Earlier this month I had the pleasant surprise to land an amazing gig on the west coast.  Most people know me as a wedding photographer in Atlanta, as I have been a part of over 600 weddings in my career.  Others may know me as a portrait photographer with subjects ranging from newborns to families.  I am ALWAYS ready to wear the badge of DESTINATION PHOTOGRAPHER.  🙂

This adventure began with a private flight from Atlanta to Santa Barbara.  I was hired by two families to cover all of the fun on their exciting spring break getaway.  Because a family vacation is of a private nature I don’t have any photojournalism coverage to share, but I thought I’d share some of the beautiful sights along the way on this luxe trip………….

It’s always hard to be in Santa Barbara, and not feel completely and totally happy to be there.  It’s a beautiful place.  I am always obsessed with the foliage of Santa Barbara.

Our first stop was the fantastic San Ysidro Ranch.  San Ysidro Ranch is understated luxury all around.  The resort consists of a cluster of uber private bungalows tucked onto the hillside.  The place is covered in wisteria, rosemary, bougainvillea, and lemon trees.  It smells like all of these things dancing on the ocean air.  It’s truly phenomenal.

There were many celebrity sightings on this trip.  This was a quick shot of Hilary Duff and her husband, hockey player Mike Comrie.  I assume this was a ‘babymoon’ of sorts as they got married at the ranch.   I couldn’t help sneaking one shot of these two as they were sitting only a few feet away, but left it at that.  I’m not a rat.  😉

Santa Barbara has some stunning golf clubs.  We took a quick tour of a couple.  We don’t have courses with views like this in Atlanta.

We didn’t dine here at Tydes in The Coral Casino Private Club, but the view was too fantastic.

We left Santa Barbara for Beverly Hills.  It’s funny how different the two spots feel.  In Santa Barbara I was inspired by the vegetation, beautiful diffused light, and crisp ocean air.  Beverly Hills was bright, sharp, and tingled with energy.  I loved getting these two amazing cities as inspiration in one trip.

To stay in the presidential bungalow at The Beverly Hills Hotel is a once in a lifetime experience(though I am determined to make a repeat happen one day).  It’s the best of the best!

Luxury, luxury, luxury!  The decor of the living area in the bungalow was perfect.  I sat in that leather chair in the corner every night.  Wish I could have taken it home with me.  🙂

Portrait of a happy destination photographer from Atlanta!  🙂

I was thrilled to get the chance to see the new Cirque du Soleil show OVO at the Santa Monica Pier.  It was a fantastic show!

Perfectly private pool…………………

Now THIS was exciting for me.  I saw Paris Hilton, Kelsey Grammer, Lenny Kravitz, Ben Stein, William Levy……..but Rachel Zoe took the cake for this gal.  I am obsessed with all of the Bravo shows, but have always thought that Zoe is a brilliant fashion maven.

Check out day arrived, and it was back on the plane to Atlanta.  What a fantastic time.  If you have an extra special trip coming up I would love to tag along to capture every minute.  It’s a great thing to relax in the moment knowing that Photo By Gannon is along to save every memory for you, and even be an extra hand to help out with the kids.  Maybe you don’t need to bring that travel nanny along after all?  Hmmmmmm……….

Planning a destination wedding?  Let’s talk!  🙂

 

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