Check it out ! Malisa and Todd’s wedding in Tulum, in Mexico’s Riviera Maya, is now one of the featured weddings in Wedvert Magazine, a publication all about green weddings.
Oh, and FYI — if you’re looking for a wedding coordinator for a destination wedding, check out Malisa’s site. She’s become a destination wedding planner!
Here’s some of what Malisa has to say:
Too beautiful to be true, Tulum, located on the eastern coast of the Yucatan peninsula, is one of Mexico’s most treasured national preserves and a nesting ground for turtles. It’s also the location and inspiration behind Malisa and Todd’s intimate seaside wedding. “I had a vision of white sand beaches, which are very hard to find in today’s environment of the mega resort,” Malisa says. “I stuck with my vision, though, and it led us to Tulum, where sea turtles nest and hotels are solar-powered in order to avoid light pollution and keep the turtles happy.”
The latest issue of the アサヒカメラ, also known as Asahi Camera, just arrived in the mailbox today, and it featuring another one of Sigma’sOur World ads that I shot last fall. This image was taken at the Great Sand Dunes National Monument in central Colorado — it was covered in snow, hence the white “sand.” Super cool place. It’ll be fun to keep watching these ads show up!
I’m proud to announce that the studio has renewed its small business partnership with CarbonFund.org, one of the nonprofit leaders in carbon offsets. That means the entire business is carbon neutral (actually, carbon negative because we offset more than we use).
We’re always trying to do our part to reduce our footprint. We partake in the easy stuff, of course — using rechargeable batteries, recycling, keeping all paperwork as electronic as possible, doing electronic proofing, using CFL lightbulbs, etc. But our partnership with CarbonFund.org is a step forward. Our annual donation offsets more than 70 tons of carbon emissions each year through renewable energy and reforestation projects in North and Central America.
If you’re interested in greening up your wedding, check out visit carbonfund.org, or give us a shout out for some cool green wedding ideas. These include everything from using locally grown flowers to hiring an organic catering company or booking a wind-powered venue. One couple used flatware made of corn, while another decided to have all wedding gifts be donations to a nonprofit of choice. If you’re interested, we carry a variety of vegan friendly wedding albums, as well as a book that’s totally carbon neutral and made of completely recycled materials. Cool stuff.
Yani and Ken were married in Cozumel in a heartfelt wedding with fantastic guests. I had an absolute blast hanging out these guys, and you can see from the photos that they never stopped laughing. They’re two of the most good-natured, happy people I’ve ever met. Their ceremony was so genuinely emotional that I almost started crying.
They had their rehearsal dinner in the garden at Pancho’s Backyard in downtown Cozumel. The place came alive with tiny palm trees, live music and christmas lights, and a definite highlight was a personalized wedding song sung by relatives dressed as Mexican food — including a 6′6″ taco. The next day started off with all the guys heading to a beach bar and tossing a football around dressed in ridiculous tourist shirts, which you can see in the slideshow at the bottom of this post. They had an extra one that I inherited that says “National Pimp Association.” I’m extremely proud of it.
Mr. Sancho’s played host to the ceremony and reception — it’s a super cool little beach bar with a fantastic wedding garden off to the side. I loved the bright colors and super mellow vibe. Big fan!
Anyway, Yani, Ken, you guys are a great match. I’m super psyched for you. Congratulations!
Oh, PS: I don’t think I’ll ever forget playing Farkle with everyone till the wee hours of the morning every night. Thank you so much for the Farkle kit you sent me in the mail. I love it. I’m a fan for life. I promise to spread the game far and wide, and I hope to Farkle with you again one day.
Christen and Todd were married at the Sonnenalp in Vail recently and had an awesome ceremony and reception. I had a blast photographing the reception — rockin party, with good times had by all. Emotions ran high, too, and there were countless tender moments between everyone. I was really touched by the strong bond Christen and Todd obviously have with each other, as well as with their families. Basically it was a photographer’s dream! Congratulations, you two. Here are a few favorites, followed by a slideshow.
Just got the results back from the most recent WPJA contest, and I had three images place. Cool stuff. Members were only allowed to submit black and white images, which made it pretty unique. I had a fun time going through my shots looking for the patterns, textures and moments that translate well into black and white. The first shot was from Yani and Ken’s wedding in Cozumel, which was an incredible event (stay tuned for a slideshow). It won seventh place in the found details category. The judges wrote: “I love the attention to detail here, from the texture of the seersucker fabric and the pattern on the tie to the flower on the lapel.”
The next shot was actually just featured on my blog from Emily and Brian’s wedding at the One and Only Ocean Club in the Bahamas. It’s a cool reflection I captured of Emily right before the ceremony.
And then there’s this shot from Danelle and Matt’s wedding in Vail, which placed in the Emotion category. The judges wrote: “A fairly standard view at a wedding but so well done! The photographer really captured the groom so well and the long row of groomsmen sharing in the moment completes the whole picture. Not easy to choose to photograph the groom in the big moment but it paid off well here.”
Emily and Brian got married at the One and Only Ocean Club on Paradise Island in the Bahamas, and wow, What a celebration! It must be one of the most beautiful weddings ever. I was super psyched for them that they as many friends and family down there as they did. It’s always so cool to see the love surrounding a couple, and it really shows when you have guests traveling from far away to be a part of the celebration. I can see why they had such a turnout, too
I learned at the rehearsal dinner that Brian, within a few hours of meeting Emily, made a $1000 bet with a friend that he’d marry her. And here we are! How cool is that?
The day after the wedding, Emily and Brian braved some stifling heat for a fun portrait session that included everything from the sunken Versailles gardens of the Ocean Club to… yes… a banana tube ride. These guys know how to get down.
Congats! Emily, Brian, you rock!
Below are a few highlights of the wedding, as well as a slideshow.
Della Terra is open, and wow does it look awesome! Pam let Sarah, her mom, her brother and myself in for a bridal portrait shoot, and we had full run of the property for a few hours. I think Della Terra is one of the best wedding venues in the state — no kidding. The rooms are incredibly well appointed, complete with walk-through showers and hot tubs on the porch! Inside there is a super cozy fireplace and a huge two-story waterfall. And the wedding deck itself looks up onto MacGregor Slab in Rocky Mountain National Park. Good stuff. Sarah and I had fun shooting all over the place — and yes, she did get into a bathtub full of water in her wedding dress. Can’t wait to shoot her and Mark’s wedding next month!
Associate Photographer Bernd Z. just finished up with Jen and Brian’s wedding at the Meadows at Marshdale in Evergreen. Beautiful wedding! Here’s what he had to say:
The weather was.. let’s say… “not cooperative” when I got there, yet both of you were so positive and relaxed that nothing could sour your wedding day. It was simple and elegant, timeless and classic, and reflected the care and love you have for each other. To have your two families come together from all across the country to celebrate with you was especially meaningful. I am so pleased to have been part of your wedding and I would spend any day with the two of you in the mountains climbing and taking pictures.
Here are a few favorites from the day, along with a slideshow.
Epic! Malisa and Todd had the most incredible wedding in Tulum last week, and I had the honor to shoot the whole four days of festivities. It was an amazing time — we did everything from zip lines to snorkeling in cenotes to partying at Carnival in Cancun. I got back three days ago and I’m still recovering.
We had all sorts of awesome photo excursions — one day we actually took some strobes and went down into a cenote before the place opened, and had full run of a massive underground cave with a crystal clear river running through it. Absolutely fantastic. Check out the pictures below.
Also, they managed to find one of the coolest venues I’ve ever been to anywhere: the Mil Amores hotel, way off the beaten path in Tulum. It was the house of the infamous drug lord Pablo Escobar, who was listed by Forbes Magazine as the world’s 7th richest man in 1989. We had a tour and were shown the “yoga room” and I had visions of a dozen of the world’s biggest cocaine kingpins in there involved in all sorts of debauchery. Anyway, if you’re considering getting married in Mexico, I can’t recommend this place enough. The staff’s just super nice and accommodating and the building and location are both just incredible. And if anyone reading this winds up there, give their Doberman a pat for me. The poor dog had an ear infection when it was a pup and has no sense of balance: it walks like a drunk and runs into stationary objects.
Sometimes I have to pinch myself: is this job for real? I had so much fun hanging out with Todd and Malisa and getting to know their family and friends. It’s great getting to spend time with everyone and meeting new people. After a little while, we all are at ease and I think that shows up in the photos.
Anyway, Todd, Malisa: CONGRATULATIONS! I wish you guys the very best, and can’t wait to see you again one of these day. If you come to Colorado, you’ve always got a place to stay and rocks to climb
