Cape Rey Wedding

Lynette and Matt’s Cape Rey wedding day story was one that did not go according to plan. It was one of those weird August days where Southern California actually got rain. This was not good for an outdoor reception or for a walk through dirt to the beach, but with the help of some amazing vendors their wedding was redesigned and it turned out amazing.

It was great having everything at one location. Prep, pre-ceremony photos, the ceremony and reception all were scheduled to take place at the same hotel. This makes it easy and saves so much time on packing up and driving from place to place. After photographing the details and the bride and groom getting ready, it was time for the first look. Even though it was wet outside, Lynette wanted to go outside for photos as long as it was not pouring. I thought it was great, her day should be the way she wants it. We set up a first look outside at a spot that actually only worked great because there were clouds overhead and otherwise the light would have been too harsh. It was like the sky gave us a huge softbox to photograph them with. It was better than what we had planned.

Their Cape Rey wedding ceremony was supposed to be on the lawn, but with the rain it had to be moved indoors. This was done quickly with the help of Amy, their wedding coordinator. Once she had to make the hard call to move everything indoors she made sure that the florist and the venue had enough time to have everything ready to go by ceremony time. Even though it was moved indoors and it was not the original plan, I felt like it was still an upgrade. I felt that the ceremony was very intimate inside of the ballroom, more so than it would have been outside next to the busy street.

After the ceremony, I kind of just stole the couple, which was probably not a good idea without checking in with the coordinator first. But I only did it because it was their wedding day, their heart was set on beach photos, and I would do whatever I could to give them those photos. Since beach within walking distance was not an option because of mud on the trail, I put them in my car and we drove down to the beach just a mile away that had easy access. I was so happy with the photos that we got there, it was a mixture of fashion and epic landscapes that really made up a great collection of portraits. Lynette and Matt brought the attitude and style and really had fun with it. I did get in trouble for taking too long, but at the moment, all I could think of was making something epic for them.

We returned to the Carlsbad wedding venue for their grand entrance and their first dance and just when we thought we were done with photos the sky turns pink. I was lucky that their coordinator Amy pointed it out to us. Since we were already in the ballroom we were not going to have a chance to see it. We ran outside for some more portraits with some combinations of colors that I had not seen all year. The night went on and the couple had a great time with their family and friends. You can really see it in the photos as they danced the night away and celebrated being married.

I can’t stress enough how important it is to hire the right team for a wedding. In this case, we had a group of professionals that were happy to adjust to the changes in the day and make the day special for the bride and groom.

Vendors that made their wedding day a success include:
Wedding Planner: Amy June Weddings and Events
Florist: Haydee’s Creative Flowers
DJ: Songstruck Weddings and Events
Wedding Venue: Hilton Carlsbad Oceanfront Resort