We are always pleased to have a reason to return to Now Sapphire to photograph a destination wedding. The staff has always treated us so wonderfully, the grounds are well maintained and make for great photos, and the wedding planner we have had the pleasure of working alongside multiple times now (both Mike & Susan and Nicole & Ryan‘s weddings), Juan Carlos, is always lovely to see and busy with work. Claudia and select close family and friends, were being treated like royalty at the Spa, pampered with hairstyles and makeup, with a side of mimosa! Claudia had plenty of time to reflect on the past 8 wonderful years with Brad, about their shared passion for journalism, and their shared love for animals, having a 2-year old bichon frisé themselves. And how romantic is it that Brad proposed to his beautiful bride while they were visiting her homeland, Peru? They may not have traveled as much as they one day hope to, but a surprise proposal while visiting the country she previously called home just has my heart melting. Meanwhile, the gents were having a breeze getting ready, as is often the case. Brad looked eager and ready, simply put.
The ceremony was lovely, as was to be expected with Now Sapphire. The sun was playing peekaboo with the thin cloud coverage we had, which meant Claudia and Brad could actually see each other and their guests during the ceremony. The guests were all completely wowed at Claudia’s stunning dress. Not only had she been treated like royalty at the Spa, she looked as elegant as royalty too. Our recent track record with previous brides has been very few, if any, veils involved during a wedding, so when we saw the long and flowing veil that Claudia had, we were ecstatic. And then we found out a titillating story about the veil being left behind at home, and a hurried cab ride to and from their airport to retrieve it and somehow still manage to make it on their scheduled plane. Talk about having intense and inducing some minor heart palpitations. But you could still see the excitement in Claudia’s eyes as she described the intense and urgent feelings during those precious moments in the taxi, unwilling to accept that the veil be completely forgotten. And we couldn’t agree more! The veil cascading down her back looked majestic as the wind rolling off the water made it dance in its embrace. The decor that was fittingly similar to the bridesmaids dresses and other wedding accents was a orange-coral colour that was complimented by yellows, royal blues and whites. With Claudia’s ability to speak English, Spanish and Italian, we anticipated a multilingual vow and that is exactly how she gave hers. They were beautiful words, and the tenderness between them left you longing for more.
As the ceremony was a later start time than what we are familiar with, time was of the essence when it came to time to photograph the wedding party and the newlyweds creatives session. We had a super co-operative bunch who were all smiles and giggles of excitement, and that energy really helped drive, and feed, our lenses. Unfortunately for everyone, this year has been an exceptionally rough year for large amounts of sargussum, but that didn’t stop this crew from linking arms and strolling up and down the beach several times to get a perfect shot. And Claudia and Brad, themselves, were just as willing to spend time casually strutting the sand. By the time the newlyweds creatives session rolled around, We knew we wanted to revisit her veil. Much to our chagrin, intense winds decided to pick up at this pre-sunset hour, causing plenty of missed opportunities with a malfunctioning light piece of material. We still managed to macgyver it to make at least a few of the photos work in our favour with what little time we had.
The reception set up was breathtaking, with just a hint of Cozumel in the background, dancing on the water in the distance. The guests were all seated, eagerly awaiting the grand entrance of the wedding party, who each basked in the attention while doing their respective silly dances to the beat of the tunes. This was but a lead up to the impressive Salsa dancing they had choreographed for their first dance. Apparently this was just a taste of what was to come later that night. Claudia ensured there would be a healthy mix of Peruvian inspired dances, during the party aspect of the reception, as well as Mexican wedding dances with everyone joining in the fun, and then some. Their guests were all having an absolute blast with the constant change in the tempos of the music and the styles of dances expected on the multi-colour changing dance floor. Party favours were aplenty, with balloons being thrown into the mix at one point, plus whistles and silly glasses, glow sticks for everyone, plus colour-changing foam sticks that seem to get everyone in a party mood. Drinks were flowing, smiles were plastered across all the guests faces while celebrating this perfect union between Claudia and Brad. Energy levels were high, and I feel confident saying the party continued long after we left, likely into the wee hours of the morning.
