"A Bae Area Classic" Styled Shoot in Downtown Oakland

“A Bae Area Classic” styled shoot in Downtown Oakland celebrates culture, love, and black excellence with style inspired by the hyphy movement.

Creative director, Kyra Iverson, wanted to “bring it back to the bay” in this wedding styled shoot! Captured in Oakland, California on the Oakland City Hall court steps and downtown by a well known Mural, the shoot exudes style, confidence, and authentic Oakland vibes.

With her creative team of ALL women and mainly women of color, Kyra also hoped to “encourage couples to continue to support black businesses in their own neighborhood.” By pushing the ‘standard’ of what’s normally seen in the wedding industry she believes their shoot will “speak to a whole new and different demographic and age group of couples.” This in itself is pretty inspiring! Other highlights include a classic car being shot beneath a huge OAKLAND mural and an amazing highlight reel (which you can watch here and below).

For more inspiration and details behind “A Bae Area Classic” styled wedding shoot, keep reading below.

Creative director: Kyra Iverson
Company name: Kind Hearted Images

Quick facts:

Date of Shoot: May 2, 2021
Location of shoot: Oakland, California (on the Oakland City Hall court steps and downtown by a well known Mural)

Shoot inspiration…

“With this styled shoot I simply wanted to bring it back to the Bay!” Kyra says. “We wanted to celebrate the culture of our people here and push the envelope on what the ‘standard’ we see in the wedding industry [is].”

The vision…

“In a time where black excellence is alive and well, I truly wanted to see my culture and town uplifted in what truly makes us unique and beautiful. The Bay Area, and in this case Oakland, California is experiencing what most black neighborhoods are experiencing; gentrification. However, the Bay in its heart will always be unapologetically itself.”

“When it comes to the wedding industry I wanted to show and highlight the side of us we typically clean up for the Big Day. I wanted gold chains, big hoops, melanin poppin, grills, and the essence of the hyphy movement with a small classic twist. I didn’t want to be very posh for this shoot, because that isn’t what Oakland is at its roots.”

The goal…

“The goal was to use all black vendors and local vendors, but even more so to make sure every vendor was a woman! I am so proud of this shoot and all the vendors that contributed to make it something so close to home for many of us.”