We are so sad to be back home from Mexico! We had such a great time working with Reina and Shan for their destination wedding at Generations Riviera Maya in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico. They had three gorgeous days of events including the bride’s Mehndi, a welcoming party for all their guests, a Sangeet night, and then the wedding and reception the final day. We broke this blog post up into two parts and Part 1 is right here with their pre-events!
Generations is one of the newest properties in Playa Del Carmen and it is connected next to El Dorado which is a very popular property owned by Karisma Hotels and Resorts. This new and modern hotel has pools outside every room and multiple fantastic restaurants. This all inclusive resort was the perfect place for Reina and Shan’s wedding and we started things off with the bride’s Mehndi. Reina got her Mehndi done in their hotel suite by a local Henna Artist. It was a first for me to stand in a pool with a bride to get shots of her Mehndi hands with the water as the backdrop and it worked perfectly!
The next event was the casual cocktail party they held for their guests that were arriving for the wedding events. Since it is a destination every single person had to fly in for the festivities. Turns out I was their actual first guest to arrive as I came a couple days early. The party was causal with food, drinks, a surprise flash mob, and dancing. Part of the festivities was to have a donkey at the party so we just had to get a few shots of the bride and groom with the donkey!
The next day before the Sangeet, I wanted to take Reina and Shan down to the beach for some candid shots around the property. To me, when doing a destination wedding, it is really important to get some additional shots that normally we don’t get at weddings back in the Bay Area. Since we are there for multiple days, it is great to spend some time with the couple getting additional shots for their film, as well as, to get some extra photos, almost like an engagement session. For this shoot I shot photo and cinema all by myself and I actually love these images, as well as, the shots we got for their film, very much!
The Sangeet was that evening and was held on the beach near the venues large Ganesh statue. Not sure if this statue was just a coincidence, but it worked perfectly for their traditional Hindu wedding event! They had a cigar roller on hand, as well as, margaritas galore! There was both local food and Indian food and it was yet another opportunity for all their guests to hang out and have a good time.
Reina and Shan’s wedding is amazing and you don’t want to miss it so stay tuned and come back soon to see more of this gorgeous wedding!
