Its about time! Here is a little glimpse of Ashley and John’s Mexico destination wedding photography. Being present for a couple’s wedding is a special experience, for sure no two weddings or couples are ever alike but love is definitely a common denominator! Ashley was one of those organized and creative destination brides, she had many colorful details planned and it was fun to see it all come to life as she and John and their friends and family celebrated on the beach. Thank you Ashley and John we have all loved working with the two of you and wish you the very best in your life together.

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**update** Wedding Day photos below!

Delayed gratification… Let’s just say I am a bit challenged in this department. Back in the darkroom days one of my most pressing reasons for learning to process my own film was the fact that I could not stand to wait for the negatives to come back to see what was on the rolls of film. Somehow the anticipation and that first peek at the gems hiding on the film as it dripped dry was the very best part of photography.

Things are a little bit different now, instead of 36 shots on a roll of film (and just 12 on medium format rolls how crazy is that!) we have the opportunity to shoot hundreds (OK, thousands!) of digital images. I still can’t help but think of the digital images captured by the camera as my starting point or “negative” rather than the final image and I do my very best to make sure each image reaches its full potential in the editing process. I truly appreciate and admire the patience of our clients in the weeks prior to the “big reveal” of the fully edited set of images and nothing pleases me more than to hear that it was worth the wait!

In the case of Nathan and Maria’s wedding at the Moon Palace in Cancun the editing process took a tad longer than usual, possibly because they are such a nice couple I just didn’t want to let them go! First up, a sneak peek of a few images from the day-after trash the dress session at Cancun’s Moon Palace Resort to be followed very soon by the wedding day images. Nathan and Maria, thank you for the pleasure of photographing the two of you! We hope to see you again on one beautiful peninsula or another!  All images (c) 2012 Lauren and Elizabeth Medina.

On to the wedding day…

Remember the old question about being trapped on a desert island and who you would want to be trapped with? Jean and Walt’s amazing wedding and next day trash the dress session at the Moon Palace in Cancun brought a similar question to mind.  Lauren and I now know without a doubt the answer to the question “If you were trapped in pouring cats and dogs rain at 6 AM (usually known as “sunrise” but that implies being able to see the sun) on a one hour march around an enormous resort hoping for a chance to trash the dress who would you want to be marching with?”  Jean and Walt were such a fun, patient and laid back couple I can’t think of anyone I would rather spend an hour of pre daylight limbo with. Thank goodness our faith was rewarded and the sun made its appearance! First the photographs from the relaxed and beautiful wedding day (I know Jean worked hard on the decorations and it all looked fantastic!) and finally the TTD photos that I think were worth the trouble. Congratulations Jean and Walt!

A few bridal photos from before the ceremony…

The ceremony was held in a gazebo overlooking the ocean…

Bride and groom beach photos after the ceremony….so much fun to photograph these two…

Jean had a really funny surprise for Walt… an xbox wedding garter!

Photos from the next day TTD session,

What a day! Although a storm was brewing at sea this was one of the brightest, sunniest days ever. A “little” on the warm side but very, very beautiful and so lucky to have a fun, fun couple like Betty and Chris to photograph. It struck us that Betty and Chris seemed to be such a case of opposites attract, they had such very different styles but seemed absolutely PERFECT together. What could be more fun than to capture the moments for such a magical couple?

The bride had a great time with her girls…not bridesmaids this time but the best flower girls ever! The girls were so excited to get all dressed up and accessorized and then travel to the wedding gazebo with the bride in a horse drawn carriage.

When Betty and her girls arrived at the gazebo they entered the ceremony accompanied by a full mariachi band.

The bride’s entrance, a great capture by Lindsey.

The ring bearer did a great job. he was so serious about it all, barely cracking a smile before the wedding, I love both of the guy’s expressions as the bride made her entrance.

Since Betty speaks both English and Spanish Chris had learned enough Spanish to read his vows in her language, how sweet is that?

Quiet moments after the ceremony…

Bride and groom had a private carriage ride after the ceremony.

And we were able to do some photography on the beach at dusk, fantastic.

Cancun wedding photography at the Moon Palace Resort, Cancun, Mexico by Ddestination wedding photographer Elizabeth Medina,. Elizabeth Medina is available for commission throughout the Maya Rivera, Yucatan, and Mexico.

One thing I hear over and over at the weddings I photograph in Mexico is that rain on the wedding day is “buena suerte”, but of course no one wishes for that lucky wedding day rain! Cari and Nick had planned to meet me on the morning of the wedding to do a bit of more casual portrait photography and everything went as planned, but the minute I started photographing it began to rain and we had to run for cover! Fortunately the rain stopped, and not only did the sun came out but the day could not have been more perfect for the wedding! Mucha suerte! I really appreciated Cari and Nick’s decision to do the photographs of the to of them as a couple pre-ceremony, although bright sun was a bit of a challenge it worked out great because they were able to completely go with the flow of the party after the ceremony and not leave their guests at all. The Moon Palace was a great setting for this gazebo wedding which was simply beautiful and full of happiness.

In the morning…this was taken on the restaurant balcony where we took cover from the rain much to the enjoyment of the women at the next table!

Fortunately in a few minutes we were able to head for the beach.

Getting ready…

Bride and groom before the ceremony, the “first look”.

Nick waiting in the gazebo…

Cari and her father arrived in a horse drawn carriage, it was really a spectacular entrance.

The ceremony was held in Moon Palace Tucanes wedding gazebo.

The reception site overlooked the ocean.

The first dance.

Some of my favorite images were from the father daughter dance.

The toasts were so funny, I was laughing too!

Moon Palace destination wedding photography, Cancun Mexico, by Elizabeth Medina, wedding photojournalist.