Photograffiti by Auey Santos | Blog | San Francisco Bay Area Photography

A Wedding of Pure Vintage Bliss @ Tollhouse Hotel, Los Gatos

admin — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 21:20:56 +0000

Sentimental old touches like vintage handkerchiefs, a grandmother’s cameo and mason jars used as centerpieces made up the beautiful vintage wedding of Wendy and Jason at the Tollhouse Hotel in Los Gatos CA. I had the fortune of covering this wedding under Claudia Akers Photography and it was such a joy to take part in their special day. The bride was quite the artsy one, crafting her own signs and decorations including the pink flowers at the ceremony site! Just check out the highlights below.

The Scream | Baby Ronav @ 2 weeks

admin — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 21:06:08 +0000

AHHHH Enough pictures! Ronav seems to yelling at me, as I point my camera at his pudgy little face for the ninth time during his newborn baby session. Actually, I had caught him mid-yawn, seconds before he fell into one of his mini-naps. Lucky for me though – as I was able to shoot him in all stages of wakefulness. Most baby photographers know that half of the work is waiting on the set for babies to wake-up or nurse. And then, you have about 15-20 minutes of happy-smiley-baby-time to shoot. But I don’t mind that part at all…newborn photos are priceless. Case in point, when I returned to their house a month later to do the proofing session, Ronav had already hunked out and no longer looked this brand spanking new. I’m so grateful mommy Rathna asked me to do the shoot at the right time.

“Who’s your daddy?”

The quintessential baby-in-a-pod Anne Geddes wannabee shot. Yes, I heart Anne Geedes and while I don’t want to be her, I do get some client requests for these types of shots. And sometimes, just sometimes….I manage to get it right. Sometimes when you do a session, you get something pleasantly unexpected. Visiting grandparents from India were in the room and my client asked me to take a quick snapshot of them together because they have no professional photos of them. I asked them to stand against the white wall and they were so conscious of the camera and started cracking up the moment I started snapping. I just rolled with it and this is one of my favorite images from the session.

Look at those eyes!? Can you say INTENSE? A couple of future heartbreakers, I tell you.

Rathna is so beautiful here, with the sleep deprivation glow of new motherhood.

Hello Oakland! | Family Session @ Joaquin Miller Park

admin — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 19:25:23 +0000

I haven’t made the official announcement but we (meaning me, my family and the business) are now officially based in Oakland. YAY. We will miss everybody back in Fremont/Union City but it’s time we moved on. Besides, we are only 20 miles away.

It’s been a rollercoaster of emotions buying our dream house on a hill (ok, hillside – we still got a breathtaking view of the Bay) for the past two months but all our hard work has finally handed us our sweet reward. Our VERY OWN house. I can put up frames wherever I want to now. I can paint the walls. And best of all, I will have my very own shooting space to serve my friends, family and clients better! The Photograffiti studios, now under renovation – to be unveiled soon!

The studio won’t build itself and it will take some time, tears and sweat for that to actually happen. So in the interim, I continue to utilitize the natural backdrops the gorgeous Bay Area has to offer. And lucky me – we discovered this beautiful venue for this Oakland-native family’s session, Joaquin Miller Park. I couldn’t have asked for a better day to photograph. I had all the elements to make it work – warm weather, a beautiful family and nature around me. It had waterfalls, trees, a fountain and these beautiful stone steps. It was quite a work-out running after Ben and Rachel but I think the session yielded some awesome photos.

Tanya + Edmund Maternity Session

admin — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 15:12:51 +0000

Nothing makes me feel fuzzier inside than watching a family grow. Okey, maybe being able to photograph the process is a notch above that. Tanya and Edmund hired me a few years back to shoot their Napa wedding. It was perhaps one of my most memorable weddings that year, cuz was 7 months pregnant at the time of their wedding. I was waddling around with my two cameras as my bride and groom waited patiently for me in the vinyards — we laughed about it later. And I teased Tanya to just wait until it was her turn with the mommy bump. So nothing pleased me more than the opportunity to photograph this special time as they are preparing for their first baby in July. Doesn’t Tanya look absolutely radiant? We are all looking forward to meeting the newest Duldulao!

Travelife Magazine

admin — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 16:27:01 +0000

The evidence of my recent Napa food trip extravaganza has been published in the June-July 2010 edition of Travelife magazine. It’s currently distributed in Asia and Europe, and soon in the United States. The Napa article features the writing by Kaye Cloutman and additional photography by A.K. Sandhu. Do grab a copy if you can!

Anthony Bourdain’s Medium Raw

admin — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 16:28:11 +0000

While I’m primarily a portrait and wedding photographer, once in awhile, I get an assignment so far out of left field for me. On task was event coverage of a book signing and intimate lunch with American author, TV host and chef Anthony Bourdain. He was promoting his latest book “Medium Raw” and I was asked to shoot the event for the San Francisco Book Review. I nearly died! I read Kitchen Confidential years ago and have since been a fan of his show on the Travel Channel, No Reservations. The event was a Cooks with Books luncheon, held at Il Fornaio restaurant in San Francisco and sponsored by Book Passage.

Sylvia’s Having a Baby!

admin — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 13:39:50 +0000

A good photographer friend of mine, Sylvia is 38 weeks on the family way! I was tickled pink and a bit nervous to photograph her and her gorgeous family. It’s always a little daunting to shoot a fellow photographer, especially one as talented as she is. But I was up to the challenge as headed over to Garin Regional Park one absolutely beautiful Sunday afternoon. Here are my favorites from that session. I do look forward to seeing one of my images on her soon-to-pop-out daughter Eliana’s wall, as as her beautiful images of my family are on ours! Hugs, Sylvia. Can’t wait to meet the new baby.

St. Gregory Church, San Mateo | Pacific Athletic Club

admin — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 18:45:09 +0000

I love weddings where the couples celebrate their heritage and incorporate traditions into their special day. Monica’s Mexican-inspired wedding came complete with the padrinos, mariachi music, the lazo and arras ceremony. But despite the numerous Mexican weddings I’ve had the honor to photograph, this was the first time for me to witness a ”La Vivora de la Mar” dance. Both Monica and Dan stood on separate chairs with the veil being held up. All the females were instructed to hold the person in front of them and run though the guests and tables in and out of doors as the music starts. Then the guys did the same thing. I wasn’t too sure what the point of it was but it is such a fun and lively tradition. Insert here.

Bret and Mak Version 3.0

admin — Tue, 25 May 2010 13:57:48 +0000

I love children. It must be my penchant for new things. Everybody loves a new bag or a new car – but new people? How is possible that some people NOT like children? Whenever I meet a child and they share something with me that they know, it just boggles my mind. Only a few years ago – they were just a lump of googoo-gahing cuteness. And now they know the alphabet and how to count, and wait — the capitals of all 50 states?!

So, I hooked up with uber-cute Smith family for their annual pictorial in San Jose, home of the Sharks. (Now, that’s a hockey team, right? KIDDING, Brian). I had been photographing the twins Makenna and Bret since they were in pullups. I was anxious to see them again because our pictorials are like annual play dates. We get to spend two hours of just talking, playing, running around – and shooting too. Makenna is a beautiful little girl, rough and tumble and can keep up with with any boy. Bret is a little reserved and (I deduce) a deep thinker. I just feel so honored to be an adoptee aunt for a few hours in their life once a year. Goodness, where did the time go? See you next year!

And for kicks – here are some photos from 2006. They are SOOO cute.

Marriott Hotel San Jose

admin — Sun, 23 May 2010 18:12:54 +0000

Going through my archives again, I found this fashion-inspired wedding I did last year in San Jose. I had never met the couple before the wedding day and it was a little intimidating for a first time meetup. What I did quickly learn about the couple is that they loved posing and wanted fashion-inspired photos. Not typically my style of photography – I did my darnest best to deliver the images they wanted, but with my twist. I wanted to keep my signature look of natural and spontaneous expressions. Here are my favorites of the day.