When Julia’s sister called me to inquire about shooting Julia’s wedding, she said, “Oh–something you’ll love is that Julia’s fiance is a salsa dancer!”
She was right. There’s nothing cooler than watching someone who REALLY knows how to salsa take the dance floor. Rene is a salsa dance instructor–in fact, that’s how he and Julia met. All of Latin culture is particularly expressive of familial affection, and during this shot I really tried to capture the joy Rene and his family expressed in their dancing. Julia was a beautiful compliment to Rene’s awesome moves 
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Julia’s aunt taught her daughter how to perform as a flower girl by example. Holding the basket of flower petals herself, she said, “Here, sweetie, do this!” She tossed a few petals on the floor so her daughter could understand what was expected, and then picked them up and put them back in the basket. Her daughter followed instructions very precisely. All the way down the aisle, she dutifully tossed each individual petal….and then bent down again to pick each one up and return it to the basket before throwing the next! Toss, stop, bend, pick up, return, repeat.
It was a slow, but adorable process.
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After the traditional vows, Julia & Rene said their own vows that they had written for each other. This was the most touching thing I’ve seen in a wedding in a long time, and it re-affirmed my wish to do the same thing if I ever get married. This part of the ceremony was so beautiful
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Then Julia said her own vows to Rene’s son…there was not a dry eye in the place.
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