Weddings abroad are becoming more and more popular every year. Especially in these warmer corners of the world. There are many couples who decide to take a handful of loved ones to take their marriage vows in a picturesque place in their presence. In the mountains, a small church hidden somewhere far away from civilization, or on a paradise beach – the choice is yours.
Such an idea for a wedding makes this day even more special, and memories take on a different color. Destination wedding is the perfect solution for all couples who are not attached to tradition, instead of a grand wedding with lots of guests, they dream of an intimate celebration in a fairytale scenery. Wedding abroad can also be an idea for your moment of sealing love. Today we will tell you about one unique wedding that happened in Portugal.
Luke i Rebecca – a couple of Americans with Korean roots decided to organize their wedding in a picturesque villa with a swimming pool on the outskirts of Porto. From the United States they came to Portugal (interestingly, it was their first trip to Portugal) just to get married. A photographer from Poland was supposed to capture this event in the lens. This work will probably never cease to surprise us! We felt a great distinction that it was us who chose us to be the only ones (though if you carefully follow the material, you will see that we had strong competition :)) create the memory of this special day through the prism of our sensitivity and look.
We feel great responsibility when photographing weddings. Each time we not only carefully observe everything that is happening around us, but we experience this day with you.
First time we met Luke and Rebecca at the wedding venue, in the fabulously situated Villa Quinta do Gato. The scenery evoked a Tuscan, picturesque estate, hidden between vast fields and orchards of olive trees. In a word – hidden away from people. The holiday villa turned out to be an ideal place to organize such an intimate event as a wedding.
From the very morning the closest family and a handful of friends prepared the area of the villa for this special holiday of lovers. Such unhurried preparations in a relaxed, friendly atmosphere are always an opportunity for unique, authentic shots. The idea of slow weeding, which accompanies the wedding preparations since the beginning, means that we do not have to stick to rigidly marked program points. Instead, we focus on authentic emotions to show the multithreading of the day. It is important for us to always look for frames and tell stories from dozens of small but important moments. In our opinion, this is the key to an interesting, valuable wedding reportage.
Preparing the garden for the wedding ceremony, work with flowers and decorations, decorating the table for a gala dinner, while preparing the participants themselves in the villa. Girls doing makeup or combing each other, conversations and leisurely bustle of loved ones. Like preparation but without the hustle and bustle, but in such a light, wonderful atmosphere waiting for the culmination of the ceremony.
We were impressed and wanted the wedding preparations to have a strong position in this report.
And details. So many beautiful details, a bit traditional like Korean, festive kimonos of both mothers or jewelry, combined with modern accessories and wedding details.
When the preparations were over and the time came for the most important moment of the day, everyone took their seats to welcome the bride and groom. The heat was pouring down from the sky, and tears were flowing from the eyes. It was a very emotional ceremony and marriage vow. The young read their own vows, and the loved ones did not hide their tears of emotion. We were impressed by how carefully they experienced not only the moment of marriage, but the whole event all gathered around Luke and Rebbeca. Bond and attachment were clearly visible. And just after the oath, the newlyweds gave their traditional thanks to their parents.
We had to remain vigilant all the time, weddings without a wedding planner are quite spontaneous, and many elements were new to us, and we didn’t want anything to escape our eyes. And I think it worked;)
When the ceremony and wishes came to an end, the celebration finally began! Everyone gathered at one long table, and at the time several musicians were playing in the garden. In the case of wedding photography, there could also be commemorative, family group photos.
We were able to kidnap nourished and relaxed newlyweds for a short session outdoors. The golden light of the setting sun painted the grain and made the scenery even more beautiful. They looked insane! The bride in a minimalistic, simple dress made of shiny silk. For this modest makeup and naturally strands of facial hair. Beauty and simplicity of effortless elegance. Luke also chose the classic of a perfectly tailored suit, and as an addition he chose an elegant fly. Sometimes too rich and rich details are too much.
During this short session on our wedding day, we couldn’t have wished for better light and steam! We used this time to the last ray.
There was no end to joy. And it may surprise some that without dances or weddings guests can have such a great time. It was a very intimate, warm welcome. Focused on the bride and groom. Everyone gathered here for them. We liked the idea and we felt joy that we could participate in it.
The highlight was a champagne toast and cake. It was also the right moment to gradually and almost imperceptibly retreat with the camera.
This is also a good time to change words into pictures and leave you with this beautiful story!
Porto! Them! Love!