I was thrilled when Jen contacted me to photograph her wedding- she was a referral from a couple that I had photographed in Mexico, she was from my hometown (yay Boston!), and she was planning a wedding in San Juan. If you’ve never been to Puerto Rico- GO. It’s a mix of everything that I love: blue skies, nice people, great weather, historical buildings, and AMAZING colors. Old San Juan is simply a visual feast. And of course, Jen and Amir were incredible to work with– both funny and fun-loving, and with an appreciation for all the wonders of Old San Juan.

From the couple: Amir helped his sister open up a cafe in Boston called Uptown Espresso. Amir worked there in the mornings before going to work and would work weekends too. Jen was an unsuspecting customer who used to stop by in the mornings and get some hot chocolate. After a couple months of flirting, they decided to get groups of friends together to meet out on Valentine’s day. That night after a couple of drinks they professed their “love” to eachother and enjoyed their first kiss. Okay, they didn’t profess love but it was more like “you are cute” “really? I think you are so cute too”.   Anyway, they got married five years later!

 
As a photographer, I LOVE when a couple has a good support team.  Anne Marie Kleis of AMK Events was the wonderful planner and designer for this amazing San Juan wedding (the first of its kind at the Conrad Condado Plaza Hotel!), and both the ceremony and the reception were truly amazing.  Here are a few of my favorite images:

I asked Jen and Amir how they chose Puerto Rico for their destination wedding, and they said: Amir likes to joke that a lot of Jen’s ex boyfriends are still down there and would help with the planning. In reality, we always saw ourselves having a destination wedding. Puerto Rico is beautiful, safe, and gives our guests a lot of different options on what to do. Flights from Northeast are direct, no passport needed. USD is the currency… it just made sense.  Believe me there was a lot of research… we have about 100 pictures of Jen meeting with different people at hotels and checking out different areas. Despite seeing some gorgeous properties outside of San Juan, we wanted to give our guests fun nightlife and restaurant choices and to not be stuck in the resort. The Condado area made sense with its beaches as well. It came down to the Conrad and La Concha… tie breaker was that the Concha wanted us to end our outdoor party at 9:30 and the Conrad let us party longer! 

Since I photograph forty(ish) weddings a year, I LOVE surprises and unique touches at weddings.  One of my favorite moments of the reception happened during the first dance- in the middle of their first song, Jen and Amir cut the music, donned a hat and scarf, and danced the Baba Karam (a Persian dance, which is a nod to Amir’s heritage).  Amir’s mom thought they had shot the idea down, so it was a big surprise for her!!

I had such a fabulous time at this wedding- congratulations, Jen and Amir!!   Thanks for reading!  Have a wonderful week!