Love is in the air, every weekend through October, and it’s going to keep photographer Diane Askew very busy.

The English native studied Fine Arts at Berkeley, but found her creative expression through the camera. She now specializes in shooting weddings.

Askew was named by Wedding Wire, one of the go-to online resources for wedding planning, with a Brides Choice 2011 award. It’s helped keep her busy, from simple affairs at the park to lavish bashes at hilltop estates where part of the job is not taking pictures of the VIPs.

Just as dress and tuxedo fashions are always changing, the style of wedding photography has evolved.

The high fashion, magazine cover look is giving way to a simpler, photojournalism style. Shots aren’t choreographed; she records events as they happen. “It’s capturing the emotions of the day without any staging. I’m just a fly on the wall.”

Askew said she has encountered very few Bridezillas. “I hear the horror stories, but I’ve been really lucky.” If she and the bride hit it off during the initial interview, things usually work out well. “Part of the job is to calm her fears.”

After years of hearing the wedding march, Askew admits to still getting swept up in the moment. She gets excited during the preparation, emotional when the bride appears at the ceremony and teary when the vows are exchanged. Dad’s speech at the reception? She chokes up there, too.

“You’d think I’d be immune by now,” she said.

For Askew, it’s that intimacy, the sense of real engagement in the moment, that result in the truest, best photographs. “It’s almost like I’m part of the family.”

Photos by Diane Askew