• Welcome to my Journal!

    Welcome to the Photo Journal of Professional Wedding Photographer David Medina.

    Passionate... Creative... Different... That's who We are... Wedding Photography  for the Modern Bride!

    I am delighted that you stopped by to check out our latest work. Grab a cup of java, kick back, relax and check out the buzz around out studio, my latest work, meet some our awesome Brides and Grooms, and get inspired by their love stories and weddings.

    In the many pages of this Photo Journal you will find useful information about weddings, wedding albums and Guest book designs, Love Story Shoots and wedding images. You will also get to know me and my wife, learn about our style, and our passion for live and love for weddings. You will see we are different.

    We are a boutique studio in the heart of the Caribbean, San Juan, Puerto Rico, devoted to giving you the best experience, service and wedding images. We are available to follow you anywhere in the world!

    If you want to be kept updated about all that goes own with out studio, please sign-up for our monthly newsletter.



Off to Las Vegas we go…

We are so excited to be going to WPPI 2010 at Las Vegas’s MGM. Not only gives us an opportunity to refresh our creative batteries and vision, get new outlook for 2010, and an opportunity to connect with our sponsors and friends, but we get to see new products and services that helps us offer you a better product.

For starters, we are meeting with all of our wedding album binders: GraphiStudio, Queensburry and Couture Books. These are the three leading album binders in the world and we have choosen and worked with them to bring you the very best albums and options. They are all handmade by true craftsman and best materials.

so excited to be invited by GraphiStudio to a private presentation of some new exciting products that they will be introducing in 2010. So far it has been top secret information, but we have learned that it is something very unique and revolutionary. Queensbury, our mat album binder, will be unveiling a new wedding album that we are really looking to see. And we are looking forward to see the new Couture Books line.

We are also looking forward to all the educational presentations, specially by some of our favorite and most inspiring wedding photographers.

We really love to go because when we come back we will be so re-charged and inspired that we always revolutionize the local market.

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An Extremely Unique Trash the Dress

Oh boy, we had tons of fun today!!! We did a very unique trash the dress today. We returned to the Arecibo Observatory for some trash the dress images and had a one in a lifetime access to restricted areas of the observatory. Here are some images of how the day was.

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Emily - Awesome!March 9, 2010 – 12:00 am

A Very Unique Wedding: Emily + John

Last saturday we had the opportunity to document Emily and John Wedding at a very unique place. This wonderful couple are astronomers and they chose a very personal and unique place for the nuptial: The Arecibo Observatory. As far as we know, it is the very first and only time that a wedding have taken place there.

It was an amazing day. It had been raining the previous day as well as the wedding day morning. As a matter of fact, as we approached the observatory we could only see black clouds everywhere. But when we arrived at the observatory, the sky around the antenna was clear. Amazing!

More images to follow.

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Emily - Gorgeous!!! Can’t wait to see more!! :-) February 28, 2010 – 11:17 pm

Wedding Book – Laura + John

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Jose Roces - Very Elegant. Well done my friend.February 24, 2010 – 2:01 pm

And the Oscar Goes to…

Well, not exactly an Oscar, but as exciting as if it were for sure.

We have never submitted any of our work for competition, but recently decided to try and submitted some of our images to the International Society Professional Wedding Photographers’s Winter Photo Competition. On monday we received notice that the winners were up and we were delighted and honored to see 3 of the six images we submitted among the winners.

The International Society of Professional Wedding Photographers is an organization of the best wedding photographers in the world. It was created by professional photographers to raise the standards of the wedding photography profession. The ISPWP screen and review every member before their application is accepted. They have years of experience, they have shot a LOT weddings in a wide variety of situations, and they subscribe to a professional code of conduct. They truly are the best in the world and each one of them has dedicated their professional lives to their craft.

Who are members of the ISPWP? Literally the best photographers from around the world.

We were among the winners in the following categories:

3rd Place in the Wedding Dress Category

This is an image from Ashira & Jose wedding at El Convento Hotel. We love this image because it is the unveiling of  wedding gown, the most recognizable symbol of the wedding day adventure. The truth is that El Convento is an amazing backdrop to any wedding that wants to be unique. And their food is just amazing. They have some of the best chef in Puerto Rico.

3rd Place in the ISPWP Winter Contest, Wedding Dress Category

Wedding Dress category

13th Place in the Framing The Subject Category

This is an unusual image for an engagement session. During our engagement session, we are always looking for unusual places that helps describe the couple and tell their, well, love story. We love this sessions mainly because we get to know each couple. As we walked through Old San Juan with Laura & John, we remember this place were everyone writes on the wall. For me it symbolizes all the witnesses to this wonderful couples love & lives. Laura & John got married at Hacienda Siesta Alegre.

This was during one of our night session and we just love , love this image. Very romantic, sensual, warmth and wonderful. It reminds me of one of my favorite moves, Casablanca.

13th Place in the ISPWP Winter Contest, Framing the Subject Category

Framing the subject category

18th Place in the Movement & Motion category

Another example of one of our night session. Right in front of El Convento Hotel and across the street for Old San Juan Cathedral. Both of those were Lalymar & Peter venues, so we felt that it was very appropriated to show them celebrating dancing to music by a street musician right in front of their reception venue. Can you tell they are having fun?

18th PLACE | MOVEMENT AND MOTION

We are blessed to be given the opportunity and be chosen to documents the weddings of so many wonderful couples and to be given the unique opportunity to do it in so many wonderful places. These couples allows us to be part of one of the most personal, intimate and private affairs of their lives were only the closest friends and family are invited. Yes, we are hired to do a job, but, as any of  our bride and grooms will testify, for us is much more that a job.

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Noel Del Pilar - Congratulations, my friend! I sent seven images, but no winners this time! :-( February 25, 2010 – 12:23 am

David - Thanks.February 25, 2010 – 12:25 am

Legally Wed on a Destination Wedding

What exactly do you need to make it official? Here are some tips and suggestion to help you make sure that your destination wedding overseas is legit.

1. Cover your Basics

If you are marrying outside the United  States, you will need a valid US Passport, a certified copy of your birth certificate and if either of you have a former spouse, divorce or death certificates. While Puerto Rico is part of the United States, you will still need the same documents, except the passport.

2. Know Your Country Must Have

When it comes to marriage be aware that each country have differences on the way the do marriage. For example, I recently did the wedding of a couple from bermuda. They chose to get married in Puerto Rico instead which was odd for me, so I asked them why. Well, if you plan to marry in the Bermuda you will be asked to supply a Notice of Intended Marriage (along with a payment of $243, the legal fee to be married there) which has to be published on a local newspaper for 15 days and if on one object you will be issued a marriage license that is goof for 3 month.  In the Bahamas you will need a a notarized letter declaring that you are both unmarried US Citizens and proof that you have been in the Bahamas for at least 24 hours.

And do you know that you have to reside in France for 40 days before you can legally get married? This makes it almost impossible to get legally married in France due to the country’s strict 40 days residency requirement. In cases like this you may want to get married legally in your country and perform a symbolic ceremony.

You may want to hire a wedding planner that specializes in particular areas of the world.

For requirements to be married in Puerto Rico read this article. Remember, you do not need a passport to come to Puerto Rico.

3. Get in Touch with the Officials

The best place to get the wedding related legal info is the Tourism office for the country which can point you toward required forms, wedding officiants, and any government agencies that need to be involved. Some countries have tourism offices in the US.  It is also a good idea to contact the U.S. Embassy and tip them off in case anything goes awry.

The U.S. State Department is good source of travel information. Visit their page here. you may also want to register your travel plans with them, specially if you are going into an exotic place. You can register your travel plans  with the State Department through a free online service at https://travelregistration.state.gov.  This will help us contact you if there is a family emergency in the U.S., or if there is a crisis where you are traveling.  In accordance with the Privacy Act, information on your welfare and whereabouts will not be released to others without your express authorization. For more tips visit here.

If you want more information or need help to set up your wedding in Puerto Rico or the Dominican Republic  give us a call or send us an email and we will be delighted to help you out, or at least point you in the right direction.

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Our Signature Book: GraphiStudio

When we started our company we made a commitment to uncompromising products and service quality. We are constantly checking ourselves looking for ways to improve our services and products as well as your experience with us. We want it to be first rated all the way.

We are really excited about our Wedding Books. Handmade in Arba, Italy by GraphiStudio, their quality is second to none. Their Italian leather is exquisite and their metal covers amazing.

Among many great binders, we are proud to offer you what we know to be a world class and the best Wedding Book binder in the world.We are proud to be partners with a company that shares the same values, standards and commitment to quality and, ultimately, to you. We wanted to share this short video with you so you get to know GraphiStudio and why we love the books they produce for us for you.

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Photo of the Week: Niki & Juan

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Eric Foley - Beautiful image! Love your work!February 28, 2010 – 11:32 pm

Dawn McKinstry - I love the symetrical plants shot and the arch shot. Niki and Juan look gorgeous, I can’t wait to see their wedding shots! :) March 6, 2010 – 8:30 pm