During the early planning stages, we quickly discovered that our timeline for the big day was extremely tight. The Dreams Sapphire Resort in  Mexico has a few rules that we needed to follow. That made it kind of tricky to accomplish everything we had planned for the wedding day. Looking over the schedule so many parts of the day were time-sensitive. The only thing that was negotiable was shooting the accessories ahead of the wedding day. So, that is exactly what we did! My goal at any wedding is to really focus on taking pictures of all the precious moments happening around the couple so getting a head start on the accessory photos left us with more time to do just that.

 

 

The resort will steam the bride and groom’s attire the day before the wedding. That’s why the bride and I went around the resort and took pictures of the dress on its own two days before the wedding so that we wouldn’t risk getting the dress getting dirty or wrinkly after it was steamed and ready to go. After we had finished with our dress pictures, I collected two boxes from the couple. One containing all the bride’s accessories and a second box containing the groom’s accessories.

 

Then, later that day in my room, I set up and shot their stunning flat lay images containing all the items in their boxes. Another bonus of doing all of this ahead of time made it so that I wasn’t trying to photograph any items that needed to be used by the bride, groom or the hair and make-up team on the morning of the wedding. Overall, it was the perfect plan to make sure I wasn’t inconveniencing anyone else throughout that very busy morning.

 

On the morning of their wedding, I met up with the groom and his groomsmen first. The groom was staying in a room with a jungle view. This meant I had a lot less natural light to work with when compared to the beach walk-out rooms. I ended up taking photos of the groom getting dressed out on the patio and they turned out spectacular. Since we still had a very tight timeline we jumped straight into bridal forms in the morning. I photographed the groom with each of his groomsmen and then all of them together dressed in their suits so that we could save time by not needing these photos later in the day.

 

 

I can capture a few shots of the final touch-ups. I mean no one wants a photo of themselves with one eyelash on and one eyelash off! After our bride was finished getting ready, we took some fun shots of all the girls outside by the couple’s private pool. I mean why not! If you have a private pool, you should use it in your photos! After some fun photos by the pool, I found this to be the perfect time to have the bride and her mom or maid of honour help with getting the wedding dress on. This can be such an intimate moment.

 

Then I set up two “first looks” of the bride in her dress. The first “first look” I like to do is with the bridesmaids. Having all the girls cover their eyes and then open them all at the same time. It’s such a fun way to start the morning. The second “first look” is usually with the bride’s dad. This is such a special moment, and it looks so beautiful when caught on camera. Finally ending off the morning photos with pictures of the bride and each of her bridesmaids all dressed up so that we stay consistent with the groomsmen’s photos and continue to save extra time later in the day.

For the photographer, the ceremony and family photos are a pretty easy breezy part of the day. Everything stays rather consistent at most weddings. This couple had their ceremony with the ocean view behind them. It was incredible! For me, it is always important that my bride and groom create a solid family photo list for me ahead of time. This helps to ensure that family photos run smoothly and efficiently. After the ceremony, we went to find a shady spot nearby to take our family formals. We happened to have a bunch of shade just on the other side of the wedding venue with beautiful jungle trees in the background, it was perfect!

Every photographer’s favourite part of the wedding day! The first thing I did when arriving in Mexico was take my time and scout the property. Together with my couple, we picked out our favourite locations well in advance and planned out a variety of beautiful spots to shoot at. I believe being over-prepared is always the way to go when working at any new venue. Now obviously if you have been to Dreams Sapphire Resort in Cancun Mexico it’s easy to fall in love with the jungle trees and beach area of this resort. They are both just stunning places to take amazing pictures. However, I wanted to make sure we didn’t miss any other great opportunities. One of my personal favourite spots is the waterfall near the buffet and main pool area! I love the set of photos we took there.

Ps. Depending on where you’re having your wedding ceremony and reception the lobby area can be kind of a far hike. I truly encourage you to call for a cart and ask them to bring you to and from the lobby or any other areas you have in mind. This will save all of you from getting oh so sweaty running around the resort taking pictures.

 

 

At Dreams Sapphire Resort in Cancun Mexico receptions end a little earlier than I am used to. My best advice is to try and ensure you prioritize the important photographs like the first dance and cake cutting. I also can’t stress this enough!! If at all possible, schedule at least 15mins and visit the beach at sunset for some final bridal photos of just the bride and groom. You won’t regret it! We brought champagne bottles with us and had such a blast. The sky was so moody and beautiful that it was the perfect setup for our final set of bridal photos. Afterwards, we had dinner and just as nightfall hit and our couple lit up the dance floor, literally they lit it up! They had fireworks coming off the dance floor! Dreams Sapphire Resort in Cancun Mexico really knows how to throw a wedding party!

This might not be for everyone but I highly suggest it! It is worth having sand in all the wrong places for the next two days haha. The day after the wedding, we planned to take some beautiful sunset photos on the beach. This can also be done at sunrise if you’re more of a morning person. I met my couple on the beach and we took some really steamy intimate shots in the ocean. Initially, we were concerned about the seaweed but honestly, it didn’t get in the way or bother us at all. These photos are absolutely spectacular and the best way to finish off their photo gallery. I can honestly say these might be some of my favourite photos taken throughout the whole trip!

 

As you can see there are some perks when bringing your photographer with you! We took advantage of the entire week together and shoot stunning photos on more than one occasion before and after the wedding. It was a wedding for the books and the best way to start wedding season!