Long post. And there is so much I left out. We had a great time. I loved meeting their friends and family and witnessing the joy of their day. Thanks, Yi-Lin and Lingzhi!