Sandy and Andy: Surprise Wedding in Dana Point

I had the great pleasure of capturing Sandy and Andy's surprise wedding recently on the beach in Dana Point. They were kindly referred to me by Christine Saunders of the Spiraled Stem. (Thanks Christine!)

I was so excited about this wedding. You see, Sandy and Andy flew their family (her boys and his daughters) out from Ohio for a family vacation. But, that's not all they had planned. When they arrived on the sand I had been there for a little while. We pretended that we were going to take family pictures while we waited for the minister to arrive. The kids were a bit confused by the family picture thing but they went along with it. Then, Rev. Clint arrived... Sandy and Andy broke the news to the kids... "We're getting married... today... right now!" I've got to say... it was the most touching thing... the kids were all so excited. You could tell they couldn't wait to be officially made a family and that they all loved each other very much. After the surprise had set in a bit... the intimate ceremony started. It was truly a beautiful afternoon and I was so happy to be a part of it. Then they took advantage of the beautiful shores and lovely weather and played a bit in the water . We ended the day with some portraits, both of the family and of the newly weds.

Here's a slideshow of the ceremony and portraits.

Congratulations guys! Thanks for letting me be a part of such a special moment in your lives. Talk to you soon!The girls were surprised and thrilled!

There were other exciting things to do on the beach besides pay attention to the ceremony... like finding cool rocks! :)

I love that light... beautiful.

What a stunning family.

I love this last one... it totally captures their pure happiness. :)