I loved photographing Alex and Drew´s Playa del Carmen Wedding! The wedding was held at the Royal in PDC. We have photographed several weddings at that location and honestly I ahve to say that no two have been alike and that I have loved them all! One thing I love about this resort, which is located right in the heart of Playa del Carmen, Mexico is that everyone present seems to be having such a good time. I think that Alex and Drew´s wedding more than proves the point! And as if a gorgeous beach location, happy guests and a beautiful (and ultra laid back) bride and handsome groom were not enough how about a zippy blue, green and yellow color scheme to melt a photographer´s heart? Simplemente perfecto!

The beautiful bride before the ceremony…

Bride and groom details…I LOVED the use of yellow and blue!

Alex and Drew had a dry erase board for guests to write messages, this was SUCH a hit, the messages were SO  funny and a great way to get wedding guests to actually use the disposible cameras!

Playa del Cament photographer Elizabeth Medina, destination wedding photography in Playa del Carmen Mexico.

I feel a little silly going on and on in every blog post about my wonderful wedding photography clients…maybe it is just something about destination weddings in Mexico that brings out the best in people! I can’t help but feel fortunate to photograph people as lovely and as excited about photography as Sarah and Trevor! The wedding was held at the Royal in Playa del Carmen, this is such a super popular wedding destination, and for good reason. The gazebo is a perfect location for those who want to get married overlooking the ocean but not actually right on the beach. Sarah and Trevor used the different areas of the hotel…gazebo ceremony, garden cocktail hour and banquet hall reception. We were even able to go offsite before the reception to photograph in another location that the bride and groom had scouted. Thank you so much Sarah and Trevor, we loved being a part of your big day!

The bride getting ready, so beautiful!

The groom during the “getting ready” time, I liked his tropical tie, it had little pink pineapples!

I few photographs from the wedding ceremony. Here Sarah enters the gazebo with both parents.

Group photo in the gazebo at the Royal in PDC.

Trevor and Sarah didn’t want to do their portraits in a crowded location and were able to find this location in Playacar that worked great for the photo session.

Mexico wedding photojournalist Elizabeth Medina, wedding photography in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

One aspect of destination wedding photography that I really enjoy is being able to meet people from literally all over the world who have come to Mexico to be married. What a wonderful thing! Kora and Arek’s group was very international,  with the bride and groom being of Polish descent, and it was fun to observe the warmth and spontaneity of the group! And how much kissing and dancing took place! The wedding was held on a terrace near the ocean at the Alegro Playacar in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. It was actually raining at the time the ceremony was supposed to begin, but everyone optimistically waited a bit and it cleared up and turned out to be a beautiful afternoon and evening. Congratulations Arek and Kora! It was a great honor to be your wedding photographer!

The ceremony site:

What a beautiful bride! And very calm, if you consider it was minutes from ceremony time and those are raindrops in the background!

After the rain the sky and ocean were very pretty!

We were able to do take some photographs on the grounds of the hotel before the reception began.

So pretty and peaceful!

kora’s maid of honor was so happy to catch the bouquet!

We were able to do a “day after” session the early next morning. Here are just a few images from that photo session.

Elizabeth Medina is a wedding photojournalist in Mexico, she photographs events in Cancun, Playa de Carmen, Tulum, Merida, Yucatan, Puerto Vallarta, San Miguel de Allende and throughout Mexico.

One thing tha I LOVE about photographing destination weddings is the multicultural aspect. Being part of a multicultural family myself it makes me happy to see so many couples of different backgrounds travel to an exotic location to start their lives together! The world is getting smaller all the time! Nicole and Alfredo are North American and Nicaraguan and got married in Mexico, what a great combination. It was fantastic that so many people were able to make the trip from both countries! They are both bilingual and amazing salsa dancers…see more on that below, but most of all I enjoyed their sparkle throughout the day and Nicole’s kindness when the photographs from my last 2008 wedding took a little longer than expected. Gracias y un abrazo!

Nicole and her girls got ready at La Tortuga en Playa del Carmen, I was happy to be able to catch a few relaxed portraits on the way out the door.

We met at The Royal for photographs before the ceremony.

I had a backup photographer for the family photos….she was not kidding around, I am sure she got a lot of great shots! And I could tell she was a true photographer because she didn’t care to be in front of the camera at all!

We were able to photograph on the beach before the ceremony, nice!

The next image is a little crazy but I loved it.

Teh ceremony was held at Nuestra Señora del Carmen. After never having photographed there this was my third wedding in 2 months at that chapel! It is very pretty but a little challenging to photograph in because of its very small size.

When Nicole reached the altar and saw Alfedo it was such an emotional moment.

Nicole and Alredo used the traditional Mexican lazo during their Catholic ceremony.

The reception begain with an outdoor cocktail hour in the garden area of The Royal resort, the dinner and dancing were held in a ballroom.

The first dance started out slowly…

and suddenly turned into an amazing salsa performance!

The next photograph of the musician is from Lauren’s camera.

Wedding cake…

And the whole group hit the dance floor, fue una muy buena fiesta.

Playa del Carmen wedding photographer Elizabeth Medina, wedding photography in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

As fun as it is to photograph a gorgeous wedding like that of Jalé and Ken at La Reve near Playa del Carmen, I have to think it must also be one of the most amazing things in the world to be a guest at a destination wedding and spend a whole weekend in Paradise kicking back and celebrating the marriage of a wonderful couple. What a fantastic experience. I think everyone should have a destination wedding if at all possible and rejoice if they are invited to one and able to make the journey!

Jale and Ken made us feel like special guests at their Mexico wedding. I will confess that I have a slightly immature love of “out of town bags”,  those wonderful goodie filled bags that destination couples often prepare for their guests. Something about those little trial size tubes of sunscreen and personalized playing cards just appeals to my inner child!  Jale and Ken graciously surprised us by having one of their OT bags waiting for us, it was lovely and truly did make us feel like honored participants at this very special event. Thank you Jale and Ken, it was such an honor to document your wedding!

Before the welcome dinner we did a few casual photographs near the Quinta Avenida and I was happy to have a chance to get the know the bride and groom before all the action started.

The wedding was held at le Reve, a very intimate “boutique” hotel. The whole hotel was reserved for the wedding guests…wow!

A few details.

Bridal prep.

Just beautiful.

The gorgeous ceremony site.

A memorable moment between the bride and her father.

We were able to do photographs on the beach after the ceremony.

The cocktail hour.

Reception details.

The girl friends were so much fun!

First dance.

I guess I was’t the only one having fun with my camera!

Early teh next moring we met to trash the dress. I admire people who not only get up so early on the morning afte the wedding but look so good!

Trashing the dress!

Riviera Maya destination wedding photographer Elizabeth Medina is a wedding photojournalist who photographs destination weddings throughout Mexico.

Kevina nd Sara were a wonderful couple to work with. Kevin had been my point of contact during the planning stages so I knew he was very enthusiastic about having great wedding photographs. He and Sarah were so patient, they really collaborated to go the extra mile for their photographs, both on the wedding day and by waking up the morning after the wedding for a sunrise trash the dress session at 6 AM on the beach in Playa del Carmen. They had some great surprises for their guests on the wedding day. Every one seemed so happy for the bride and groom, and I have absolutely never seen a happier mother of the groom as Sarah was welcomed into the family! Here are some images form the weddign day and the fabulous trash the dress session the next morning…I think it was worth the 5 am alarm clock, which is saying a lot!

A couple of images from the trash the dress photo session…the name of this fishing boat was ¨corazón¨, or ¨heart¨in Spanish.

One thing about portrait photography is knowing how to connect with subject and knowing how to pace the session for the most variety and expressions possible. During the wedding day and the trash he dress session Sarah and Kevin were such good sports and we got all kinds of photographs of the two of them but I still felt like there was something a little below the surface yet and that it would make a special photograph. When I saw the image below in my camera´s viewfinder I think I actually said ¨That´s it!¨ Just what I had been after!

The rings…

Sarah´s beautiful dress.

A few shots from the ceremony in the Gazebo at the Royal in Playa del Carmen. Happy, happy bride…

The gazebo and sand ceremony…

This one is kind of a funny moment…Only at a resort wedding would you see something like this!

One of the surprises for the wedding guests was the mariachi group.

6 AM, time to trash the dress! Sunrise in the Maya Rivera happens over the ocean.

I loved the textures in this image.

Time to trash the dress (or wash the dress) in the ocean.

Elizabeth Medina, es fotógrafa profesional de bodas. Ofrece fotografia de bodas en Mexico, en la Riviera Maya, Cancun, Playa del Carmen, isla Mujeres, Cozumel, Tulum, Yucatan, Merida, Puerto Vallarta, San Miguel de Allende, Y Los Cabos. Se especializa en bodas de destino en haciendas y playas.