Holden and Ryan’s story starts with a serendipitous encounter at Cafe de la Presse in San Francisco: they caught each other’s eye while drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes at separate tables, started to chat, and ended up talking for hours. I knew that their wedding day had to include a visit to the place where it all began, so I suggested that we schedule time in between their ceremony and their reception for a stop at the cafe. The trip ended up being an even lovelier opportunity for Holden and Ryan to slow down, find a rare moment to relax, and enjoy an espresso and a cigarette as if they were simply continuing the conversation they had started so many years ago.

For their ceremony, they exchanged vows on the iconic fourth floor of San Francisco’s City Hall. Holden wore a timeless structured Valentino gown she found off the rack at Neiman Marcus, paired with a short veil, patent leather Gucci heels, and a signet ring bearing Ryan’s initial. They celebrated with an intimate dinner at Hotel Majestic later that evening, where a bagpiper and a cozy, candlelit ambiance greeted all of the guests. Their wedding cake was a simple, two-tier presentation decorated with hydrangeas and the city skyline, and it led to one of my favorite candid photos — Ryan passing the first slice to a guest, Holden completely at ease and sampling the frosting for herself.