Santosha Long Bay Villa, Anguilla Wedding,

May 29

A sentimental destination wedding at the Santosha & Long Bay Villas:

A Canadian couple’s destination wedding on the island of Anguilla, off the coast of St. Martin / Sint Maarten. A golden hour beach ceremony, and sunset reception at the properties on Long Bay and Santosha.

*The first few minutes after their sunset beach ceremony at Santosha Villa*

The Couple

To say Jack and Simone have a connection to the island of Anguilla would be an understatement. Not only is it where Jack proposed, but Simone has been coming there since she was born, with her family visiting long before that. I won’t butcher the story in an attempt to explain its significance, but I’m certain I can say that some of their best memories have occurred on this little island, about a 30 minute boat ride off the coast of Saint Martin. When Simone’s father found out that I was staying at The Anguilla Great House Resort, he shared how they were to recreate a photo of him holding Simone in front of one of the buildings from when she was a baby. That’s how many years they’ve been vacationing there. And now, that island was also houses their wedding memories.

The Morning:

Jack and Simone got ready in two separate villas on the same property, Santosha and Long Bay, and then met in the middle to share some pre-ceremony portraits and group photos with their wedding parties. The warm sun, vibrant nature, and unique architecture of the villas made for one of the most stunning wedding backdrops I’ve ever experienced. The mixed pattern bridesmaids dress and unique florals even matched the cloudless blue sky.

The Beach Ceremony:

A ceremony so beautiful, it hardly felt real. Golden hour hit just as everyone began walking down the aisle. The way I photographed this ceremony felt different than others (aside from the fact I got to do it barefoot), but because of the decoration on the Chuppah, I noticed that the couples faces were not completely visible as the wind blew strands of delicate greenery back and forth. I decided rather unconventionally that I would stand behind their arch, getting a full view of them AND their guests behind them, with the perfect golden glow illuminating them. Some of my favourite ceremony photos I’ve ever taken.

The Reception:

After squeezing in some more “Just Married” portraits on the beach as the sky turned to pastel dusk, Simone added a stunning bridal cape to signify the reception had begun. Cocktail hour had live Caribbean music, custom drinks, and it’s only hiccup was a brief rainstorm, as is expected in such hot and humid climates. But luckily, the rest of the evening stayed completely dry! Reception was al fresco dining and dinner was catered by a local restaurant Tasty’s (my mouth is watering just thinking about the Caribbean barbecue). After everyone was sufficiently full, onto the dance floor where - my favourite jewish tradition - the horah kicked off the rest of the party. And boy was it a party.