Bella Montagna is a private residence in the foothills of San Jose that caters on the weekends to weddings.  It is located on the outskirts of San Jose just past the suburbs and is high enough in the area to give you a great view of Silicon Valley.  They also have a small vineyard that they were building out at the time we did our wedding photography there.

Wedding Photography can be a challenge here, especially in the evening when it is very dim and only lit by string lights across the main court yard.   We’ll touch base on more of this later.  Bella Montagna is a very different location and has its gems.

Directions there will lead you through the outskirts of a residential zone in San Jose.  If you’re driving toward there its close to a huge temple, and you might think thats where you’re supposed to go at first, but its not.  Its not that hard to find, but just pay attention because there really arent any signs that I know of.

The scenic backdrop is great for wedding photography.  The outside of the house itself is really modern, and has nice touches like a well groomed garden, a great deck to view silicone valley and outdoor firepits to keep your guests cozy and warm in the evening during cocktail hour.

This is an all outdoor wedding venue.  So keep in mind you take a chance on weather.  In the evening there are heat lamps to keep guests warm.  There is no access to the house at all.  There are public restrooms for guests which are very nice and sort of have the spa feel.  They also have an onsite hair salon which brides can prepare in or what not, but that salon did not have AC and was very hot in the summer.  The room is very well lit so you can get alot of good wedding preparation photos. Brides can also get dressed in there, theres also a bathroom specifically for the salon itself.

The main courtyard is both the area for the wedding ceremony and reception.  With the proper setup of your florist, this can be made to look very elegant.  During summer months there is enough shade so your guests can sit comfortably for late afternoon ceremonies.

The sun does mix in and out of the altar so some strong flash photography will be needed for the wedding ceremony, otherwise you’ll get some harsh light on the photos.

After the ceremony, the staff will need to take time to clean out and prepare the tables for the reception.  At this point the guests go to the side patio for cocktail hour.

This makes large group pictures a bit of a pain.  Naturally you’d think you would like to use the backdrop of the valley for your wedding photos.  However since they are cleaning up and converting, we were instructed to use the front of the house for photos.  There isnt a whole lot out in the front

However, once the crew is done, the tables do look very nice, especially at sunset time where the lights of the city start to sparkle giving very nice color and mood.

Finally when it drifts off into the evening, your only remaining light is the string of lights across the court yard which are relatively dim, but with the right equipment, can be ok.  However, we setup our own lighting to give it a very clean bright source so you and your guests look great in your wedding photographs.

Food and service were average, I believe booking the venue also comes with a wedding coordinator (Marcia I believe).  Im not sure whats up with their marketing cause their website on the brochure doesnt even work nor can I find anything on google.

If you dont mind being outside the whole time this is a great venue for wedding photography.  Its great when the weather is great.  There are lots of services onsite, and its not so far away.

Feel free to contact Moy Photography for any questions!