We are wedding photographers based in Charleston, SC. This was our first time photographing at Half Moon Resort, but the first of many, many times photographing Whitney and Russell.
Destination weddings are always special adventures for us, because we have time to get to know everyone in a fun, energetic environment, and everyone is always ready to party. In Whitney and Russell’s case, this started before we even got to Jamaica. At our departure gate in the Charlotte, N.C., airport, we listened as people chatted excitedly about the trip, already wearing their sun hats and flip-flops. One guy even strung up a hammock between two posts and took a nap while waiting for boarding to start.
Beside Ben and me was a group of guys who were obviously very sleepy but pumped for the weekend (we had all just taken red-eyes from California) and had already done a bit of pre-partying, judging from the hilarious conversation about their hangovers. We hoped they were with the wedding (they were). One of them was sleeping on the floor, and as he awoke, he turned around, glanced up at me with half-open eyes and said “Are you single?” And so it began…
Whitney and Russ are beautiful, radiant, happy people who love life and making every minute count. They were so kind to us from the very first email they sent even up until now, recently inviting us to a going-away party in New York for Russ’s sister. Whitney has a huge, infectious smile that puts everyone around her in a great mood. You can’t help but adore her. And we were so very grateful for Russ, who planned most of the wedding and was VERY into photography. When we arrived at Half Moon resort, he had already come up with most of the locations for the portrait session. During the actual portrait session on the wedding day, which was extremely hot and humid, Russ got excited for every photo we did together, even as the sweat ran in streams down his face and soaked through his new wedding suit.
Whitney and Russ, and all their wild and wonderful friends, made the weekend so much fun for us, from the beer pong to the rehearsal dinner naked pool race to the emotional ceremony to the truly spectacular dance-floor shenanigans. We fell in love with these guys right away and are looking forward to a long friendship with them.
Whitney and Russ also brought Vlad along to do their wedding film. Vlad was there for every crazy, beautiful moment, even filming underwater during the pool day (although sadly not during the naked pool race later that night).
Thank you to everyone for being one of the kindest, most dynamic, most wonderfully unpredictable groups of people we have ever photographed. We hope to see you at many more celebrations over the years!