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Sunstone Winery California Styled Shoot

As a result of my full-time photography career, I’ve had the opportunity to travel to so many beautiful locations across the country/world. It can honestly be overwhelming at times to think about all of the amazing places I have been able to visit, I truly am grateful. I had the opportunity of being able to fly across the country and attend the most beautiful stylized shoot. This shoot hosted by Styled Shoots Across America, was definitely one to remember and I am BEYOND excited to be sharing these with you today these photos. However, I must warn you it’s a bit lengthy but worth it! Keep scrolling to read all about this Sunstone Winery California Styled Shoot.

Sunstone Winery

From my quaint home in PA, I hopped on a plane all the way to the sunny state of California for this beautiful shoot at Sunstone Winery. Sunstone Winery is located in beautiful Santa Ynez, California. Back in 1989, the Rice Family moved to this gorgeous 52-acre ranch to begin growing wine grapes. Their ranch has grown to be the first organic vineyard estate in Santa Barbara County. Located on the property in an 8,500-square-foot Villa pulls inspiration from a French chateau. The villa has beautiful stone detailing and of course the insanely beautiful landscaping and views. It really was the perfect place to host this styled shoot.

Sunstone Winery California Styled Shoot

Styled Shoots Across America is an amazing company that has created a community in which wedding professionals can express their creativity. Styled shoots are done in order for us wedding pros to expand our own portfolios and express our own individuality and creativity. In addition, you’re surrounded by other people within your own industry who support and encourage you. You’re also able to practice and enhance your own craft. SSAA travels around the world hosting these beautiful shoots as a way to bring resources, expert advice, and inspiration to any wedding professionals who attend. To view more of the shoots that they are hosting, click here!

Most importantly, I’m so honored to have been able to attend such a beautiful event and boy was it just that. All of the models and vendors who came together to make this day possible truly did an amazing job. Psst… if you’re wondering about vendors, scroll to the bottom of this blog for a full breakdown! We first started off inside of the beautiful Villa on the property of Sunstone Winery. The light was coming in PERFECTLY and the models were of course… as beautiful as ever. In addition, you can also see the beautiful floral arrangements throughout the entire space which truly made this look straight out of a fairytale storybook.

After that, we went outside to continue on with the beautiful day. As a result of this beautiful day, the sun was shining and boy was it hot. But, you know what sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. Thankfully, we had some amazing models who were ready for just about anything. All of the models that wore these beautiful gowns by Styled Gowns (@styled.gowns) and pretty much my jaw basically unhinged. These dresses were on the next level of beauty and everyone wore those so well. I may or may not have been tempted to take a few home, but don’t worry… I didn’t!

Why Styled Shoots Are Important

There are some who hear about styled shoots and instantly stray away. Let me tell you why styled shoots are important and as a wedding professional why you should be doing them!

Express Your Creativity

As I mentioned before, styled shoots are a great way to express your creativity and play around with different styles. Oftentimes wedding pros are so busy with other shoots (weddings, engagements & portraits), that we don’t end up having much time to experiment and have fun with our own photography. While there is nothing wrong with that, being able to let loose a bit and expand in your own craft can be incredibly rewarding.

Build Your Portfolio

Whether you’re new to the wedding world or not, styled shoots are an amazing opportunity to build your portfolio. If you’re looking to dip your toes into different styles/settings, a styled shoot is a perfect way to do that.

Perfect Your Craft

As I mentioned above, growth and progress are good things when it comes to your photography. You should constantly be looking to grow, improve and learn and that’s exactly what a styled shoot can do for you. Not only are you able to learn techniques and tips from other wedding professionals, but this gives you a chance to practice. What’s that saying? Practice makes perfect? Yeah, well that applies here too!

Great For Networking

As a result of working from home, it can be lonely sometimes! Being able to connect with others within your industry is not only important for your business but for your mental health as well. Connect with others who share your same passions and trust me, this will help you a ton especially when you’re first starting out in your business.

In conclusion, this entire day at the Sunstone Winery was an absolute blast. Everyone who came together to make this day possible truly showed up and showed out. Not only were we blessed with some of the best weather, but the dedication and hard work that came with putting all of the final touches together does NOT go unnoticed. To sum it up, if you’re ready to fawn over all of this beauty, just as much as I am, continue scrolling. It will be worth it.

In short, if you loved reading about this Sunstone Winery California Styled Shoot, then you’re really going to love reading some of my other blogs as well! Check out this Fall Wedding at Phoenixville Foundry next!