The way I met Amanda and Jon was kind of serendipitous. I was in Nicaragua last year interviewing potential contractors at one of my favourite local restaurants, El Ceilo. Meanwhile, a cute couple couldn't help overhearing my business plan of a destination wedding venue. We got to chatting, and they were in the area looking for a wedding location! Certainly to my delight, I was reaffirmed that my business plan was a good idea but they were likely 5 years too early for me. lol. Although I didn't have a wedding venue location yet, I did have my photography skills and so I told them that I would be here next winter if they needed a photographer. Lo and behold, they did!
Nicaragua Wedding
And so, I had the pleasure this January photographing the beautiful wedding of the wanderlust couple from Colorado. I was impressed by the amount of guests that came from all over the world to witness and celebrate their union. Like-minded travelers that backpacked the world looking for adventure. These were certainly my kind of people and definitely my kind of destination wedding inspiration.
Rancho Santana Nicaragua Wedding
Although Amanda and Jon couldn't find a venue in the Nicaraguan north west, they did find one close to the city of Rivas and surfer town of Popoyo. It is one of the most popular and noted wedding venues in Nicaragua, because - well - it is gorgeous and full of amenities. Rancho Santana is a world class resort and residential community, boasting 2700 acres of rolling hills and private beaches. Although it is spread out on huge property it doesn't feel overwhelmingly huge in the sense that you don't want to walk back to your room. The place is understated beautiful with classic Spanish architecture and top of the line service. It certainly has had alot of money put into it and it shows. I was pleasantly surprised by this venue however as I had expected it to be over the top. It wasn't. Amanda and Jon could rent the entire main hotel out for their wedding only and so it felt personal and private.
Nicaragua Wedding
"We had our wedding in Nicaragua, which is a very special place to us. We wanted to have a wedding in which we got to spend a lot of time with people, and so we thought that having it farther away would encourage people to come for longer. And it did! We also wanted to have a smaller wedding, so having it far away helped with that too." - Amanda
Since Amanda and Jon are avid travellers, they had friends from all over the world come to celebrate with them. Choosing Nicaragua made sense to them since it was a destination they love and have just recently bought property in. It was a bit of a distance for some guests but it was a great excuse to spend vacation time with all of them!
A Destination Wedding Set-back
Many guests actually missed their flights to Nicaragua because of a huge snow storm in the states. It was especially sad to miss them knowing that they had taken the time off to be there and couldn't because of the weather. :( I was impressed to see though that they had around 80 guests come to show their love!
My photo-bestie and partner in crime for destination weddings, Keri Knapp, came from Revelstoke B.C. to come shoot this tropical wedding with me! I was so happy to have a talented shooter and of course best friend by my side.
We divided and conquered, myself photographing Amanda getting ready, and Keri following the boys on their beach volleyball and shaving adventures. The couple opted for a first look in the gorgeous backdrop of the hotel tower.
In actuality, my blog makes it look like the couple had a traditional wedding in the sense that they had a sit down dinner and speeches, but they actually divided the wedding into two nights. The first night was actually the rehearsal dinner which consisted of a cocktail hour, sit down dinner, speeches and video made by their friends. It ended off with a night of karaoke and laughter. This allowed for lots of time on the wedding day to focus on photos, the ceremony and the party!!!!! There were mostly friends at this wedding and with the younger crowd, came a lot of enthusiasm for partying and partying hard! It was probably one of the craziest parties I have photographed to date!
Natural Beauty speaks for itself
Amanda and Jon didn't want to think about decor and details for the wedding. They wanted to find a truly natural setting that was beautiful in its entirety. And they did just that. Being a decor girl myself, I was delighted to realize that I didn't even notice a lack of any detail. Sometimes, if the content is strong and the background speaks for itself - nothing else is needed.
Beach Ceremony
As the sun was setting, a local Nicaraguan band lead the guests down to the beach for the ceremony. It was a tearful vow exchange and quite a picture perfect setting.
Jon and Amanda couldn't think of anyone better to officiate the wedding than their friends. I love this personal touch to keep the wedding truly authentic to the couple. They did a wonderful job of telling personal stories of the bride and groom which connected the guests and kept them truly engaged.
And each person that walked down the aisle was greeted with a hug of course!
A kiss at sunset. What a perfect setting to seal the deal. and loving proud mama's standing ovation too!
Open Air Reception
When the sun had set, guests mingled around the poolside chatting and grabbing tacos at their own free will from the taco station. It was a beautiful laid-back reception that's focus was on spending time with the people they love. Their Canadian friend, djed from atop the pool and impressed me with his music choices all night. It was far from the typical wedding music and it quite frankly rocked!!!! People had the freedom to chill by the beach, dance the night away or smoke cigars until they couldn't smoke any more.
I seriously couldn't get enough of Jon's sister and her husbands mentality about traveling with a newborn! I hope I can be half as cool as them when I have a baby. Their objective is to keep life as much as they had it before a baby as when they have one. I think they succeeded at that! And guess what? The baby was chill just like them!
The sunsets in Nicaragua are always beautiful. The weather is always 34 degrees and sun shining from Dec-April. What a perfect setting!
Cigar Stand
Of course, a cigar stand wouldn't be truly Nicaraguan unless there were people making the cigars on site.
Both the couple's families are huggers in every sense of the word. Amanda and her family joined a hug circle and tribute dance for her late father. What a beautiful sentiment.
Amanda and Jon's friends made a really sweet video for them. It truly captured the essence of their friend relationships and also ended up being a tribute to the friends who couldn't make it to the wedding because of the snow storm.
Taco station buffet style allowed guests to come and go as they wishes, snacking or sitting down to eat at once. What a great way to keep people full of energy!
The first dance sung by Amanda's niece and performed by Jon's brother was just too sweet!
The couple's "parent" dances actually consisted of the whole family dancing together. I thought this was super sweet and showed the families unity and admiration for each-other.
Fireworks Send-off
A beach-side party wouldn't be complete without a firework show to get the party really going! This show surprised the guests and was really a nice break to take a moment and enjoy the scene.
By 9:30pm I was stunned to see what I expected to happen late into the night.....everyone jumped into the pool with their wedding clothes on!!!! It was a spectacle that I didn't quite imagine going down with such spontaneity and enthusiasm! Jon's brother was the first to jump in and immediately after guests poured into the pool.
Pool Party Finale
Cannon balls, dives, you name it, I saw it. Not only was this impressive to see everyone commit, but they started a human whirlpool, running in circles making currents so strong that they just let the water take them. This was not only a crazy party but what got to my heart strings, was the fact that everyone although not knowing each other before the wedding, acted as though they had been friends forever.
The friends and family that surround Amanda and Jon clearly love them without flaw. They love whoever they love and you could feel it! They sang, chanted and cheered people on to jump in with positivity and kindness. Their affection and admiration for Amanda and Jon was palpable. Isn't it a saying that surrounding yourself with good people is important because they are a reflection of you?
Thank you for having me be a part of your awesome wedding weekend! You are invited to my place in Nicaragua next year for a welcome neighbour drink! Congrats!
xx- april
The way I met Amanda and Jon was kind of serendipitous. I was in Nicaragua last year interviewing potential contractors at one of my favourite local restaurants, El Ceilo. Meanwhile, a cute couple couldn’t help overhearing my business plan of a destination wedding venue. We got to chatting, and they were in the area looking for a wedding location! Certainly to my delight, I was reaffirmed that my business plan was a good idea but they were likely 5 years too early for me. lol. Although I didn’t have a wedding venue location yet, I did have my photography skills and so I told them that I would be here next winter if they needed a photographer. Lo and behold, they did!
And so, I had the pleasure this January of photographing the beautiful wedding of the wanderlust couple from Colorado. I was impressed by the amount of guests that came from all over the world to witness and celebrate their union. You could tell that Amanda and Jon are well liked and lovable people by the commitment and support from their friends. They are all like-minded travelers that backpacked the world looking for adventure. These were certainly my kind of people and definitely my kind of destination wedding inspiration.
Although Amanda and Jon couldn’t find a venue in the Nicaraguan north west, they did find one close to the surfer town of Popoyo. It is one of the most popular and noted wedding venues in Nicaragua, because – well – it is gorgeous and full of amenities.
Rancho Santana is a world class resort and residential community, boasting 2700 acres of rolling hills and private beaches. Although it is spread out on a huge property it doesn’t feel overwhelmingly huge in the sense that you don’t want to walk back to your room.
“We had our wedding in Nicaragua, which is a very special place to us. We wanted to have a wedding in which we got to spend a lot of time with people, and so we thought that having it farther away would encourage people to come for longer. And it did! We also wanted to have a smaller wedding, so having it far away helped with that too.” – Amanda
The place is understated beautiful with classic Spanish architecture and top of the line service. It certainly has had a lot of money put into it and it shows. I was pleasantly surprised by this venue as I had expected it to be over the top. It wasn’t. Amanda and Jon could rent the entire main house out for their wedding and so it felt personal and private.
Since Amanda and Jon are avid travelers, they had friends from all over the world come to celebrate with them. Choosing Nicaragua made sense to them since it was a destination they love and have just recently bought property in. It was a bit of a distance for some guests but it was a great excuse to spend vacation time with all of them!
Amanda spent the morning with her friends and family, relaxing, sipping champagne and getting ready for the ceremony. It was a stress-free morning full of excitement!
Jon’s sister filmed a little video message from Jon for Amanda the morning of the wedding, adding that extra little personalized touch.
Many guests actually missed their flights to Nicaragua because of a huge snow storm in the states. It was especially sad to miss them knowing that they had taken the time off to be there and couldn’t because of the weather. 🙁 I was impressed to see though that they had around 80 guests come to show their love!
My photo-bestie and partner in crime for destination weddings, Keri Knapp, came from Revelstoke B.C. to shoot this tropical wedding with me! I was so happy to have a talented shooter and of course best friend by my side.
Jon and his brother hanging out before getting dressed. You can tell just in this shot, that they are each others muse. All night, they just take turns cracking each other up.
Keri and I divided and conquered; myself photographing Amanda getting ready, and Keri following the boys on their beach volleyball and shaving adventures. The couple opted for a first look in the gorgeous backdrop of the hotel tower.
We had the afternoon to take photos around Rancho Santana which was stress-free and not terribly hot considering we had a constant wind. When Jon started to look a little red, we decided it was time to head to the ceremony space.
In actuality, my blog makes it look like the couple had a traditional wedding in the sense that they had a sit down dinner and speeches, but they actually divided the wedding into two nights. The first night was actually the rehearsal dinner which consisted of a cocktail hour, sit down dinner, speeches and video made by their friends. It ended off with a night of karaoke and laughter. This allowed for lots of time on the wedding day to focus on photos, the ceremony and the party!!!!! There were mostly friends at this wedding and with the younger crowd, came a lot of enthusiasm for partying and partying hard! It was probably one of the craziest parties I have photographed to date!
Amanda and Jon didn’t want to think about decor and details for the wedding. They wanted to find a truly natural setting that was beautiful in its entirety. And they did just that. Being a decor girl myself, I was delighted to realize that I didn’t even notice a lack of any detail. Sometimes, if the content is strong and the background speaks for itself – nothing else is needed.
I love when couples opt to do an alfresco dinner! If your focus is on mingling and chatting with your loved ones, this is a great way to keep people moving. Have a few tables set for eating and let guests eat when they want to. It certainly shifts the focus of the night!
As the sun was setting, a local Nicaraguan band lead the guests down to the beach for the ceremony. It was a tearful vow exchange and quite a picture perfect setting.
Jon and Amanda couldn’t think of anyone better to officiate the wedding than their friends. I love this personal touch to keep the wedding truly authentic to the couple. They did a wonderful job of telling personal stories of the bride and groom which connected the guests and kept them truly engaged.
Many destination ceremonies are actually not a legal service. It is important that you study this before your wedding day as you might actually need to get your legal numptials done ahead of time! This can alleviate the stress for your actual destination ceremony and actually have your friends or family members lead the ceremony without needing to be ordained.
And each person that walked down the aisle was greeted with a hug!
It is a delight to see two people truly crack each other up!
A kiss at sunset. What a perfect setting to seal the deal. Mama’s proud standing ovation adds to this shot too!
When the sun had set, guests mingled around the poolside chatting and grabbing tacos at their own free will from the taco station. It was a beautiful laid-back reception that’s focus was on spending time with the people they love. Their Canadian friend, djed from atop the pool and impressed me with his music choices all night. It was far from the typical wedding music and it quite frankly rocked!!!! People had the freedom to chill by the beach, dance the night away or smoke cigars until they couldn’t smoke any more.
I seriously couldn’t get enough of Jon’s sister and her husbands mentality about traveling with a newborn! I hope I can be half as cool as them when I have a baby. Their objective is to keep life as much as they had it before a baby as when they have one. I think they succeeded at that! And guess what? The baby was chill just like them!
The sunsets in Nicaragua are always beautiful. The weather is always 34 degrees and sun shining from Dec-April. What a perfect setting. You can certainly be 98% sure to have your dream outdoor wedding here.
Of course, a cigar stand wouldn’t be truly Nicaraguan unless there were people rolling the cigars on site.
Both the couple’s families are big huggers in every sense of the word. Amanda and her family joined a hug circle and tribute dance for her late father. What a beautiful sentiment.
Amanda and Jon’s friends made a really sweet video for them. It truly captured the essence of their relationships and also ended up being a tribute to the friends who couldn’t make it to the wedding because of the snow storm.
Taco station buffet style allowed guests to come and go as they wished, snacking or sitting down to eat at once. What a great way to keep people full of energy!
The first dance sung by Amanda’s niece and performed by Jon’s brother was just too sweet!
The couple’s “parent” dances actually consisted of the whole family dancing together. I thought this was super adorable and showed the families unity and admiration for each-other.
A beach-side party wouldn’t be complete without a firework show to get the party really going! This show surprised the guests and was really a nice break to take a moment and enjoy the scene.
By 9:30pm I was stunned to see what I expected to happen late into the night…..everyone jumped into the pool with their wedding clothes on!!!! It was a spectacle that I didn’t quite imagine going down with such spontaneity and enthusiasm! Jon’s brother was the first to jump in and immediately after guests poured into the pool.
Cannon balls, dives, you name it, I saw it. Not only was this impressive to see everyone commit, but they started a human whirlpool, running in circles making currents so strong that they just let the water take them. This was not only a crazy party but what got to my heart strings, was the fact that although not everyone knew each other before the wedding, they acted as though they had been friends forever.
The friends and family that surround Amanda and Jon clearly love them without flaw. They love whoever they love and you could feel it! They sang, chanted and cheered people on to jump in the pool with positivity and kindness. Their affection and admiration for Amanda and Jon was palpable. Isn’t it a saying that surrounding yourself with good people is important because they are a reflection of you?
Thank you for having me be a part of your awesome wedding weekend! The one year anniversary drink is on me….. in Nica my new neighbours! Congrats!
venue: Rancho Santana // officiant: Friends of the bride and groom // flowers: Rancho Santana // catering: Rancho Santana // dress: BHLDN// favours: Local Nica rum, local Nica ceramic mugs // bridal party gifts: mountain necklace // DJ: Casio Co-pilot
Olive Studio is a documentary based photography studio, specializing in unique, intimate and off-the-beaten track weddings. Our candid shooting style allows for couples to...
The way I met Amanda and Jon was kind of serendipitous. I was in Nicaragua last year interviewing potential contractors at one of my favourite local restaurants, El Ceilo. Meanwhile, a cute couple couldn’t help overhearing my business plan of a destination wedding venue. We got to chatting, and they were in the area looking for a wedding location! Certainly to my delight, I was reaffirmed that my business plan was a good idea but they were likely 5 years too early for me. lol. Although I didn’t have a wedding venue location yet, I did have my photography skills and so I told them that I would be here next winter if they needed a photographer. Lo and behold, they did!
Nicaragua Wedding
And so, I had the pleasure this January photographing the beautiful wedding of the wanderlust couple from Colorado. I was impressed by the amount of guests that came from all over the world to witness and celebrate their union. Like-minded travelers that backpacked the world looking for adventure. These were certainly my kind of people and definitely my kind of destination wedding inspiration.
Rancho Santana Nicaragua Wedding
Although Amanda and Jon couldn’t find a venue in the Nicaraguan north west, they did find one close to the city of Rivas and surfer town of Popoyo. It is one of the most popular and noted wedding venues in Nicaragua, because – well – it is gorgeous and full of amenities. Rancho Santana is a world class resort and residential community, boasting 2700 acres of rolling hills and private beaches. Although it is spread out on huge property it doesn’t feel overwhelmingly huge in the sense that you don’t want to walk back to your room. The place is understated beautiful with classic Spanish architecture and top of the line service. It certainly has had alot of money put into it and it shows. I was pleasantly surprised by this venue however as I had expected it to be over the top. It wasn’t. Amanda and Jon could rent the entire main hotel out for their wedding only and so it felt personal and private.
Nicaragua Wedding
“We had our wedding in Nicaragua, which is a very special place to us. We wanted to have a wedding in which we got to spend a lot of time with people, and so we thought that having it farther away would encourage people to come for longer. And it did! We also wanted to have a smaller wedding, so having it far away helped with that too.” – Amanda
Since Amanda and Jon are avid travellers, they had friends from all over the world come to celebrate with them. Choosing Nicaragua made sense to them since it was a destination they love and have just recently bought property in. It was a bit of a distance for some guests but it was a great excuse to spend vacation time with all of them!
A Destination Wedding Set-back
Many guests actually missed their flights to Nicaragua because of a huge snow storm in the states. It was especially sad to miss them knowing that they had taken the time off to be there and couldn’t because of the weather. 🙁 I was impressed to see though that they had around 80 guests come to show their love!
My photo-bestie and partner in crime for destination weddings, Keri Knapp, came from Revelstoke B.C. to come shoot this tropical wedding with me! I was so happy to have a talented shooter and of course best friend by my side.
We divided and conquered, myself photographing Amanda getting ready, and Keri following the boys on their beach volleyball and shaving adventures. The couple opted for a first look in the gorgeous backdrop of the hotel tower.
In actuality, my blog makes it look like the couple had a traditional wedding in the sense that they had a sit down dinner and speeches, but they actually divided the wedding into two nights. The first night was actually the rehearsal dinner which consisted of a cocktail hour, sit down dinner, speeches and video made by their friends. It ended off with a night of karaoke and laughter. This allowed for lots of time on the wedding day to focus on photos, the ceremony and the party!!!!! There were mostly friends at this wedding and with the younger crowd, came a lot of enthusiasm for partying and partying hard! It was probably one of the craziest parties I have photographed to date!
Natural Beauty speaks for itself
Amanda and Jon didn’t want to think about decor and details for the wedding. They wanted to find a truly natural setting that was beautiful in its entirety. And they did just that. Being a decor girl myself, I was delighted to realize that I didn’t even notice a lack of any detail. Sometimes, if the content is strong and the background speaks for itself – nothing else is needed.
Beach Ceremony
As the sun was setting, a local Nicaraguan band lead the guests down to the beach for the ceremony. It was a tearful vow exchange and quite a picture perfect setting.
Jon and Amanda couldn’t think of anyone better to officiate the wedding than their friends. I love this personal touch to keep the wedding truly authentic to the couple. They did a wonderful job of telling personal stories of the bride and groom which connected the guests and kept them truly engaged.
And each person that walked down the aisle was greeted with a hug of course!
A kiss at sunset. What a perfect setting to seal the deal. and loving proud mama’s standing ovation too!
Open Air Reception
When the sun had set, guests mingled around the poolside chatting and grabbing tacos at their own free will from the taco station. It was a beautiful laid-back reception that’s focus was on spending time with the people they love. Their Canadian friend, djed from atop the pool and impressed me with his music choices all night. It was far from the typical wedding music and it quite frankly rocked!!!! People had the freedom to chill by the beach, dance the night away or smoke cigars until they couldn’t smoke any more.
I seriously couldn’t get enough of Jon’s sister and her husbands mentality about traveling with a newborn! I hope I can be half as cool as them when I have a baby. Their objective is to keep life as much as they had it before a baby as when they have one. I think they succeeded at that! And guess what? The baby was chill just like them!
The sunsets in Nicaragua are always beautiful. The weather is always 34 degrees and sun shining from Dec-April. What a perfect setting!
Cigar Stand
Of course, a cigar stand wouldn’t be truly Nicaraguan unless there were people making the cigars on site.
Both the couple’s families are huggers in every sense of the word. Amanda and her family joined a hug circle and tribute dance for her late father. What a beautiful sentiment.
Amanda and Jon’s friends made a really sweet video for them. It truly captured the essence of their friend relationships and also ended up being a tribute to the friends who couldn’t make it to the wedding because of the snow storm.
Taco station buffet style allowed guests to come and go as they wishes, snacking or sitting down to eat at once. What a great way to keep people full of energy!
The first dance sung by Amanda’s niece and performed by Jon’s brother was just too sweet!
The couple’s “parent” dances actually consisted of the whole family dancing together. I thought this was super sweet and showed the families unity and admiration for each-other.
Fireworks Send-off
A beach-side party wouldn’t be complete without a firework show to get the party really going! This show surprised the guests and was really a nice break to take a moment and enjoy the scene.
By 9:30pm I was stunned to see what I expected to happen late into the night…..everyone jumped into the pool with their wedding clothes on!!!! It was a spectacle that I didn’t quite imagine going down with such spontaneity and enthusiasm! Jon’s brother was the first to jump in and immediately after guests poured into the pool.
Pool Party Finale
Cannon balls, dives, you name it, I saw it. Not only was this impressive to see everyone commit, but they started a human whirlpool, running in circles making currents so strong that they just let the water take them. This was not only a crazy party but what got to my heart strings, was the fact that everyone although not knowing each other before the wedding, acted as though they had been friends forever.
The friends and family that surround Amanda and Jon clearly love them without flaw. They love whoever they love and you could feel it! They sang, chanted and cheered people on to jump in with positivity and kindness. Their affection and admiration for Amanda and Jon was palpable. Isn’t it a saying that surrounding yourself with good people is important because they are a reflection of you?
Thank you for having me be a part of your awesome wedding weekend! You are invited to my place in Nicaragua next year for a welcome neighbour drink! Congrats!
