Wow! I have to say I love this location! No two ways around it, the Karisma resorts are real wedding professionals in the Mayan Riviera area and every wedding I have photographed at the EDR has been simply beautiful. It was great to be back at the El Dorado Royale so soon after John and Linda’s amazing destination wedding. Lindsey and I were anticipating a great day and were not disappointed in the least! I will let the images do the talking…Camille and Chris had so much style and I really think you can see their delight in the photos. A wonderful day all around!

I loved Camille’s sister/maid of honor’s reaction when she saw Camille in her dress.

Loved the shoes!

Camille wore vintage jewelry, it was perfect!

Time for the ceremony. There is nothing more beautiful than a Mayan Riviera beach wedding. This ceremony was held at the Presidential gazebo at EDR, really the name is not very descriprive…it is a very simple wood structure surrounded only by ocean and the most lush green vegetation…beautiful!

Shana and Jeff, what can I say? Sometimes you meet a couple who seem so perfect for each other it just seems to prove that destiny is hard at work! Or as they say in Spanish that each person has a “media naranja” or “half orange” waiting to be found! In other words a dream team, two of a kind or “tal para cual”…know what I mean? It was an honor to be able to capture a bit of the magic of the day these two were married in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

Jeff is an amazing graphic designer and the couple was able to put a personal creative touch into many of the wedding details like the very unique invitation which featured their story and the favorite flower of both, the daisy.

The beautiful bride before the ceremony. I love doing bridal portraits prior to the ceremony whenever there is time, and the photographs are always some of my favorites. I think there are probably about 5 women in the universe that could pull of a dress like this one, it looked absolutely perfect on Shana!

Jeff and Shana put a special twist on the sand ceremony or unity by incorporating their families and wedding party.

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Paraiso de la Bonita is a very charming boutique hotel near Puerto Morelos in Mexico’s Mayan Riviera. It is a favorite travel destination for Crystal and Kevin and of course absolutely perfect for this fantastic couple’s destination wedding. I loved the colors and the resort’s unique vibe, which seemed to be Mexican with a kind of chic twist. Gracias Crystal and Kevin for sharing your day!  Muchas felicidades!

I really love to look for little details that communicate a sense of the feeling of a place.

The first look….so glad Kevin and Crystal planned this and a pre wedding photo session, it really made the day go smoothly.

The ceremony site at the beach of the Paraiso de la Bonita, very secluded and beautiful.

The beautiful guest below is one of the few peopel I have ever seen take more photographs than I do! I am sure she got some great shots thoughout the day!

A few reception details…

What a wonderful day it was! Linda and John are high school sweethearts who traveled to Mexico to be married an intimate ceremony on a breathtaking beach in the Mayan Riviera. Having photographed a few weddings at the El Dorado Royale and other Karisma resorts, and knowing that Linda had planned her details very carefully I knew that it would be a beautiful event and it certainly was that! It was so much fun for Lauren and I to get to know and spend time with John and Linda, there couldn’t be a nicer couple and we felt like old friends by the time we finished up the trash the dress session the next morning! Linda and John, I hope you enjoy the photos as much as I have! Congratulations to the two of you!

Some detail photos from the getting ready portion of the day…don’t let these tranquil images fool you, Linda was a blur of perpetual motion the whole time!

A relaxed portrait of John before the ceremony.

Time for the beach ceremony…so beautiful!

One of the best details I have seen to date…Linda and John used stones inscribed with meaningful words like love, family, dream as paperweights for the ceremony programs. After the ceremony each guest threw their stone into the ocean with good wishes for the bride and groom’s new marriage.

So much love!

The reception was held at the Tucanes palapa, I wish I had 2% of this group’s dancing ability!

A few images from the TTD session the next morning…

Mayan Rivera photographer Elizabeth Medina, wedding photojournalism at the El Dorado Royale Resort, a Karisma resort in Mexico.

What fun! Destination weddings are such a great combination of vacation and celebration. Kristin and Ryan were the perfect bride and groom for a destination wedding, being low maintenance, ready to enjoy it all in the company of a wild group of friends and relatives and very good sports about photography! We had plenty of time for bride and groom photos in lots of different locations around the beautiful Iberostar resort, both before and after the ceremony and early the next morning at the trash the dress session. I will let the images do the talking….Thank you, Kristin and Ryan, we loved spending time with the two of you on your big day in Mexico!

Kristin before the ceremony…

And Ryan…

They met for a “first look” in this charming little courtyard.

And some photographs in the jungle…the iberostar is really neat because it has a wide variety of spaces.

Kristin and her attendants arriving a the ceremony location on the beach. I really don’t know how I managed to get a clean shot since the bridge was quite busy. Pretty fortunate!

A few photographs from the beach ceremony….

The sand ceremony…

Photographs after the ceremony…

We snuck out of the reception for a few fun night photographs with this carousel that Kristin and Ryan had spotted earlier in the week, what a great idea!

In spite of the wild party, the next morning Kristin and Ryan were up nice and early for a trash the dress session, I wasn’t kidding when I said the bride and groom were good sports! I think it was worth the effort!

Great news! I have finally made way out of the tunnel known as March wedding editing and lived to tell the tale! Kristina and Ingrid, I am pretty sure you are visiting the blog on a regular basis…. and the good news is yours are the next two weddings and they will be posted soon!

Stephanie and Andy had more than a great wedding day, they had an entire week to share with their group (and a neighboring alligator, yikes!) in a roomy villa overlooking the turquoise water of the Mayan Riviera’s Playa Secreto. The wedding was just beautiful! Stephanie and Andy are high school sweethearts, how fantastic that they were able to become husband and wife in such a beautiful setting.

Stephanie’s sister was unfortunately not able to be present in person because of a last minute complication, but was absolutely present in spirit throughout the entire day! She even appeared on video giving her matron of honor toast a the reception (wearing her dress of course!),

Wow! The bride has a spectacular wedding look!

I never cease to be amazed by some of the fantastic DIY projects that brides pull off, Stephanie’s prgram fans were beautiful and very unique!

Hooray! Let those rose petals fly!

Th wedding party!

Photographs of the bride and groom after the ceremony…

And a few images from the villa wedding reception.

Elizabeth Medina Is a wedding photojournalist based in Merida, Yucatan, Mexico. She photographs weddings throughout Mexico.