Our Lady of Guadalupe · Hermosa Beach, California

Brett & Kristen

February 14, 2026 • A Valentine's Day Nuptial Mass

The Story

Some couples wait for a date to find them. Brett and Kristen chose the one day on the calendar that already belongs to love — and then filled it with something deeper than a holiday. On the morning of February 14th, they knelt before the altar at Our Lady of Guadalupe in Hermosa Beach and asked God to make of their love a sacrament.

The Nuptial Mass was offered in the Novus Ordo, the priest vested in the green of Ordinary Time, the San Damiano cross watching over the sanctuary as light poured through the rose window and the stained-glass clerestory above. Both were walked to the altar by their parents. They exchanged vows and rings, received the Eucharist as husband and wife for the first time, and walked back down the aisle into the rest of their lives.

Then the coast did what the California coast does best in February: it gave them a golden hour worth driving the whole Pacific for. We get the shot anyway — but on this day, the sky simply handed it to us.

"Before the vows, there is the waiting — and the waiting, with the right people around you, is its own kind of joy."

Getting Ready & First Look · The Sonesta, Redondo Beach

Getting ready at the Sonesta in Redondo Beach before the Hermosa Beach Catholic wedding

Groom and groomsmen in black suits with burgundy ties before the Nuptial Mass

Candid prep moment at the Sonesta hotel before the Catholic wedding

Wedding party getting ready at the Sonesta in Redondo Beach

Bride in her lace cap-sleeve dress and pearl-trim veil at the Sonesta

Bridal details before the Valentine's Day Nuptial Mass in Hermosa Beach

First look between Brett and Kristen before their Catholic wedding

First look reaction between the bride and groom at the Sonesta hotel

"What God has joined together, let no one separate. Beneath the rose window, in the green of Ordinary Time, two became one flesh."

The Nuptial Mass · Our Lady of Guadalupe

Our Lady of Guadalupe church in Hermosa Beach set for the Catholic Nuptial Mass

Groom processed to the altar by both parents at Our Lady of Guadalupe

Bride walked down the aisle by both parents during the Catholic wedding in Hermosa Beach

Brett and Kristen at the altar during the Nuptial Mass beneath the rose window

Exchange of vows before the priest at Our Lady of Guadalupe

The Liturgy of the Word during the Catholic Nuptial Mass in Hermosa Beach

The Consecration of the Eucharist during the Nuptial Mass

Exchange of rings during the Catholic wedding ceremony at Our Lady of Guadalupe

Bride and groom receive a nuptial blessing during the Mass in Hermosa Beach

Recessional as Brett and Kristen leave the sanctuary as husband and wife

Newlyweds outside Our Lady of Guadalupe after the Catholic Nuptial Mass

Wedding party portrait at Our Lady of Guadalupe, bridesmaids in deep purple and groomsmen in black suits with burgundy ties

"Newly married, and still a little stunned by it — a quiet hour to simply be a husband and a wife."

Portraits · The Sonesta

Bride and groom portrait beneath the skylight atrium at the Sonesta in Redondo Beach

Bride and groom share a kiss beside the mirrored wall at the Sonesta hotel

Black and white portrait of the newlyweds resting on a lounge at the Sonesta

Black and white candid of the groom and his groomsmen celebrating in the lobby

Groomsmen group portrait at the Sonesta hotel before the reception

"The Pacific gave them a sky worth the whole drive west. Light on the water, a sail on the horizon, and two people who had just promised each other forever."

Golden Hour · King Harbor Breakwater