Valentine’s weekend was the first time I visited El Matador Beach in Malibu. It was an unplanned visit after a lovely day spent eating fish and chips, tasting wine, and admiring classical statues. The stretch of sand was breathtakingly photogenic and painfully romantic; rock formations large and small rose out of the earth. Large pelicans and other sea birds perched on them like a scene out of Planet Earth.

Apparently, the beauty of this location was not lost upon the wedding/engagement photography community. We saw no fewer than seven couples getting their photos taken by professional photographers – assistants holding reflectors, expensive telephoto lenses, makeup kits, the whole she-bang. Not to be out done, there were a couple of bikini shoots as well. This was all taking place on about 200 feet of rocky beach.

I snapped my photos, we shared a few moments on a washed up log, then headed back to the car to spend a romantic evening in the privacy of our home. Maybe I’ll be back the next time I shoot a wedding…