San Clemente Shore by Wedgewood Weddings

I spent a beautiful weekend in San Clemente photographing Joanna & Donald’s wedding at San Clemente Shore by Wedgewood Weddings.

This was a destination wedding for CBC, and one thing is for sure about my approach to capturing destination weddings. I like to be fully present for my couples! And that means arriving two to three days before their wedding. This allows me time to scout surrounding areas for wedding portraits, work with my couple on their engagement session, and familiarize myself with the venue. I had previously met Joanna and Donald when I was hosting a round of mini-sessions, at the time they were celebrating the upcoming arrival of their adorable son. Although they had already been in front of the camera, I still wanted that time to work with them on an engagement session. You’ll get to see a few of those sunset shots by the water in the photos below!

Curious to know how Joanna and Donald’s story all began? Way back in the beginning, they were both working in the same HR department together. However, they didn’t “officially” meet until Donald moved into the same exact apartment complex that Joanna had been calling home for three years. Isn’t life so funny sometimes?! One fateful afternoon, Joanna made a trip to her mailbox when she noticed a friendly face. It was Donald, who just so happened to be driving by, so he rolled his window for a quick hello.

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The next day, Donald sent a quick hello to Joanna through their work chat. Long story short, they eventually made plans to meet for coffee. Joanna described their first encounter as spending time with an old friend. That friendly feeling continued as they began to fall in love. With that knowing feeling, Donald began to make preparations for a picture-perfect proposal. But, as luck would have it, the weather had other ideas in mind, and he had to quickly pivot. At the last minute, Donald decided to ask Joanna to be his wife on the balcony of their hotel room. With the views of the Puget Sound off in the distance, Joanna said yes. They spent the night celebrating their engagement by dining at Machiavelli’s in Seattle.

When it was time to plan their wedding, they both decided to move things from Seattle to California; their home state. Joanna grew up in San Clemente and with many of her relatives still residing in the seaside town, she and Donald decided to host their vows at San Clemente Shore by Wedgewood Weddings. In fact, with plenty of Joanna’s family in town, her wedding became one where everyone played a part in bringing the wedding day vision to life.

Their vows at San Clemente Shore took place in front of a beautiful arbor that was constructed by Joanna and her father. When it came to music, Joanna’s brother lent a hand with the ceremony sounds. It was so beautiful to see so much love and such a sense of community surrounding Joanna and Donald on their wedding day. To see all the details of Joanna and Donald’s weekend celebration at San Clemente Shore by Wedgewood Weddings, scroll through the photos below.