Hey, it's me!

I'm Kari & well for starters, I am a wife! So make that Kari Lynn Tello* to be exact. I married my high school sweetheart *pictured above* in January 2021! Our story is not a common one, we've lived & loved through many seasons of life together starting as little high schoolers! He has helped shape me into the woman I am today, no question. All that to say, relationships are so beautiful & it is an honor and JOY to capture people in whatever season of life they're in.

Wedding photography truly holds the most special place in my heart. I have a huge heart for couples & seeing marriages flourish. Of course I love being in the moment with people & making art of the best most memorable day of their lives, but I love the REASON for getting married even more! I highly value marriage, & the commitment of spending your life with the person you love so deeply! I've been with my husband for almost a decade now & there is nothing more beautiful than doing life together forever.... OKAY ENOUGH OF THE OOEY GOOEY. HA!

Here are some less 'oozy gooey' things I absolutely love while I'm on my soap box... country music, morning coffee, evening tea with my boo thang, watching sports & drinking beer with my fam, road trips up the coast or to the eastern sierra, tequila shots, fishing, sitting on the sunny coast wherever husband decides to surf, being on an airplane & starring out the window for far too long, and all the dogos in the world.

PHOTOGRAPHY BACKGROUND...

I've been shooting film since I was about 12! My grandpa had recently passed away and while rummaging through a ton of his stuff already packed in boxes, I found his camera! From 1966, a Minolta SR-T 101... and I truly fell in love! Shortly there after my other grandpa gifted me his old film camera as a Christmas gift!!! Inheriting my grandfathers cameras was life changing and gave me so much freedom to create, learn, and grow! Photography has been a fun life giving hobby for most of my life now! Going through high school and even after I have always been the friend lugging around ancient cameras documenting all the surf trips & sweet couples I've grown up with! 

In these last couple years all those same friends I grew up taking photos of started getting married, and now I have come to realize just how special it is to have those moments captured on film. Shortly after the inkling of wedding photography occurred to me, a friend posted about needing a second shooter for her wedding photography business! I was so nervous to reach out about wanting the opportunity but she was more than stoked to hire me! My first wedding ever was shot entirely on film and I was so in love with what I captured I knew that it was just the beginning...

The story continues with you!

Working with couples, & newly weds is a dream come true! Capturing you in your element is truly the job I was made for! As your photographer you're inviting me into a very special time for you and that is the greatest honor! I will be your encouraging cheerleader, dance partner, joke teller, shot taker, stress reliever & your favorite hype woman! All while holding a camera & snapping your new favorite photos! My goal is to make you feel seen, known, & more fully yourself. No pressure, just the pure fun and magic of dancing around in a field, kissin' your boo thang, or whatever (hahaha) & hangin' with me! Let's do this...