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When planning our wedding, we seriously considered eloping and/or having a destination wedding.  However, the look on my dad’s face when I told him there would be no big party was enough to guilt me into planning a huge wedding.   I ended up loving the wedding planning process and would totally do it again, but I’ve always dreamed of doing a cool destination wedding too.  Perhaps for our anniversary.  :)

Trish and Geoff packed their bags and brought their cute doggy along for a road trip.  They drove from Canada (Calgary), stopping along the coast and eventually resting in Santa Monica.  They rented a cute apartment and lived by the beach for a month.  At the end of their month stay, they had a very intimate wedding in Malibu, and then drove back to Calgary, stopping by Yosemite on the way home.  Romantic, isn’t it??  So this is their day…

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Isn’t Trish so gorgeous?  I love her blue shawl and her tropical/exotic orange bouquet.

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We headed down to Leo Carillo State Beach in Malibu.  In case you’re wondering, yes, we did need a permit to shoot here.

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It was a beautiful partly cloudy day.  We got there early (just in case of traffic).  Geoff immediately wanted to play on the rocks.  They kicked off their sandals and ran onto the beach while Chris, the officiant, prepped.

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And then it was time for their ceremony!

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When I said intimate wedding, I meant the 4 of us – Bride, Groom, The Officiant Guy, and the photographer.

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No witnesses needed if you have a thumb print to notarize it!

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And then you even get a handy guide to marriage after – Your Future Together.  I heard part of the book explains why domestic violence is bad, amongst other things.

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I love that diptych.

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Her beautiful bouquet was made with orange calla lilies and bird of paradise.

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Looks like a beautiful calm beach, doesn’t it?  It actually was a really scary climb to get here.  And the waves were crashing really hard so we had to time the waves before running across the rocks.  On the way back, I did slip and in trying to protect my cameras I fell on my bum (I was wearing a dress) and slid a quarter of the way down.  My bum got scratched up!  Was that TMI?  But the scenery was all worth it!

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And we found a poor shark washed up shore.  :(  Made me sad.  A seagull was picking at it, so Geoff picked it up and threw it back into the water.

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There was no intention of getting wet, but the waves were really violent that day.  I love this photo of them running back to shore.  Trish & I were freaked out but Geoff was loving it!

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And I love this photo of Trish jumping in front of the sunset.

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And then the sun came peaking out at the end of our evening.  So romantic!

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I love watching the sky change as the sun sets.  There was this big rock that Geoff and Trish climbed and the rock was totally dry when they climbed it – suddenly, this HUGE wave totally came out of no where and crashed onto them!

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Since they were soaked anyway, I had them stay on for one last photo.  I love the sky in this last photo.

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Congrats you two an a beautiful marriage.  I loved sharing this adventure with you and yes, you do hold the title for most adventure shoot to date.  May your lives be filled with more adventures together!

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COMMENTS Expand -
  1. Wow! Trish, we just chatted tonight and seeing your photos has solidified our conversation. Keep the memories these amazing photos have captured as sacred as the vows you had shared. Much love and energy, Jody

  2. Trish, your wedding pictures illustrate all that a marriage should be. Moments of serious attention, wild abandon, one supporting the other, risk taking together, free expression of love, highs and lows, taking what life throws at you and carrying on, seeing what is beautiful in other and of course, uplifting moments and lots of laughs with each other.

    I understand the parental desire for a special wedding with family and friends. But, as a friend from work, I have enjoyed the privilege of sharing your wedding day even though it is weeks after the fact. I didn’t have to ask who the old lady with the great hat was or whether this man is your aunt’s third cousin once removed. I got to see you and Geoff enjoy your day. Thank you. I felt I was there with no boring toasts to have to listen to.

    Your photographer is a genius.

  3. As well, how could I forget to give Caroline all the credit for these photos…she is a genius artist. We did give her the artist license to do what she visioned…we had a blast with her! We wish her all the best and highly recommend her for anyone looking for an amazing photographer and person. Love you Caroline! Your fall was rough but you looked so cute sliding down the cliff:)

  4. Thank you all for your honesty and beautiful comments. This was how we felt a wedding needed to be for us. We have family all over the world which would make it difficult to bring together everyone we love and have always felt weddings can end up creating unecessary stress and anxiety and so for us this was the way we wanted to begin our lives as husband and wife.

  5. Huge congratulations to Geoff & Trish. We loved seeing the hapiness radiating from within you and depicted so wonderfully in these gorgeous photos. What a wonderful record of a very happy day for you both. Well done to all. The adventure aspect does not suprise us at all, but I really LOVED the simplicity. Best wishes always xxxx

  6. Wow.. just wow! Looks like such an amazing, romantic, intimate ceremony and you got the perfect photos to capture that! How awesome is that wave crashing at them! Good timing! Amazing skies, colours, everything.. and the sunset at the end! Couldn’t be more perfect!

  7. Great photos!! Trish and Geoff – you both look fantastic….what a great day. Photographer really captured the spirit of you two crazy kids! :)

  8. Did your bum recover from the fall? The images are definitely worth it ! I love it that Trish and Geoff put so much emphasis on photography and gave you enough time to work your magic! Awesome !

  9. I’m left totally breathless. This is one of the sexiest and most romantic weddings I have ever seen. Although I love all of the details and extravagance of a large scale wedding, a wedding like this one is the ultimate depiction of love and commitment. Striped down to it’s bare bones a wedding should be exactly what this one was… an intimate moment between two individuals as they make the choice to share the rest of their lives together. I love the total lack of pomp and circumstance but the complete abundance of beauty, affection, fun and adventure. Wonderful. And while I’m writing a novel… I should also say that I’m usually jealous of you Caroline, for all the beautiful weddings you get to shoot, but this time I’m actually jealous of the bride and groom. My wedding was small, but a part of me wishes it had been this small. Great work Caroline, one of my favourites you’ve ever posted. Total perfection.

  10. I think this is my ABSOLUTE FAAAAAVORITE wedding you’ve ever shot! I’m in love! What a special moment for the two of them! The second to last picture of them on the rock with the wave coming is just wonderful! Way to go! You’re awesome!

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