San Francisco City Hall

San Francisco City Hall is one of my favorite places to shoot. The beautiful arches, combined with the wonderful light, and those stunning windows all make for such wonderful photos! It also has some sentimental value to me, since I got married there myself. This page features a few of my favorite photos from my clients of their weddings at San Francisco City Hall, and I've also included a few words of advice on how to get the best photos of your special day at this beautiful location.

I always advise my clients to schedule their ceremony as early in the day as possible. There are two reasons: first, City Hall is a public building, and as the day progresses, it fills up with people which makes it harder to get certain shots, and second: the light is better in the morning. But don't worry if you weren't able to get one of the early morning time-slots, with such a beautiful location, it's possible to get great photos at any time of day! 

In order to get married at City Hall, you will need to get a marriage license. This is very straightforward, and can be purchased on the day. However, I always advise my clients to get their marriage license ahead of time. This just gives you one less thing to worry about on the day! Once you've got your marriage license, you'll need to book a time for your civil ceremony. This can be done online at the San Francisco Government website, here.

Remember that if you're getting married at City Hall, only six guests are allowed to attend due to space constraints. Though this may seem limiting, many of my clients have really enjoyed that the small number of guests means that they can really enjoy the company of only their very closest friends and family.

Even though Civic Ceremonies at City Hall only last around 5 minutes, I normally recommend my clients book me for 2 hours of coverage. This way I'm able to get some photos of you before the ceremony, signing your documents, and gives us time to get photos at a few different locations around the beautiful City Hall building after the ceremony.

And don't worry! Many of my clients have chosen to get married at City Hall, so I'm very happy to answer any questions about the process and help guide you along the way if you get stuck. It's actually a lot easier than it looks, and most people find it to be a surprisingly joyous event. Congratulations on your upcoming wedding, and I'm looking forward to working with you to capture some of the happiest moments of your life!

Testimonials

A friend of mine recommended Chelsea to me when I wanted to do a wedding shoot in San Francisco. As a non-native English speaker, and being unfamiliar with planning photo-shoots, I found the entire process really daunting, so I was so glad that Chelsea was able to help me with the whole process! When I explained to Chelsea what I wanted, she was super-helpful: she took the concept I had and figured out everything! She suggested some venues and helped me understand the costs of all the different options, and she also went out and found an officiant to perform the ceremony. I didn't have to worry about anything because Chelsea did an amazing job figuring out everything!

When I looked at Chelsea's portfolio, I instantly felt that all the photos were really natural and I could also really sense that they had been taken from a woman's perspective, and with sensitivity to a woman's unique requirements for a photo-shoot. Seeing her beautiful images made me really excited about my wedding! Chelsea was always so sensitive and thoughtful during our Skype chats and emails -- it really helped put my mind at ease. And as a fellow animal-lover, seeing her photos of the local squirrels really helped me feel an affinity for her and her unique perspective on the world.

We chose Chelsea's 2-hour package and the shoot was early in the morning at San Francisco City Hall. Chelsea had explained that doing the shoot in the morning is best, since there won't be so many other people around, and this proved to be great advice. It was an overcast day when we first arrived, but luckily the sun had come out by the end, so Chelsea took some extra time at the end of the shoot to get some photos of us with the beautiful blue sky. I'm so happy that we could get some outdoor shots with the blue sky, so I'm really glad that this worked out and that Chelsea took the time at the end of the shoot to get these extra shots.

I was very happy with the photos Chelsea took -- they turned out to have the same natural look as the other brides and grooms I'd seen on her website. This once in a lifetime event has become an even greater memory than I'd expected. Now we are thinking about using these photos on a postcard to send to all our friends.

I would strongly recommend Chelsea if you are thinking about a wedding near San Francisco, whether or not you live there. We were really satisfied with Chelsea's work, and am grateful that we could have a wedding experience customized exactly to our tastes. In Japan, most couples use a standardized wedding package, so we were so happy to be able to have such a special, personalized experience.

Chelsea also shoots photographs for Christmas cards, and does many other types of shoots as well. We also really love these photos and are thinking about working with her again the next time we have something to celebrate. In fact, we're already thinking about doing a shoot at the wineries in Napa or Sonoma, since we love it there and we know that Chelsea will be able to capture the moment perfectly.

フォトウェディングをサンフランシスコでするにあたり、語学の不安、日本とも勝手が違い、なかなか前に進まずのところ、紹介でサンフランシスコ近郊在住の日本人女性フォトグラファーChelseaと出会い、彼女のホームページを見て最初に感じたのは、どの写真も、女性らしい視点のナチュラルな姿の花婿花嫁を拝見し、私自身の結婚式がとても楽しみになりました。
色々メールやSkypeでの打ち合わせで、彼女の細やかな配慮や、ホームページ以外で紹介している、地元のリスの写真もとても素敵！写真で彼女のセンスの良さがよくわかります。

当日は２時間プランを選択し、朝早くからサンフランシスコで撮影しました。
撮影の間、今まで見た花嫁さんの写真どおり、私たちも自然な姿のポーズがたくさん撮れ、一生に一度の思い出が予想以上に最高の思い出となりました。

雨の天気予報で、シティホール内での撮影がメインでしたが、外に出るときれいな青空が広がっていて、念願の青い空の下での撮影もリクエストして叶い、大変満足です。

出来上がり写真がメールで手元に届き、ウェディングアナウンスメントを考え中です。

滞在だけでなく、旅行でもサンフランシスコ近郊で挙式を考えていらしたらおすすめです。
日本ではパッケージなどの式が多いと（たぶん）思いますが、米国ならではのカスタマイズする、自由なフォトウェディングができたと思います。

またクリスマスカードなどの撮影も手掛けているので、いつか大好きなナパやソノマのワイナリーでの夫婦写真を何かの記念の時にお願いしたいなと思っています。結婚式以外の家族写真もとても素敵です。

T.Y

It’s already been more than half a year since we had our wedding pictures taken by Chelsea, but we wanted to express how grateful we still are to have had her as a photographer for our most significant day.

We were truly amazed by her professionalism and commitment; Chelsea had done her homework thoroughly, and by the time the day started she already knew all the picture-perfect spots with ideal backgrounds, angles and lighting at all the requested sites. That allowed our could-have-been-stressful day to rather go flawless and worry-free, not have to focus on photoshoot itself but to enjoy the precious moments that we shared with our very special friends. Chelsea was also very flexible and open-minded to our ideas, and you can see how much fun we had from the natural, spontaneous smiles in our faces. All you need to do is trust her and rest assured – she will do the rest and beautifully capture all your favorite moments.

She gave us very generous number of pictures as data, which we later compiled into a photo book. It took us a very long time to pick which pictures to make it into the book, as there were too many pictures we loved.

Chelsea’s work always brings back the wonderful memories and reminds us how happy and grateful we felt that day as if it happened just yesterday.

Chelsea, thank you again for making our special day even more special. We are looking forward to the next opportunity to work with you. (Next time would be with our baby girl who was still inside at the time of the wedding!)

Shoko and Osamu

When we decided to get married, my husband and I really wanted to make sure that this important moment of our lives was recorded.

However, we didn't want just to have pictures of this day. We wanted to capture the happiness and love involved in our decision. For that reason I am more than happy for choosing Chelsea to be our photographer. She did an absolutely amazing job. Our photos are extremely professional and natural at the same time. Everyone who sees our photos praise the quality of her work. Besides all the great pictures, i can tell that her customer service was excellent.

She was always on time to meet me, willing to clarify any questions that I had, and was fast to deliver our photos. On top of that, her rates are an extremely good value based on what she delivers as the final product. I am really satisfied with choosing Chelsea.

I highly recommend her for capturing your most precious moments.　

Debora Georgino

Photography that delivers warmth, love, beauty and magic!!!!

I have been a fan of Chelsea's photography for a while. When I see Chelsea's photography, the first thing I feel from the photos are warmth... it's really interesting because looking at her photos makes me have that warm fuzzy, feel good energy.

Simply said, Chelsea brings out love and beauty within us through the magic of her photography!

Kanako Johnson

Thank you so much for the great pictures you took at our wedding! We really appreciated you working with us to capture the moment.

The photos reflect an interesting perspective and style. We are so happy to have worked with you and would highly recommend your work to others. Thank You!!!

Ernesto & Asun

Although I said “Yes!” without thinking when Chelsea asked me about Boudoir photography, when the day came, I was still nervous.

Chelsea’s direction about posing etc. was easy to understand, but during the photoshoot, I was still nervous about how I looked and how I was captured, but I followed her instructions, nonetheless.

In the beginning, my facial expression was firm since I was anxious, but as the shoot progressed, I felt my firm facial expression melting away because she made jokes and gave me compliments like “Oh yeah!” etc., which helped me relax. Once I got to that point, I came to enjoy being photographed, and I came to want to be photographed more!

After the photoshoot, I looked through the photos, oohing and ahhing, astonished to see that I have such a kind face, and such an attractive back. I showed the photos to my husband, which made him happy. He said “looks cute and erotic!” The best thing about this shoot was that I discovered that I really am attractive!

More than anything, I’ve become a little more confident and brave♡ Sorry for the bad writing. But this is actually how I felt!!!!!!

チェルシーから下着で写真撮ってみる？って言われてから、ノリでやってみる！といったけど いざ、当日やっぱり始まる前は緊張した ポージングなどいろいろ指示してくれて、わかりやすかった。 自分がどんなふうに見えているのか、不安になりながら 言われるがままに撮られていた。

始めは緊張して表情は硬かったけど、冗談を言ったり、いいよいいよ～と乗せてくれて リラックスさせてくれて自分でも表情がほぐれていくのがわかった。そうなったら、撮られるのが楽しくなってきて もっと撮ってもらいたくなった。

撮影が終わって、撮れたものをみると自分がこんな素敵な表情をするんだな～って新たな発見ができた。 メールで送られてきたものを、わくわくしてみてみた。 自分ってこんなにやさしい表情ができるんだな～とかこんな背中なんだな～など 感嘆の声をあげながら、写真舐めるように見た。 旦那さんにも見てもらったら、かわいくてエロく撮れてるねって喜んでくれました！

この写真を撮ってもらって、自分の新たな魅力に気が付けたのは一番の収穫です。 何より、少し勇気と自信がつきました♡ 文章下手でごめんね＞＜ でもこれ実際に感じたことだよ！！！！！！

N.T

I asked Chelsea to take photos of our hockey team. Players on our team were all interested in getting action pics of themselves playing.

As everyone knows, good action pics of live sports is very difficult to capture. Chelsea showed up early, set up, got all the players relaxed and started shooting before, during and after the game.

When she gave me access to view the photos, I was super excited at how great the pics came out. The teammates absolutely loved the pics. We looked like pros.

I'm so glad that we decided to work with Chelsea. She was very accommodating to us, and her prices were very reasonable. If you want sporting action pics of your children or adults, I would immediately recommend Chelsea. She's the best.

Zachary Captain

Very amateur hockey player

Chelsea was an excellent photographer. She made me feel at ease and comfortable in front of the camera. The whole experience was quite professional and fun!

She provided plenty of guidance and made sure I got all the shots I wanted.

I was quite pleased with the result and would highly recommend her work.

Marcela

Having Chelsea as a photographer for my website and family portraits was such an exciting and wonderful experience.

I had known about her incredible work as a photographer through her portfolio of her past work, and could hardly wait for the day of the photo session to arrive! Chelsea was amazing as she worked out all the elements to capture in the photos down to the smallest detail. She gently instructed me to pose at the angle she finds to be the most flattering for me, and it showed how much she cares about how the results of the photos.

She also brought a Nepal ringing bowl to bring the sense of serenity and calm to the photo session, which I don't think any other photographer does. She even happily squeaked the toys for our doggies as she snapped the photos to get their attention and capture the perfect moment! (As those with pets may know, taking a good photo with three pets - dogs and cat - together is not easy!).

She was very attentive to my wish as we proceeded as to how I wanted the photos to come out, and worked her magic to make that happen. Throughout the session, I could relax knowing that I was in the hands of am amazing photographer, and that the photos will turn out great.

I was so happy about the result as she showed me the photos she's taken! They were just beautiful!

Thank you so much, Chelsea!

Reijun Hammons

After deciding to leave my corporate career and becoming an independent business owner, I wanted to rebrand myself as true and honest to myself as possible. I wanted to create my life so that I can be with whom I like to be, be where I like to be, do what I like to do, do things however way I like it to do, whenever I like, being the bridge between Japan and U.S.A. and to the world, spreading and sharing love and dream and Aloha spirit.

One of the keys I thought was to have a picture of true me. The photographer had to be the right person at the right location at the right timing whom I can share this life journey plan with.

Light bulb moment and Chelsea came to mind. Immediately called her and she responded. Told her my feelings and she was right on. Instantly we were on the same page. It is amazing how fate is and how things are meant to be. Despite our packed schedules, we were able to set a good time/location. Nature and environment fell into place perfectly.

From the first snapshot, my heart was open and the natural me came out. She felt it. I felt it. Together, we were able to create a lasting memory for ourselves during the process and the pictures will always bring back the feelings of that day as well as my passion to change my life and live the life I was born to live.

I highly recommend spending time with Chelsea for those who want to change their life for the better and to understand the true honest you! Thank you, Chelsea! You are awesome!

会社員としてのキャリアを変え、独立すると決めた時から、出来る限り本当の素直な自分でありたいと意識し続けた。好きな人と好きな場所で好きな事を好きなように好きな時に出来るような人生を創るために。日米の架け橋、そして世界の架け橋であるために、愛と夢とアロハスピリットをシェアして広げていくために。本当の自分自身が表現出来る写真があることが、それを達成するためのキーになると考えた。

写真家は、この私の考えを、私の人生の旅路をずっと共感し続けられる、完璧な人でなければならない。完璧なタイミングと完璧な場所が選ばれなければならない。閃いた！チェルシーだ！すぐに電話したらすぐに出てくれた。気持ちを伝えたらすぐ共感してくれた。これは一緒に出来るとすぐお互いに感じた。運命とは不思議。お互いスケジュールがキツキツにも関わらず、何故かピッタリの日時と場所がすぐに決まった。自然と環境もパーフェクトに味方してくれた。

最初のシャッター時から心が開いて素直で自然な私が生まれ出ていた。彼女もそれを感じていた。私も感じていた。撮影時過ごした時はお互いの最高の想い出になった。写真はその時の気持ちを鮮明に思い出させてくれる。そして、私が人生を変えたいと決めたその時の情熱を思い起こさせてくれる。

人生をより良く変えたい方、素直な真実の自分を理解したい方、チェルシーと時を過ごすことを強くオススメする。

チェルシーさん、心から感謝一杯です。ありがとうございます！あなたは最高！

Tomo Mori

世界中に笑顔をお届けしたい♡

Chelsea Gregory Photography代表

笑顔を届ける
サンフランシスコの
りすフォトグラファー/アーティストチェルシー

オーストラリアに3年在住後
サンフランシスコに渡り9年目突入。

#笑顔おすそわけ

をキーワードに
写真と動画で世界を笑顔いっぱいにしたいと
笑顔写真、笑顔になれる写真と動画を世界に配信中♡

大好きな動物を撮り続けたある日
ソーシャルメディアにポストした1枚の写真から
写真と笑顔のパワーを実感・再確認する。

国籍、年齢、性別、人種、言葉などに関係なく
たった一枚の素敵な写真は
一瞬で多くの人を
癒したり笑顔にしたり出来る

人・動植物・物に関係なく
笑顔は美しいものであり
笑顔は笑顔を呼び
ストレスもガン細胞も減らし
癒し、幸福感、元気へと導くと確信。

その人その人が持つ
自分では気付かない魅力を引き出し

その決定的な瞬間を
逃さず捉えることを得意としている。

主なクライアントは
主婦、動物好き、家族、芸能人と幅広い。