Bride

Last night I photographed my last job before I head back to eNYC on Tuesday. It was a wedding for a couple from Co1orado in Nuev0 Va11arta at one of the biggest resorts there.

For some reason, I am feeling really sorry for this bride. I'm not sure what it's all about. It started out when I went out to meet her the evening before the wedding. I was really happy to discover that she was beautiful (blue eyes, long blond hair, tall, good figure, tan...I guess a bit like a Barbie doll and you know how I love Barbie! Even though I normally don't find real-life Barbie's very attractive.), but also seemed very sweet and down to earth. She showed me where the ceremony and reception were going to be. The hotel had talked her out of trying to do the ceremony at their chapel at the end of a stone jetty/pier or on the beach. Afraid it might rain. Instead they convinced her it was ok to do it in their "event" restaurant which is the type of tacky generic place I'd expect to see in the States. There is nothing Mexxican about the place at all. The more I see of this place, the more I feel that it's just a huge tourist trap that wants to provide just enough of Mexxico to lure tourists in and grab their dollars, but doesn't want to provide any real style or class or beauty that you might find in some of the other resorts and villas. I looked at "Barbie" and thought how sad it was that she planned her dream wedding in Mexxico on the beach only to have it held in a tacky place that might as well have been at home.

So I showed up early (?!) yesterday to photograph her getting ready. Usually the bridesmaids, mothers, friends, and other female family members are all getting ready together with the bride and helping her out. But there she was by herself. She said she was waiting for people to show up and maybe I should go over to where the groom was getting ready and photograph there. I did that and sure enough he had his brother and friends and family, etc. When I went back to the bride's place, she was still alone. 25 minutes before she was supposed to leave, her mother and sister finally showed up with her dress. The sister was concerned with her own hair and makeup and last minute write-up of her toast. The mom helped the bride into her dress, but didn't really say much. Now I've seen a lot of brides and this bride was stunning, like a princess. So I told her how beautiful she looked. I couldn't tell if that was a good thing to do or if it drew more attention to the fact that her mom wasn't really giving her much support.

I have no idea what their family dynamic is like. And I know all kinds of dysfunctional family dynamics. But I just felt sad that if the family did have issues, they couldn't put them aside on the bride's wedding day. I know weddings can bring out all sorts of feelings and often a lot of jealousy. And it's sad when other family members can't shift focus from themselves and their issues and put their positive energy on the bride.

But I don't know exactly what in this situation is really striking a nerve with me. It's funny though because as I look at the photos today, I have nice ones of mother and daughter smiling and everything seems happy, happy. I guess that's what I like to show in weddings and what attracts me to them.