A Destination Wedding In Costa Rica

THE BEGINNING

So began the adventure of my first destination wedding.  Costa Rica.  On a beach.  At sunset.   Yeah, pinch me to make sure this is actually happening.  There is probably no way to accurately describe how great, how off the wall and how laid back this wedding would be.  First off, the couple is great friends of mine.  Second, the planning session was held in Oklahoma City at the couple’s house over beer.  And third, the photography was a free for all only limited by weather, gear, and knowledge.

 

 

 

THE TRIP

Although I would be lying by saying that thinking about the trip itself was low stress, it turned out to be very low stress.  Whitney Norman at Sun Lover Travel handled all of the accommodations for the wedding party and guests.  Although I prefer to handle my travel arrangements, since this was my first time out of the country, it was better to let a professional handle the task.  Heck, even though I was booked on United, that part of the trip went smooth.  I even received a free upgrade on my flight out of Houston to Liberia.   Whitney booked us at the Hotel Grand Papagayo. Coming back into the country proved to be less than fun.  Camera bag swabbed in Liberia.  Pulled into the looooooong Customs line in Houston. At least my 3-hour layover in Houston on the way back got burned pretty quick.

 

THE WEDDING

The one thing I was not prepared for was the weather in Costa Rica.  I did not know it was the rainy season, but at least it did not rain during the wedding.  There was some concern leading up to the ceremony that the location would have to be moved, but in the end, we were on the beach.   I am used to the skies here in Oklahoma and there are days when the clouds move with gusto.  Costa Rica, same thing.  In the short time from the start of the ceremony to the last shots, the sky went from overcast to blue and back to overcast.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE LAST DAY

A large part of the wedding party spent the day after the ceremony on a catamaran cruise up the Costa Rican coast.  The crew took us to a little cove where we indulged in some snorkeling and just enjoying the view.  The cruise back to Plays del Coco, where the trip originated from, ran right up to sunset.  Of course, would you know, it would be the one day out of three that the skies would provide us with the best sunset of the trip.

 

 

CONCLUSION

I was on the ground for just over 72 hours.  Needless to say, the time went by too fast.  I am very happy that I was chosen to be Katherine’s and Aaron’s wedding photographer.   Feel free to check out the full wedding gallery:

If you are a photographer and would like to read some tips and tricks that I learned, feel free to head over to The Photographers’ Cooperative website to learn more.

Jul 11, 2017