Wedding – Punto de Vista – Manuel Antonio October 2016

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One of my first weddings of the 2016-17 season here in Costa Rica, it’s great to be back!

This wedding was at one of Manuel Antonio’s premier vacation rental villas, Punto de Vista. It spectacular villa for a wedding with views of the Pacific ocean from all of its 5 floors.
The bride and groom were both from Southern California, and a lot of fun! I met the bride in her room, where she was getting her final touches to her make and hair by our local, wonderful make up artist, Monica. The bride’s Mom and her friends helped her getting in her get into her dress. I love the photos of the bride’s mother helping with her shoes.  The groom came into the Bride’s room to do the “first look” on the balcony, a moving moment!
The wedding ceremony took place on top-level of the villa which has an epic view of the Pacific looking towards the Manuel Antonio National Park.  The team at Weddings Costa Rica created a beautiful altar for the wedding, with floating candles and lilies. The reception dinner was held on the top-level, the tables looked magical, with gold candlesticks sparkling in the candle light. After dinner the party moved downstairs to the ballroom for dancing and more celebrations. Another stunning wedding arranged by Weddings Costa Rica!


Wedding Planning – Weddings Costa Rica
Location – Casa Punto de Vista, Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica
Hair and Make Up – Hair by Monica

That’s all for now, as we hunker down and wait for Hurricane Otto, the first hurricane in Costa Rica in over 100 years.

Colorful Indian Wedding at Los Sueños Costa Rica January 2015

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Everything about this wedding was so gorgeously colorful…the saris, the flowers, the spices, even the sunset. This traditional Hindi wedding and  reception took place at the Los Sueños Marriott at Herradura Beach and was beautifully planned by Weddings Costa Rica.
The Bride and Groom both live in Chicago, and this Hindi Wedding in Costa Rica was a joyful bonding of two families and two cultures.  The bride is of Indian heritage, she wore a traditional Indian sari and jewelry with henna tattoos on her hands and feet.

The groom arrived on a horseback for his “Baraat”, the presentation of the Groom’s family to the Bride’s family, there was music playing and dancing, an exciting start to the celebrations!

The whole wedding party then moved to the wedding site where all the spices, garlands, oils that are used in a traditional Hindi ceremony awaited them under the Mandap (the raised wooden ceremony altar).

The ceremony itself is an ancient, intricate tradition where there are many stages including the exchange of garlands, throwing rice upon the fire and circling the fire, it was beautiful to photograph.

After the ceremony we had some time to take some photos of the bride and groom with friends, family and some couples portraits. I love the photo of the bride with her friends doing the Vishnu poses, and the photos with the bride’s sari caught in the light.

We later moved to the Carara Ballroom for the reception party and dinner. The ballroom was decorated with colorful kites, tropical fruits and drift wood. For the reception the bride groom changed into “western culture” wedding clothes, I adore the photos of their hands!

I managed to sneak the bride and groom away to get a few more gorgeous photos in their change attire, before the reception kicked off…

Truly an honor to be part of this wedding. Best of luck and thank you!

Wedding at Costa Verde – Manuel Antonio – Costa Rica 2014

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This destination wedding took place at the Costa Verde Hotel in Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica. The Costa Verde has three pools, and the pool where the wedding took place has a rock star has a view of the Pacific Ocean and the Manuel Antonio National Park. The ceremony took place  under a white  tent with a beautiful rose and crystal arch.

After the ceremony we went to the beach and got some fun group shots on the rocks. We even borrowed some surf boards to get a few surfy photos as the bride and groom are really LOVE surfing. The wedding party later headed to El Avion; Costa Verde’s Airplane Restaurant: for a reception party. We took some great photos in front of the plane and had lots of fun with sparklers…all I can say is – what a PURA VIDA Wedding!

Wedding Planner : Weddings Costa Rica
Locations: Ceremony – Hotel Costa Verde, Manuel Antonio
Beach Photo Session – Playa Espadilla, (Manuel Antonio Beach)
Reception – El Avion at Costa Verde
Wedding Cake – Chelsea from Mariposa Catering

Wedding at Hotel Parador- Manuel Antonio Costa Rica May 2014

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This gorgeous wedding took place at Hotel Parador last month. The Parador is on the tip of a peninsula in Manuel Antonio, so you get the most amazing views up and down the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. The wedding was planned by the wonderful Weddings Costa Rica and took place on a covered terrace in the Parador Hotel. After the wedding we took some photos in the beautiful grounds of the Parador and then wedding party had the reception in one of the Parador’s excellent restaurants…a glorious day!

Wedding Planner : Weddings Costa Rica

Wedding Cake: Chelsea from Mariposa Pastry

Location: Hotel Parador, Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica

Surprise Beach Wedding – Manuel Antonio Costa Rica February 2014

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February is the month for romance! We’ve had the fabulously romantic sailboat engagement and now a surprise wedding!
When my good friend called me, telling me that her cousin wanted to surprise her boyfriend with a wedding, I thought..this is going to be FUN!
The couple were engaged but had just not got round to tying the knot, so this was a great relaxed way to it do it. To entice the unsuspecting groom the Tulemar Beach in Manuel Antonio we made up a story about my friend needing some photos done. And when they arrived at the beach there was an officiant and flowers…the fiancee was over joyed and it was a lovely simply beach ceremony….ahh vive la romance!


Have a wonderful weekend!

John

Wedding at Villa Caletas, Costa Rica January 2014

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A Pacific Ocean sunset was the romantic backdrop for this wedding in Villa Caletas’ stunning amphitheater. The amphitheatre was decorated with purple rose petals that complimented the bridesmaids dresses. The wedding party then had a wonderful meal the tables decorated in purples, I love the sand dollar details on the place cards and seats. Such and fun event and another perfectly planned wedding by Weddings Costa Rica.


Wedding Planner –Weddings Costa Rica

Location- Villa Caletas

Wedding at Villa Caletas, Costa Rica November 2013

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A pink and white rose petal aisle overlooking the Pacific Ocean was the romantic scene for this wedding. Villa Caletas is a small luxury resort perched high on Costa Rica’s rocky coastline. A mariachi band played vibrant music to the bride and groom.  The wedding party then had a wonderful meal the tables decorated in reds, pink and silver. The wedding party then had fireworks and a latin american carnival comparsa group to finish the night. Such and joyful event and another perfectly orchestrated wedding by Weddings Costa Rica.


Wedding Planner -Larissa at Weddings Costa Rica

Location- Villa Caletas

Wedding at Copa de Arbol, Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica November 2013

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A wedding in the Osa Peninsula? A couple hours drive, followed by an hour boat ride along a jungle rivers and into Drakes Bay, sounds like an adventure, but that is only the beginning!
This wedding couple visited the Copa de Arbol Hotel on vacation and decided that this was where they had to get married surrounded by their closest friends and family. The Copa de Arbol Hotel is new luxury resort in an area renowned as the most untouched on Costa Rica’s Pacific coast.  The hotel is not accessible by car, only a short boat ride from Drakes Bay or an hours hike along a coastal jungle trail.
At the end of the night,  I had beautiful moonlit hike back along the trail to my accommodation in Drakes Bay…it’s all part of the job of being a Photographer is Costa Rica, and going that extra mile….literally!


Location- Copa de Arbol, Caletas, Nr. Drakes Bay, Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica

Hope you enjoy these photos I love the light in the beach portraits, just magical. I will be posting photos soon from another night hike I did with a local entomologist in Drake Bay.

Wedding at Villa Caletas, Costa Rica July 2013

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An ivory rose petal aisle over looking the Pacific Ocean, was the scene for this beautiful wedding at Zephyr Palace in Villa Caletas, Costa Rica. The guests were seated in see-through chairs..perfect not to interrupt the ocean view. The bride looked stunning in a gorgeous ivory gown whilst the bridesmaids were in colorful silks. The wedding party then had a wonderful meal the tables decorated in colorful mix of purple and topical oranges. The party then kicked of with music and dancing until late…a pleasure to photograph! Another great wedding organized by Weddings Costa Rica.


Wedding Planner – Weddings Costa Rica
Location- Villa Caletas

Punto de Vista Wedding – Manuel Antonio Costa Rica 2013

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What a spectacular location for a wedding, Casa Punta de Vista in Manuel Antonio really is breath-taking. The whole house was decorated in beautiful cream and orange floral displays – another stunning wedding arranged by Weddings Costa Rica! The wedding ceremony took place on the upper level which has a view of the Pacific Ocean looking towards the Manuel Antonio National Park.  Casa Punto de Vista has five levels with views from all the bedrooms – luckily for the guests (and me!) there is an elevator. The reception dinner was held on the level below and dancing was in the ballroom on the ground floor…the band was fantastic!!


Wedding Planner – Weddings Costa Rica
Location – Casa Punto de Vista, Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica

Exciting news is that my Brand New Website is online, please take a look at www.weddingphotoscostarica.com , also visit my Facebook Page for my latest news. Hope you had a great weekend, John

A Persian Wedding at Villa Caletas Costa Rica January 2013

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This beautiful Persian wedding was a marvelous to photograph with the bright colors of the flowers and dresses against the stunning backdrop of the of the ocean.  The family set up a traditional Sofreye Aghd or Wedding Spread, this includes pastries, herbs, salt, candles, mirrors and a blessed bread, which was specially baked with calligraphy written on it. Another Persian tradition, a bright blue shawl which is held over the bride and grooms heads during the ceremony. The wedding ceremony took place at sunset on Villa Caleta’s incredible private amphitheater. The wedding party then moved to the spectacular  Zephyr Palace, Villa Caletas wedding reception venue for dinner and dancing.

A couple of days after the wedding the bride and groom came to Manuel Antonio for a sunset couple photo shoot, where we got some beautiful romantic photos.


Wedding Planner – Villa Caletas Wedding Planners
Location- Villa Caletas

 

Wedding at Villa Caletas Costa Rica December 2012

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Villa Caletas  is spectacular venue for a sunset wedding on Costa Rica’s Central Pacific coast, the views and the ambiance are hard to beat. This beautiful wedding was organized by the amazing team at Weddings Costa Rica , their attention to detail and creativity once again made a perfect intimate wedding ceremony and celebration. The wedding ceremony took place at sunset on Villa Caleta’s private terrace and the wedding reception dinner was also at the hotel.


Wedding Planner – Weddings Costa Rica

Location-Villa Caletas