It’s your wedding day and all the planning you’ve been doing for the last year is finally culminating in the next few moments. Should you be stressed out about all those little things that you have little to no control over? No flipping way. This is your day and it should be remembered as the most fun and romantic day in your life. I don’t think I have met a more laid-back bride than Asheton Montgomery (Odom now). Of course having a destination wedding in Costa Rica with the amazing scenery that was there, it is kind of hard to not be chill. So why was Asheton so laid-back? It could be in part due to her personality and her wanting to live her big day rather than try to control it. But I think a huge reason Asheton was so carefree is that she had a great plan/schedule in place. I believe that it is crucial to a wedding to have a great event planner/wedding coordinator in place that you can trust to ensure that the day runs smoothly. Enter Martina Matheos and Laura Sibley with Liquid Weddings. These two were amazing at their job and gave the bride and her parents complete peace of mind. If something needed to get done they did it and they didn’t bother the bride with trivial things or with any problems that arose. Two days before the wedding, Martina and Laura met with the bride, groom, bride’s parents, and the photographer (that’s me kids) to go over the timeline for the wedding day. This simple 30 minute meeting got everyone on the same page for the wedding day. Martina and Laura did not stop at just a meeting to tell the bride where to be and when, they took us all around to good photography locations and to explore the town of Tamarindo, Costa Rica. They showed us all some great places to eat and fun bars to visit and we also made a stop by the rehearsal dinner site as well. Martina was great to me personally and made me feel like we were part of a collaborative effort. She really went out of her way to make sure all things were accounted for and that everyone had what they needed. So what is the secret to being a laid back bride on your wedding day? You guessed it, having a good wedding planner and a good plan in place. If you are getting married it is crucial to get a good event planner/wedding coordinator. If you ever decide to have a wedding in Costa Rica, you have to check out Liquid Weddings. Now, onto Asheton and Brian’s journey.
This wedding party was super simple. The bride only had one bridesmaid/matron of honor.
There were of course people who could not make it all the way to Costa Rica for the wedding, so those individuals wrote personalized notes to Asheton and Brian and the notes were compiled into a book as a keepsake.
Brian and Asheton decided to see each other before the ceremony and it made for such an intimate first look.
That single tear tells such a powerful story of how emotional it can be to marry your best friend.
Thanks to Katie May for the bridge shot below. She got some of the wider shots for me.
Here is the entire crew (except for Katie and myself) that made it to Costa Rica. They are a pretty good looking bunch. Man do they know how to have fun too.
At my sister’s wedding back in November there was a photo taken of this same group below with Brian looking like a lost puppy in the background out of focus (essentially the exact opposite of this photo). Their Christmas card was the photo with a caption that said, “Merry Christmas from Asheton, Cameron, Cassie, Steve, Kathy… Brian Coming June 2014. The card was hilarious and it was Brian’s mission to have his moment in the spotlight. Here he is in all his glory.
Brian and his best man, his dad.
Random monkey photo? I had been trying to get a good shot of these wild monkeys all week and when I was photographing the formals of the couple this monkey came down out of nowhere and I snapped some shots. The wildlife in Costa Rica was really cool, except for the thieving birds. You know what I’m talking about you Pina Colada cherry picking thief.
If you stay near Tamarindo, Costa Rica you have to either stay or eat at the Sueno del Mar. The breakfast was great and it was the perfect backdrop for an amazing wedding.
Whaddup dog?
I had some of the best Mahi Mahi I have ever tasted at the reception. And the Mongolian Beef alone was worth the trip.
So these FujiFilm Instax instant Polaroid Film cameras are a great idea for wedding receptions. I can’t recommend having a bunch of disposable cameras at a reception, but this idea is great because within a minute, you have captured and printed a moment from the wedding. It is fun for anyone to capture any moment and then pin it up with a clothespin for all to see. The married couple can take all the photos and throw them into an album later.
You have to have a Piñata at a Costa Rican wedding reception.
Did I mention the Piñata was filled with confetti?
I asked Asheton if they had an exit planned for after the reception. A lot of times you’ll see sparklers or bubbles. Asheton said they would not be doing an exit…they ended up having one of the most unique exits ever. Can you guess what it was?
Everybody ended up in the water, including the parents of the bride and both photographers.
If you were at the party and want to check out some of the fun reception photos, you can see them along with the entire wedding day (formals included) here and for part 2, the reception, check it out here with the same password for both. It is password protected and the password is our favorite beer from Costa Rica. The password is case sensitive so make sure to type it in all lower case.
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