Hi Arken Studios followers! We had the privilege of second shooting a wedding with Kate Harrison at the Beltane Ranch in Glen Ellen, CA. Historic Beltane Ranch is an absolutely beautiful property on a hillside overlooking vineyards and wineries of Sonoma County. Be sure to check them out as they are an excellent venue and have beautiful private accommodations for a wine country getaway as well.
Here are some images from the day. We loved shooting Jodie and James! We wish them the all the happiness in the world in building their lives together.
If you find yourself in Sonoma and you’ve got a craving for some amazing Mexican food check out the brand new El Molino Central Restaurant.
El Molino Central Restaurant
Arken Studios was recently asked to take images for their menu and website. We eagerly accepted!
Saying this is a small place is an understatement. They have ONE table inside which seats two, and a small seating area on their patio. Don’t let its size fool you. What it lacks in size it more than makes up for in taste and quality!
El Molino Interior
Can’t you just smell the drip coffee and fresh tortillas? Yes, fresh tortillas! They stone grind their own corn for their fresh, hot tortillas daily - yummm!
El Molino Coffee
Grinding Corn for Fresh Tortillas!
The demand for their delicious Mexican food has been incredible with one problem - El Molino Central opened its doors with NO paper menus! While we were there customers kept streaming in taking their food to go. The need for a menu was obvious. The flavor of their food is also obvious as you can see from the images below.
Melissa was brought in to design a menu for them and Ron photographed the charming restaurant and their delectable main dishes. Problem solved!
Scrumptious
More scrumptious
In a nutshell - This is not your normal Mexican take-out joint. It is a little jewel of a place where scrumptiously authentic, artfully prepared tacos, tostadas and all your favorites (plus a few surprises) await you!
We were privileged to photograph the grand opening of Franco’s Ristorante, Pizzeria and Wine Bar on Thursday June 10th, 2010. After only being open for a short time, Franco’s is already making a name for itself as the best authentic Italian spot in town! The food is homemade and beyond delicious. The staff is warm and welcoming and makes you feel like family. The wine they serve and cook with is top-notch. They feature vintages from several local wineries such as D’Argenzio Winery.
Here are a few images from the event! Click here to VIEW THE FULL GALLERY.
Renewing of one’s Wedding Vows is a special way to reaffirm your love to your spouse. Stacey and Tyler decided to reaffirm their vows to one another while on their 5th Wedding Anniversary get-away to California. Reverend Lucinda Martin officiated the ceremony lakeside at beautiful Howarth Park, Spring Lake, Santa Rosa. There were plenty of ducks and geese to witness the intimate ceremony on this quiet Thursday morning.
Reverend Lucinda had wonderful words to share with the couple. We were honored to be able to capture this special time in their lives.
- Dear Nancy, Ron, Melissa -
- I cannot tell you how much we appreciate the services that the Crain family provided during our recommitment ceremony in April. Being able to spend the day with you all, and to have such amazing shots of our day will remind us of just how special you helped our day to be. We had heard such amazing things about the creativity and non-interference way that you all operate, and were not let down at all. Some photographers tout “personal touches” and end up with the same stock shots that anyone with a camera captures. Needless to say, this is NOT the case with Arken.
- Cheers,
- Tyler and Stacey
We enjoyed spending the day with Tyler & Stacey as well as Lucinda. After the Reaffirmation Ceremony we had a short drive to Kenwood and had a wonderful meal at Cafe Citti. A nice intimate Italian cafe. After our meal we visited Chateau St. Jean where we strolled around their beautiful grounds and then tasted their Reserve offerings poured by the knowlegable Bob Beck.
We really enjoyed our time with Stacey and Tyler and wish them the best back home in Colorado. We hope to keep in touch and visit again next time they come to Sonoma County!
Join us in welcoming Bella to the world. Bella as you know is Italian for “Beautiful” and isn’t the name fitting? Such a little sweetheart, we barely heard a cry out of her during the photography session. Her Mother Stefanie is obviously proud of her little creation as she should be.
Stefanie & Bella - Arken Studios - Sonoma County Baby Photographer
Stefanie & Bella - Arken Studios - Sonoma County Baby Photographer
Bella - Arken Studios - Sonoma County Baby Photographer
Congratulations to Sean and Erica Elderton! What a fantastic wedding in a fantastic setting. Erica was a beautiful bride and the gown was just fabulous. There are just too many great shots.
Sean & Erica’s Ceremony was held March 27th at the Pioneer United Methodist Church which is the oldest church in Placer County. After the Ceremony we had the entire Bridal party walk across the street to create images at the beautiful Court House. We had a great time shooting the after ceremony shots as you can tell. The weather couldn’t have been more perfect as I sit here in our Sebastopol office of Arken Studios this weekend with the rain coming down non-stop.
I wanted to thank all the brides with whom we had the opportunity to speak with at the Walnut Creek Bridal Fair. The Marriott Hotel provided a wonderful venue for the event as always. We also had a great time talking with all the other great wedding vendors. There’s nothing quite like the excitement of a new bride experiencing for the first time what will become her wedding. Visiting the Event Staff, Caterers, Cake decorators, and of course their photographer. Many times the brides have yet to decide on the style of her wedding. Will it be elegant, festive, classic or contemporary? Seeing the possibilities at an all inclusive event such as a Bridal Fair is a real eye opener for her. It’s the same with their photographer. What style of photography will she want for preserving the memories of her most special day? There’s Traditional, Formal, Candid, Photojournalistic. Will she want B&W images, full color or an edgy cross processed look to her album? Many times she hasn’t even thought about these possibilities. That’s where Arken Studios comes in. We can help make the decision by showing the options. We can also photograph the wedding in any style desired with our experience and training. One thing is sure, the Bride and Groom can be rest assured that making the decision to use Arken Studios to photograph their wedding will be the most comfortable decision for their day. We LOVE photographing weddings. Call us and schedule a FREE consultation so we capture your love and your wedding with our unique artistry! 707-824-0497
Arken Studios LOVES Valentine’s Day! A day devoted to the one you love! What better way to show your love than to schedule your engagement photo shoot this Valentine’s Day season.
Call by Valentine’s day to schedule your wedding consultation and recieve a complimentary Extended Engagement Session, a $950 value, upon booking your wedding. Normally we include an in-studio engagement shoot with most of our wedding packages, but for a limited time in celebration of the season of L-O-V-E, we’ll go the extra mile and capture your passion for each other with an all day shoot on location in some of the most picturesque areas of Sonoma County.
This session is truly an experience you’ll relive together every time you view the art we create from the day. Whether you purchase a coffee table book or a wonderful canvas gallery wrap for your walls, you’ll just want to hug each other again every time you view them.
Remember, dates book up quickly so hurry and schedule your wedding photography consultation with us! And if you reserve your wedding date over the phone, we’ll schedule a date for your awesome photography session immediately!
Engagement Photoshoot ON Valentine’s Day is available first come first served. All others can be scheduled after Valentine’s Day.
Call us at 707-824-0497 or email us with your information.
Although Weddings and Portraits are our current passion, what we don’t advertise much is that I was first trained in product photography. Recently I had the opportunity to do some photography for a good friend who has a specialty car boutique accessory business on the internet. I didn’t know this but apparently there is a huge interest in mini tools for your keyring. Tom Clawges has started to develop a series of tools and accessories for your keyring and his latest products are the Inchworm (a ruler in the round, as Tom calls it) and the hightech “P-7 Suspension Clip” which prevents your key fob from sitting at the bottom of your pocket or purse. These are progressions from his PicoPen which I keep on my own keyring. Check out his products at http://www.tecaccessories.com
- TEC Accessories Inchworm
TEC Accessories Key Clip
Happy almost New Year, everyone! We just recently shot Rebecca’s senior photos and wanted to share a few of them with you. We did some really fun in-studio shots which included some featuring Rebecca with her guitar. Being a song-writer, it was really important to her to capture the intimacy between herself and her instrument.
Remember, don’t delay in calling or emailing us to book your 2010 portrait session!
