Amazing, incredible, awesome! not my words but those of a guest in Heidi & Lalo’s guest book and those three words pretty much sum up the entire experience. Heidi & Lalo live in LA and made the trip over to Barcelona with close family and friends from far and wide. As some of you will know I absolutely love these kinds of weddings and having the chance to hang out with people this cool for a few days was a real treat.

The Friday began with a coach trip out to a fabulous venue for a touch of local culture and paella cooking and  lovely lunch. WIth barely time to catch your breath it was then off to the cava producers Codorniu, chances are if you like cava you will have sampled some of this at some point. The sheer vastness of the premises is something to behold and despite the odd guest fading a little after lunch we were all treated to fantastic tour and tasting.

As if that was not enough for one day it was swiftly back to Barcelona before the rehearsal dinner in the newly renovated Hotel Espana and the incredible dining room boasting original hand painted murals on the walls, I was politely told that use of any flash would result in instant removal  which gives you some idea how precious they are.

So where were we? After so much to absorb from the Friday it was hard not to have some sort of expectation about the Saturday and the only remaining 17th century palace in the gothic area of Barcelona seemed a suitable location, even boasting the original furniture from the 17th century . Palau Moxo is a truly stunning location, I have  never seen so many chanceliiers in one room anywhere before and it is actually worth taking a peek at their website to view the venue from the past.

The wedding ceremony took place in the church directly opposite the Palau Moxo and having shot in many stunning churches in the past this has to be up there with one of the most beautiful. After a lovely ceremony it was back across the square for a traditional Japanesse blessing followed by cocktails and canapés in the courtyard.

Dinner was as you would expect superb, and also accompanied by an incredible solo concert pianist ( You probably were not expecting much less than that by now ) and after speeches and tears it was time for cake cutting in the main in the lounge area and lots more tears!

Can’t thanks you enough for allowing me to share such a wonderful experience with your friends and family and it will certainly be a wedding I shall never forget. If you would like to view the slideshow from the two days then please CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE SLIDESHOW   if you were a guest then viewing is a must, if you weren’t it is still a must!

A huge thanks to everyone who made the wedding such a great success and as ever great to work with you all.

Clare Barcelona Wedding

Catrin Absolutely gorgeous Barcelona

Will + Oriel ENSU awesome videography

Catering Sensacions

Thanks and enjoy.

J

So many images to share from this wedding. A full blog post in a couple of weeks but here are a few from this fabulous wedding.

Well here we go for 2012! And what a great way to start with the wedding of Olga and Tino. Olga contacted me pretty late in the planning stages and actually booked when we were in Udaipur ( India ) of all places. No less than three days back from India it was off to one of my most favourite places the stunning island of Mallorca, if you haven’t been then trust me you should go it really is a magical island.

The wedding itself was a full on day! with two ceremonies in one day, the first one in the registry office in Palma followed by a civil ceremony at the S’olivaret a very pretty venue.  After the ceremony it was time for drinks and canopies before dinner and plenty of speeches and dancing.

A big thanks to you all for making it such a memorable day! Really hope you enjoy a few of my favorite images from the day.

j

First wedding of the year! Much more to come from this one.

Back in late December it was time for my third UK wedding of the year. Snow, travel and Luton airport are never things you want to hear in the same sentence but with only a 7 hour delay I finally made it to the UK.

I actually met Alex several years ago when she was a bridesmaid at Katy and Stu’s wedding in Tikitano and jumped at the opportunity to document her day with Steve, family and friends at the really stunning Brocket Hall.

After all of the prep we headed to Alex’s local church for a lovely ceremony and I even managed to negotiate “Stand at the back and take very few pictures” to ” I have come a long way and would like to take a few more”.

Brocket Hall  is a real gem of a venue and the absolute perfect setting for a wintery wedding, after drinks by the open fire in the drawing room everyone was treated to the amazing culinary delights and service it has to offer. By the time I left I think everyone was just getting warmed up on the dance floor and I gather everyone partied long and hard into the morning?

Huge thanks to everyone, it was so nice to see so many familiar faces and be made to feel so welcome. Big thanks to Katy & Stu and the twins for accommodating me and the homeward journey went with out a hitch ( just about ).

Really hope you enjoy the images and thanks again for inviting me over.

To view the Slideshow please click HERE.

J

There is always something that little bit extra special about a destination wedding. I am not sure what it is, but weddings held over a couple of days give guests more time to get to know one and another and have a vibe that is always very special. This year has been an amazing year with some lots of travel and of my 40 weddings this year, 37 of those were in different locations which is something I really enjoy.

Christina and Aaron got in touch with me back in early 2010 about their plans and story behind their Barcelona Wedding. Aaron’s parents met in Barcelona and were also married in the Basilica de Santa Maria Del Mar. (Anyone having visited Barcelona will definitely know this incredible cathedral).

One of the great things about destination weddings is the pre-dinner or cocktail parties the evening before.  Christina and Aaron’s party took place in the Dominicas de la Presentación which was where Aaron’s mum attended school in her childhood – what a wonderful place for friends and family to sample Catalan canapés.

I guess the only possible “what if?” with a wedding in Barcelona in November might be the weather, but Saturday was the perfect day. All of the preparation took place in some funky apartments in the Gothic quarter of Barcelona, close to Basilica Santa Maria Del Mar. A big thanks to Jennifer for her shooting skills and her ” wedding emergency ” sewing kit which, yet again, saved a grooms man!

For a documentary wedding photographer the Basilica Santa Maria Del Mar is an amazing place to shoot – the sheer size of this cathedral is incredible and Jennifer and I were very lucky to be able to shoot with little restriction. After the ceremony we managed to explore some of the back streets in the Gothic quarter before making our back to Masia Egara, another beautiful venue in the outskirts of Barcelona.

After some very touching speeches, fine dining and great wine the party began.  I have been fortunate to have documented some Filipino weddings in the past – photographing the dancing is one of my favorite parts and Christina and Aaron’s wedding did not disappoint.  Wow, these people can certainly dance…. and dance….. and dance – there is no stopping!!

A big thanks to Christina and Aaron for inviting Jennifer and myself to Barcelona to document their celebrations.  It really was a perfect wedding!

If you have a spare 10 minutes and would like to view the slideshow from the day then please CLICK HERE FOR SLIDESHOW. ( may take a minute or two to load, but worth the wait )

Thanks to Christina and Aaron and family and friends for being the perfect hosts. A very Merry Christmas and happy holiday to you all.

J

BIG THANKS:

Second shooter Jennifer:  JJ Wedding Photography

Wedding Planner extraordinaire Clare : Barcelona wedding  

Hair and Makeup by Catrin: Absolutely Gorgeous Barcelona 

Awesome video: Ensu

Venue Masia Egara: Masia Egara