Bowerbird Photography is Featured in Popstatic Bride

    Popstatic Bride did a wonderful feature of a San Francisco wedding we were photographers for last month - here's just a snapshot!  Karin and Craig's "how-we-met" story is soooo cute.  Thanks to Popstatic Bride for the feature!  

Brown Pelican in the Presidio, Taken by San Francisco Photographers, Bowerbird Photography

    Bowerbird Photography had a family portrait session in the Presidio last Saturday.  The day was gorgeous and sunny.  Sam couldn't resist the opportunity to take some bird portraits.  Here are a collection of photographs taken of a juvenile Brown Pelican, also known as the American brown pelican or common pelican (pelacanus occidentalis).  The juveniles have distinctive brown plumage, while adults have beautiful white necks and crowns - that's how I know this is a youth.  
    Pelicans have suffered the vicissitudes of population decline and recovery throughout the century.  In the early 1900s these birds, without many natural predators, were hunted by man for their beautiful feathers.  While women at that time cut striking figures with elegant (and awesomely outrageous) hats, the  headgear came with a mortal price.  However, in 1918 the Migratory Bird Treaty Act was passed giving some protection to the birds.
    During the First World War, times were tough for all: fisherman killed these birds thinking that they were unfairly poaching on their fish harvests.  Luckily, in recent times, these birds seem to have shed their pariah image. (Other species, like the wolf, have not fared so well, falling victim to farmers and aerial gunners like Sarah Palin.)  In recent memory, the bird was all but decimated with the introduction of that notorious pesticide, DDT.  According to Ariel's parents, who were frequent beach goers in the the 60s, hardly a bird could be seen on the California Coast.  The government took action and the pelican was listed as an endangered species and DDT was banned.  Pelicans made a wonderful comeback, and it's hard to imagine our coasts without them, or how we ever let their populations ebb so low.  However, I think it is important to remain vigilant.  The last two years Brown Pelicans have been dying for unknown reasons.  Their stomachs have contained a different diet from the usual meal of anchovies and sardines, and their feathers have been found coated with a mysterious substance.   (This reminds me of the other odd diseases we hear about in the the news that are striking other species, like the colony collapse disorder affecting bees.)  Nevertheless, the species does not appear in jeopardy of extinction right now, unlike in years passed.
    I am grateful for the opportunity to spend time with these wonderful birds, but it comes with the reminder that we must clean up our act.  I once worked for Northern California River Watch, and personally endorse them as a great, local environmental organization, in case your were wondering who to donate some money to this holiday season :)
    I hope you like these pictures.  Feel free to contact us at lovebirds@bowerbirdphotography.com, if you are interested in purchasing some prints.  Also, check back the next few days, as I will be posting photographs of different birds I encountered at the Presidio.

What would life be like if your mouth was bigger than your belly?

Alcatraz can just be seen in the background.

  I caught one of the pelicans in flight.

    Love the mohawk!  Or, is that a faux-hawk?  The Pelican is looking out over downtown San Francisco.  This bird looks so fly, and just itching to hit the clubs. 

Bowerbird Photography Featured on 4RealEqualityWeddings

     Another great feature of the gorgeous couple, Marke and David, this time by the wonderful people at 4RealEqualityWeddings! Check out their site if you have the chance because there are more great wedding details to read about and more photos to see than in the partial screenshot shown above.  

      Bowerbird Photography is committed to promoting gay rights, and is proud to be listed as 4RealEqualityWeddings' "recommended vendor."  Marke and David -- You are Famous!!! 

      Stick around and listen to their choice wedding beats below.

The Knife - "Heart Beats"

Sylvester - "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)"

Connie Francis - "Where the Boys Are"

Thompson Twins - "Hold Me Now"

Bowerbird Photography Featured on Rustic Wedding Chic

    It's wonderful to re-live this Seattle farm wedding through these photographs, and Bowerbird Photography is glad to be featured on Rustic Wedding Chic.  Thanks to Rustic Wedding Chic for writing a story on us and posting pictures.  For higher resolution wedding photos please visit our blog here: http://bowerbirdphoto.blogspot.com/2011/12/rustic-seattle-farm-wedding.html

Bowerbird Photography featured on BeeBeeBisous

    Today, Bowerbird Photography was featured on BeeBeeBisous with wedding photographs that we took last month of David and Marke in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park.  It's great to get to show off our couples' photographs on other wedding sites, and the couples love the chance to share their stories.  In the interview, we get the DL on how David and Marke met, details of their proposal, and even get some wedding advice!  

Pleasant Hill Family Photographer

   This weekend Bowerbird Photography had a second photo shoot, to celebrate Dol, when a Korean baby turns one year old. Earlier this year, we took photos to commemorate 100 days, which is called Baek-il. I loved how colorful and cheery his outfit was, especially the bright pink pants! Part of the fun of taking photographs is being able to learn about and document so many different cultural celebrations and meet so many wonderful families. Congratulations Wyatt on your 1st birthday!

Karin and Craig's San Francisco Wedding Photographs Taken with a Holga

    I've been enjoying shooting with my Holga camera, but find it almost unbearable to wait for the film to be developed.  Ariel and I got this roll of film professionally processed at the San Francisco Castro Photoworks, and of course, the anticipation was almost too much, and we ripped open the envelope barely before leaving the service counter.   
    Since Karin and Craig's wedding had a DIY spirit, with a Dia de Los Muertos celebratory theme, I thought that the Holga would be perfect to capture the occasion in a style that pushes beyond realist representation into a more pictorialist mode, and hopefully more ably communicating the whisper-like, evanescent moments of the wedding.  The Holga I use has a softening and uniquely distorting lens, with vignetting at the borders, that tends to produce a more expressionist-quality photograph.  Also, since each frame's negative is 120mm, great resolution is preserved in large-scale enlargements, just in case the newly-weds wanted a life-size portrait to hang on their wall! 
    It was such a joy to shoot at this wedding, located at the Potrero Hill Neighborhood House.  The bride looked beautiful in her vintage-inspired wedding dress, with the matching rose and lace bouquet made by her younger brother; the groom matched her style perfectly with a smart charcoal suit, and a playful marigold-orange and bone-white Dia de Los Muertos skull boutonniere.

A Rustic Seattle Farm Wedding

Bowerbird Photography was hired by Mel and Gus to shoot their beautiful farm wedding, a few hours north of Seattle. The farm has been in the groom's family for many years and was an exquisite location for their outdoor wedding. As Bay Area wedding photographers, we love the opportunity to travel to new places for weddings, especially when they're at such wonderful locations as this one. Our favorite photographic moment was after the ceremony, when the newlyweds rowed off in a little boat for a moment by themselves, before the party got started. Talk about picturesque!  

Occupy SF Closed by SF Police Today

    Ariel and I took these pictures at Occupy San Francisco.  People were eager to talk and share their stories with us.  Others have covered the political aspect of the protesters, but we were more interested in getting the personal stories and photographs of the protesters, and try to remain objective.  We learned that for many individuals, Occupy SF represented a home they otherwise would not have, and meant that they had a place to go at night that was safe.
    Today, San Francisco police raided the encampment and arrested many individuals.  There are some reports that the police used force to make these arrests.
    Our pictures simply attempt to show who some of the individuals are behind Occupy SF, which we thought especially relevant given recent events.  We invite comments below.

    Ariel took the photograph above, and the one below, for her San Francisco Street Threads column a couple weeks ago, in order to cover the fashion of the movement.  


     Question: "What does Occupy SF mean to you and how long have you been here?"


     Jackie: "The people reclaiming everything.  The system that is in place is not sustainable.  We need a change.  Everyone needs to be valued as a full human being.  I've been here on and off for a couple of weeks."

    Question: "What does Occupy SF mean to you and how long have you been here?"

    Waldo: "It's the act of a moment on an awakening.  I hitched here from Denver and got here on Saturday."