By Sun and Sparrow

1 The Lodge at Malibou Lake Wedding Gallery:

The Lodge at Malibu Lake Wedding101 scaled

The Lodge at Malibu Lake Wedding105 scaled

The Lodge at Malibu Lake Wedding109 scaled

A Wedding Ceremony set up at The Lodge at Malibou Lake

wooden chairs and a hand fan, along with flowers at the Lodge at Malibou Lake

A bride walks down the aisle at the Lodge at Malibou Lake. Nature surrounds them

The efficient laughs at a wedding in Malibu as the bride and groom smile

As the bride and groom kiss, walking out of their wedding, their guests look on with joy. Colorful flowers flank the aisle, and trees surround the background of the ceremony space. The lodge at Malibou lake is a dreamy location for a wedding

During golden hour, a bride and groom share a signature cocktail at their wedding in Southern California

a bride and groom smile in a classic portrait at Malibou Lake

A bride stands near an arch, covered in florals, that is to be used in her wedding. in the second picture she smells the flowers and smiles. The flowers are yellow, peach, white, and pink

A groom sits in a classic car as his bride leans near to him

A photograph of a bride and groom in a classic car features the groom's gold wedding ring and his watch, while in another photograph the bride and groom share an intimate moment in the front seat of a classic car, faces close together, smiling.

A bride and groom pose near Malibou lake at their wedding, hosted at the Malibou Lake Lodge

A bride takes a moment of introspection in the middle of her wedding day as she stands on a dock at Malibou Lake

A bride rests her head on her groom, in front of a gate at malibou Lake. There is a bush with red flowers also

A bride and groom pose for romantic portraits at Malibou Lake. The groom's hand rests on the small of her back and she smiles

The bride and groom cross the street at the Lodge at Malibou Lake near the lake. They are smiling at each other and the streetlights have just come on because the sun is setting

A welcome sign greets people entering Alex and Natalie's wedding at the lodge at Malibou Lake in Southern California. The sign is adorned with colorful and tasteful flower arrangements

Gorgeous interior of the Lodge at Malibou Lake featuring colorful flowers, tasteful lighting, cross back chairs, and wood covered walls

Colorful florals on a wooden table, set for a wedding in Malibu

A bride and groom pose for a whimsical picture at the lode at Malibou lake

a bride and groom have a champagne toast during their wedding at the Lodge at Malibou Lake

A bride and groom cut their elegant cake at the lodge at Malibou Lake

2 The Couple: Natalie and Alex

Natalie and Alex are a beautiful couple. It was such a privilege to photograph their wedding and I am thankful to be their photographer. Their wedding at The Lodge at Malibu Lake was gorgeous, and I especially enjoyed some of the special touches they used to make their day their own.

To better understand Natalie and Alex’s special day, you must understand Natalie and Alex. Natalie is a very poised person who understands herself and what she wants. She moves very gracefully and has a background in ballet. Photographing her wedding felt like being part of a fairy tale because everything about her was wonderfully styled and elegant.

I believe that it was instrumental in Natalie’s fairy tale day that she understands fairy tales deeply, as she works at Disney in post-production. Somehow, even while holding all of these attributes, Natalie is also incredibly soft-spoken and sweet and was surrounded on her wedding day by people with whom she has cherished friendships. Her maid of honor, for instance, was in cheer with her when they were younger and they are inseparable.

Alex, the other half of this precious pair, was born in Russia and is very close to his Russian family. I observed them throughout the day, speaking Russian with one another and having a great time together.

Alex comes across as a multicultural person, with bold taste. He is incredibly loving and outgoing and values fun in his life and relationships. He is clearly a hard worker and brought an energy of connection to the wedding. It was as if he could slow down time to create these perfect and permanent memories.

Alex’s love of vintage cars was included in the wedding and created a moment that stood out to me. They included a Chevrolet Corvair in their wedding, which is a rare collector’s item. Whenever a couple includes something that uniquely represents themselves I enjoy it so much.

3 The Day:

Natalie and Alex’s day was a magical experience. It was colorful and romantic, with a garden theme. The details were thoughtful and beautiful. I spent a lot of time enjoying them as I set up the perfect flat lays for the perfect images to go with their perfect day. So many of my couples are thoughtful about the details of their wedding, but Natalie had every detail carefully planned out.

Natalie’s planning paid off as the morning went smoothly, but no one could make a wedding perfect on their own! Natalie’s maid of honor was instrumental in curating the perfect environment for everyone. She was incredibly friendly and bubbly, keeping the energy up all morning. She walked around making sure that everyone was having a good time by encouraging them.

Most important to Alex were his relationships. He made sure that his dad was there for his getting-ready pictures and the photographs were something really special because he emphasized that value.

The officiant was an old friend of Alex. Having some of the same friends for a really long time really shows the type of person someone is. There are so many things that can go wrong with a relationship, so when people remain friends for so long it is clear that they are able to remain steadfast.

Alex and his officiant both arrived in America during preschool and they met when they got here. Neither of them spoke English or the other’s language. It must have been an incredible sight to see these two first connecting without the use of language, eventually bonding over their shared experience of migrating to a new country. After all of these years, they remained friends and even got to take part in each other’s big life events!

4 The Venue: The Lodge at Malibou Lake

The Lodge at Malibou Lake wedding venue is a quaint and luxurious space with a beautiful open field and views of Malibou Lake. It has tall evergreen trees and there is a mountainscape off in the distance. There is also a rose garden, along with a lot of greenery.

Something that makes the Lodge at Malibou Lake unique is a feature of its environment. There are lots of different spaces to mingle at the venue, and while that is not unique, their proximity to one another is. The various hangout spots on the property are close enough to each other that the day becomes very easy for the bride and groom. The lodge also provides a getting-ready space, which helps any wedding day feel easier. I love it when my brides and grooms can free up some time on their wedding day to enjoy themselves!

When I think about the design of the Malibou Lake Lodge there are two spaces that really stand out to me as beautiful. First, the Bar/lounge area offers a masculine and eclectic flair that is cozy and dark so you can have a drink with friends. Second, there is a reception space on the other side of the building with a gorgeous bay window offering a wonderful view of the gardens and the lawn. Honestly, the Lodge at Malibou Lake is one of the most beautiful places in Southern California.

5 Details and Decor:

Like I said earlier, this wedding was immaculately planned, and all of the details perfectly matched each other. The colors that Natalie chose were perfect for their summer wedding. She chose oranges, pinks, blushes, blues, and yellows. They were warm colors with a vibrant energy, like a sunset on the beach. The colors gave the whole day a warm and welcoming feel.

Often at The Lodge at Malibu Lake Wedding, couples will choose to face their ceremony toward the lake so as to have it in the background. Natalie and Alex went a different direction and the risk paid off immensely. This ceremony faced toward the rose garden and the taller trees, giving it a lush garden feel. That feeling was the ultimate realization of Natalie’s fairy tale vision, which she told me was to have a colorful garden party with wildflowers. Not that there were actual wildflowers at the wedding. Instead, luxurious and beautiful flowers were carefully chosen to remind guests of wildflowers and their colorful freedom.

Similarly, the wedding invitations minted were gorgeous and matched well with the wedding theme. Their floral design was incredibly delicate and contributed to the feeling of floral freedom that flowed through the entire wedding.

A fairy tale has a lot of elements to it and Natalie’s was no exception. Her wedding dress was stunning, and she was excited to wear something that matched Kate Middleton’s dress so closely. What is more fairytale than royalty? I have to say that Natalie looked gorgeous in her wedding dress.

Finally, it was remarkable that the newly married couple drove away in a Chevrolet Corvair, which is a sought-after collector’s car that Alex found very interesting. I felt like I was in a movie, being in Malibu at such a beautiful location, watching the couple in this perfect classic car.