“What can Brian and I do today to be good clients for you?” Since I spend the wedding day focused on being a good photographer for the brides and grooms who have entrusted such important memories to my lens Stacia’s question truly took me by surprise. I am sure I did not express myself very well which of course did not stop them from being fantastic all day long! Because when it comes right down to it the answer lies in doing just what Brian and Stacia did on their wedding day… be themselves and enjoy each other and every minute of their once in a lifetime day! Brian and Stacia were married at Azul Beach this resort is kind of unique in that it has a boutique hotel vibe but is also all inclusive and family friendly. I have really enjoyed all the weddings I have photographed at this location and this laid back beach affair was certainly no exception.

Puerto Morelos wedding photography by Mexico’s premier wedding photographer Elizabeth Medina. Wedding photojournalism in the Mayan Riviera, Yucatan and throughout Mexico.

This wedding was a lot of fun to photograph! Britni and Joshua’s wedding and trash the dress session at the Royal in Playa del Carmen, Mexico had liberal doses of both bright bright sunshine and pouring rain that seemed to alternate all day long! Britni and Joshua really went the extra mile and never lost cheer despite the changing weather. These two are so great together, it made for fun day of shooting and lots of photographs!

This has to be one of my all time favorite wedding details ever! Britni chose to wear a pair of blinged out Toms shoes for her wedding day! (at least for the portions of the day that she wasn’t a barefoot bride!) These shoes are really special because for each pair that is purchased an pair is given to a needy child. So fantastic.

I had to include this next one so you could see what great sports Josh and Britni were! We were like the mail service, and a little rain was not going to stop us!

I am such a fan of my couples. It is hard to explain but I can´t help but think that people like these brides and grooms are what makes the world go round! I always find myself in admiration that such beautiful people exist, happy that they have found and committed to each other and thrilled that they living the experience of a dream wedding in Mexico

A note to all of my very patient spring 2010 couples who are caught in the time warp known as wedding season. As someone who is terrible at waiting myself I an only imagine how hard it must be to wait for the photographs to be ready! Of course at the same time I know the photographs are memories that will last a lifetime so rushing the finishing touches is just not an option! I will continue to plug along but wanted to take a second to tell my clients I appreciate your confidence (and at this time of year your patience) more than you can begin to imagine. It will be worth the wait I promise!

Jamie getting ready…

The ceremony was held on the pier over the beautiful bright blue water.

After the ceremony we did some beach photographs and then onto the reception which was held on an open covered terrace area.

A few reception details…first dance and father and bride dance.

Lauren and I were able to sneak out of the reception with Jamie and Aaron to steal a few twilight photographs.

Peter and Francesca were married on the beach at the Hotel Esencia, a very lovely villa style boutique hotel in the Mayan Riviera. The wedding day was one of the very windiest days I can remember experiencing with the exception of actual hurricanes, just crazy windy, but it did not seem to slow anyone down a bit! One of the best things that I have noticed about destination weddings is that the cool people are the ones who are sure to attend. This crowd absolutely proved that theory true, it was a great party!

Esencias’s wedding coordinator Damarys Diaz was joined by Mayan Riviera wedding planner Yazmin de la Mora in making this beautiful day a reality. A few photos of the beautiful beach wedding details.

The cocktail hour, and dinner reception were held poolside overlooking the ocean.

Elizabeth Medina Photography specializes in destination wedding photojournalism, photographing weddings in the Mayan Riviera, Cancun, Yucatan, Costa Careyes, San Miguel de Allende, Puerto Valarta and throughout Mexico.

Something I really enjoy about photographing destination weddings is the chance to meet and spend time with such a diverse group of people from all over… and I have to say that it has been proven over that when you come right down to it no matter what nationality you have there is nothing that brings people together like the destination wedding experience. Also (and this is off the record) I have also noticed that there is no one like Canadians  to be totally crazy when the party gets going!  Tiffany and Colton came to Mexico with a very close knit group, I am actually pretty sure that all of their guests were family and that made for a really relaxed and emotional celebration. It was hard to narrow down the images for this blog post, here are some favorites from the wedding day and TTD session the next morning.

The weather was all over the place, pouring rain, crazy humidity, and later bright sunshine… fortunately everyone rolled with it and all in all it could not have been a more beautiful day! Details photos by Lindsey.

A few moments from the ceremony… so many different emotions. I love the first image that was captured by Lindsey.

Sand ceremony containers, this beach wedding tradition is similar to the unity candle, the two different containers of sand our joined into one.

Oops, almost made a big mistake on positioning here… as a symbol of their good wishes the guests all threw stones into the ocean that were engraved with meaningful words like “love” family” “balance”, etc. At the very last minute I realized that if I remained in my vantage point facing the guests in the shallow water I was about to be pelted with stones! Probably not too healthy for the camera lens, let along the photographer!

Such a sweet couple! Tiffany and Colton, I loved photographing the two of you!

The photos of the maraca player and the very energetic mini flower girl are Lindsey’s.

The flower girl listened to all the toasts and applause throughout dinner. When she was finally able to get her hands on the microphone she gave one of the most entertaining toasts ever!

The following photo was taken by Lindsey Medina.

Elizabeth Medina Photography, Mexico’s premier destination wedding photographers, photography throughout Mexico in areas including the Mayan Riviera, Cancun, Tulum, Merida, Yucatan, Campeche, Puerto Vallarta, Costa Careyes, Los Cabos and Guanajuato, Mexico.

I think every bride and groom envision a sunny day for the wedding, Alex and Eric certainly had theirs! As corny as it sounds sometimes you just feel the love and happiness all through the day, and it was great to witness such a large group of the bride and groom’s friends and family who had not only made the trip the attend this destination wedding in but who truly seemed to be thrilled for Alec and Eric and enjoying every single second to the maximum. Such a great party!

The Fairmont Mayakoba is a really unique setting, fantastic architecture and jungle vegetation overlooking the Mayan Riviera, it seemed like the perfect venue for this Mayan Riviera destination wedding.

The first look: this is usually the only time of the day that I am in charge of setting up… so I tend to get into it and my inner movie director takes over! At this wedding I once again had the assistance of wedding photographer Hiram Trillo. His second shooter/wife Nancy (that should probably be reversed, pretty sure the wife part comes first) was also helping out and so it was really fun to find a location that allowed the Alex and Eric’s encounter to be captured from three very different vantage points. Very cinematic if I do say so myself. (how embarrassingly geeky is that anyway?) Erin’ s approach was captured by Nancy.

And the following from Nancy’s vantage point across the river.

A few wedding party photos:

The beach ceremony, Alex and Eric brought down a rabbi, from what I understand they are very hard if not impossible to find in the Cancun Mayan Riviera area.

There goes the veil!

I love the next image!

Mariachi photo by Hiram.

The decor was fantastic, Alex and Eric choose to use white flowers for the beach ceremony and red for the dinner reception. The rich red flowers really complemented the Mexican themed table decorations and wedding favors (talavera pottery shot glasses). Muy bonito!

First dance:

I loved Hiram’s photo of the father, daughter dance, great capture!

And of course we love the Hora!

Mexico’s premier destination wedding photographer Elizabeth Medina photographs weddings in Yucatan, Campeche, the Mayan Riviera, Cancun, Tulum, Puerto Vallarta, Los Cabos, San Miguel de Allende and Puerto Vallarta.

I have always enjoyed the weddings I have photographed at the El Dorado Royale resort, in part because of the incredibly lush natural beauty of the resort and also because everyone seems so happy there! I was especially looking forward to this wedding since I had not photographed at this location for almost a year. It was such a pleasure to return with such a wonderful bride and groom. I loved the decor and colors chosen for this wedding, it probably would have never occurred to me to choose red for a beach wedding but wow, it certainly worked! Caitlyn and Ryan, thank you for being such a happy couple, and for your patience as we slowly edit our way through this busy season, slideshow and gallery to follow tomorrow!

This wedding was special because we had a ¨guest photographer¨, fellow wedding photographer Hiram Trillo came down from Texas to give us a hand with a couple of weddings. The following shot of the groom prior to the ceremony is from Hiram´s camera. Gracias por todo Hiram!

The next image is from Hiram´s camera, such a peaceful moment.

The following image is mine, I loved seeing that our interpretations of the same moment were so dissimilar.

The reception site, just a few feet from the ocean.

Elizabeth Medina specializes in destination wedding photography in the Riviera Maya, Tulum, Cancun, Yucatan and throughout Mexico.