Angela Sue Photography • Gilroy • CA 95020

What 3 words best describe your work?

Joyful, romantic, timeless.

Tell us about your company name.

Angela Sue Photography is named after Angela, who founded the business in 2014. Sue is Angela's middle name, a family named passed down for 3 generations that she shares with her mama and grandma.

Why should someone hire you?

Michael and Angela are focused on finding the perfect fit—we believe in love. Unconditional, relentless love. And our Angela Sue experience is all about elevating and strengthening the marriages of our couples. We aim to love and serve our couples (and fellow wedding vendors). Our job is to help you capture this legacy of love you are writing.

What are the common misconceptions about your services?

The wedding photography experience is not just about the wedding day itself. In fact, about 50% of the work that goes into the Angela Sue couple's experience occurs before the wedding day.

We invest in top-of-the-line professional equipment, training and education, and a few extra surprises—all of which equips us with the skills to produce a great product. Wedding photography is an investment not just in nice photos, but in professionals who have mastered their craft, run a business, and provide stellar customer experiences.

We often hear clients or guests at a wedding say something like, "Wow! Your camera takes great pictures!" Anyone can purchase a professional camera, but it takes practice, training and even a few mistakes along the way to hone the craft, spot and choose good light, pose clients in ways that flatter them, draw out joyful and genuine expressions, make the experience feel easy and comfortable, and edit images in a consistent style. It isn't the camera that takes great pictures. It's your professional photographer.

What drew you to this field/how did you get started?

Our families have always respectively valued photography. The love for capturing memories has been passed down to us by our loved ones, and the fulfilling joy of getting to celebrate with couples on their best days makes wedding photography life-giving. Angela started this business in the tail end of her college years with senior portraits, a wedding or two for a roommate, and family photos. It has evolved into a full-fledged bridal and portrait experience full of love, generosity, and joy.

What are some sources of inspiration or influences on your work?

We are largely inspired by our own couples. We know that could sound cheesy, but really—each time we book a new Angela Sue couple, we are reminded just how blessed we are to get to serve brides and grooms. It's also fortunate that we are part of a community of wedding photographers and vendors who are all about community over competition. Our friends in the wedding photography industry encourage us, challenge us, and cheer us on every day. We are drawn to the light and airy, colorful, true-to-life, dreamy style of images you see in our portfolio, and we've been blessed to learn and be inspired by other photographers.

Tell us about a favorite, unusual or very interesting moment at a wedding:

One of our Angela Sue couples got married on our bride's family vineyard. Her family transformed the entire property just for this special day (talk about the biggest DIY project ever). Around the ceremony site, they had industrial sprinklers lining the grass, and the DJ (who was such a wonderful guy) accidentally hit one with his trailer, which sent a 20 foot gushing stream of water into the air and all over the ceremony site. While it could have been a total disaster, the amazing thing was watching the friends and family present rush to help stop the water, clean up the site, and prepare it for the ceremony.

We've also been really privileged to photograph diverse religious ceremonies, including a Jewish wedding. It was an honor and a blessing to be present for the historic traditions and beautiful rituals that ceremoniously united our couple. The music, dancing and food was incredible and fun!

What makes a wedding memorable for you?

The weddings that really stick out for us are the ones where we get to serve on the most incredible wedding vendor teams. While we love simple events so much, when we get to work with a full service wedding team (i.e. planners, florists, bands, rentals, photo booths, bartenders, and more), it really elevates the experience for the client and makes it all the more fun for us!

What have weddings taught you?

Weddings have taught us that no two relationships are ever the same. What is right for one couple does not have to be right for another, and we see so often that our couples don't know that they are free to make the rules. We always tell our sweet brides and grooms when they're feeling stressed or pressured: their wedding is about their relationship above all else. And that means they get to make the rules for their wedding. We've learned that not only are we photographers at weddings, but we're basically professional best friends who always put the couple first, the wedding team second, and ourselves last.

What is the best advice you give a couple when planning their wedding?

Always remember why you are getting married. It's not about the perfect florals or the most coordinated first dance or anything in between. This day is about the two of you, your love story, and the commitment you are making to each other. That's what we are all about. The rest of it—the perfect florals or a choreographed first dance—will all come naturally when you start with why.

If you could have any superpower on the job, what would it be?

Our superpower would be the ability to slow time. Wedding days go by so fast! Even our couples often feel like their wedding day was a blur. If we could slow things down, somehow release our couples from the stress and pressure, everyone would enjoy the day so much more! And we'd get to capture more of it, too!

What are 3 words that describe your personality?

Enthusiastic, encouraging, loving.

What's your favorite book/movie/work of art?

Michael's favorite movie: Dumb and Dumber

Angela's favorite work of art: Taylor Swift's Lover album (yes, I consider that a work of art lol)

What's your favorite marriage advice?

Conflict is natural and unavoidable. So commit to always address conflict as a team. It's the two of you against the problem. Not the two of you against each other.

Extracurricular activities:

We both love to play guitar, binge Netflix, work on puzzles and eat at all the Mexican restaurants we possibly can.

If you weren't in your current profession, what would you do instead?

Angela actually has an education and career in marketing and graphic design. Michael always dreamed of working in real estate. No matter what we end up doing, we thrive when we are in charge of ourselves. We are always dreaming of ways to free up more time to spend with each other, loved ones and friends, because that is what we're all about: love.

What's your favorite way to wind down after a hard day?

Our favorite way to wind down is a tasty meal (sometimes that's mac and cheese) and watch one of our favorite movies or shows (i.e. Parks and Rec, anything by Disney or Pixar, etc).

What are some of your favorite places to eat—either everyday spots or special occasion splurges?

Aqui Cal Mex is our go-to spot for treating ourselves. The industrial-strength margaritas (a.k.a. swirls) are the bomb, and the entrées are perfect for sharing. But if we're keeping it low key, we would likely be waiting in the drive-thru line at Taco Bell. So, pretty much Mexican food either way.