The couple, the company, the dress code and the decor are all aspects of a special day that brings love to life and tells the story of a wedding. Add one more to the list as couples are increasingly choosing to travel for their dream day: the destination.
Destination weddings now make up about 25% of the wedding market.
To maximize the beauty of dreamy destinations and create a wedding album that tells a story that extends beyond the special day itself, photographers, videographers and the couples should immerse themselves in the landscape, architecture and ambiance of the destination.
Tranquil beaches, the countryside or fast-paced cityscapes—each tells a different story, framing the couple in wide waves, freeing fields or populated pedestrian areas.
Judson Rappaport, a New York City-based wedding photographer is no stranger to busy city streets and getting the picture amid the chaos.
“There's a lot more things that play into a city (wedding). They're usually dark, they're usually smaller, intimate,” Rappaport said. “I think it (destination) leans on the event itself—the photographs lean more heavily on flash.”
Rappaport’s New York wedding photographs are often love letters to the city itself, not just the couple and their guests. Prioritizing the guest experience, while also utilizing what a destination offers, from food to textiles, is paramount.
“It almost feels like a street photography kind of vibe where you're kind of out of control in a sense,” Rappaport said. “The city is happening around you and the city is almost a guest.”
Rappaport emphasizes the importance of reflecting the destination through guests’ fashion. “Guests who live in cities and have city weddings tend to be a little bit more avant-garde,” Rappaport said. “(In the countryside) people tend to kick off their shoes at weddings on a farm and walk around the grass—that's a photographable element.”
Be Prepared for Obstacles
Sandra Garcia-Bridges, a wedding videographer, utilizes drone footage to ensure her videos encapsulate the full wedding story, start to finish, while highlighting special moments that a photograph can’t always capture. However, there are obstacles and risks that come with destination weddings.
“The weather is always a big challenge,” Garcia-Bridges said. “Anything can happen and it's not just weather, but there's a lot of things that could happen.”
Garcia-Bridges recently filmed a Lake Como, Italy, wedding, which took extensive preparation.
“We knew that transportation was going to be difficult. There's no train, both buses will be limited,” Garcia-Bridges said. “We couldn't carry our gear, so we had to rent a car. Driving in Italy is challenging because it's not the same as driving here in the United States.”
Bradie Bruce, a novice wedding photographer, is learning the ropes under her sister Bailee Bruce. Having recently photographed an Italy-based wedding, Bruce has learned to appreciate the distinctive features a destination possesses and how to magnify them. “What sets this place apart from a wedding here in the States?” Bruce asks herself. “I think you'll see a lot more venues, or just places where people get married outside of the country, just have a lot more personality.”
Bruce also encourages photographers to appreciate the destination for what it is, rather than focusing on technical strategies—the destination often speaks for itself.
“There wasn't really any manipulation to make this look really awesome and beautiful, it was already awesome and beautiful,” Bruce said about the wedding in Italy. While appreciating the destination for its distinct qualities, Bruce also suggests “embracing the chaos, embracing the cultural differences and embracing the things that you can and can't control.”
Documenting the special moments in a destination wedding takes preparation, thought and intention. But with a photographer’s attention to detail and the love inspired by the couple being celebrated, capturing an enchanting destination wedding can lead to an album full of memories that showcases the unique character of the couple, the company, the décor, and, yes, the destination.
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