One of my favorite wedding and elopement venues in South Florida is the Harbor Beach Marriott in Fort Lauderdale. I guess the official name is Fort Lauderdale Marriott Harbor Beach Resort & Spa. As one of the hotels preferred photographers. I find myself working at this hotel often. Over the years I have watched this venue transform from a beautiful South Florida elopement and wedding venue to an ultra modern high end luxury wedding location. As a South Florida elopement photographer who is always looking to produce unique pictures, I an on a continuous mission to find new backgrounds and shooting locations. Having photographed so many different assignments at the Harbor Beach Marriott I can tell you, I know every inch of this elopement venue. However, as a photographer who is always looking to improve my skills, I believe that just knowing your way around a venue isn't good enough to satisfy my artistic needs. This picture was taken at by the hotel swimming pool. one side of the pool area has a beautiful waterfall and a small cave. I have shot pictures at this location many times. However, never from this angle. I have photographed against this waterfall from a backlit angle by pointing my camera lens west. The result is this photo taken at another wedding. Bride and groom at the Harbor Beach Marriott Here you can see the same location from a different angle. Of course in this link there are many more pictures taken at this hotel. When I shot the picture in this article I had to take this picture from across the swimming pool with a very long telephoto lens. The area with the good even lighting was limited to only a small five foot location. This made it important for the bride and groom to look good while walking in this 5 foot space. By using a long telephoto lens I was able to compress the waterfall so that it appears that this couple was walking right in front of the flowing water.
There is no question that South Florida is the best place to visit if you are planning on tying the knot. What other place in the United States has beautiful beaches with bathtub warm water, and more beach hotels than anyone can imagine. Maybe you are thinking about California? Not really, the ocean water in California is freezing cold and there are not as many luxury hotels in California as we have in South Florida. I know, I used to live in LA. As nice as Southern California is, it's no match for the endless amount of hotels and luxury resorts found here in South Florida. When I first visited South Florida I had no idea how many elopements, weddings and small weddings took place here. If you are looking for a place to have a beautiful elopement in one of the finest luxury hotels on the planet then South Florida is the place to be. Here you will find luxury hotels such as the Ritz-Carlton, the Four Seasons, and many other amazing luxury hotels. Of course when it comes to South Florida elopements, I'm partial to the Harbor Beach Marriott in Fort Lauderdale.
As a highly skilled South Florida elopement photographer, I can take pictures at any time of day and in any location. However, if you are planning your elopement ceremony based on what is the best time for the best lighting, then I would have to say, plan for a Golden Hour ceremony time. There is a ton of information online regarding taking pictures at the golden hour. Basically the golden hour is considered the first 2 or 3 hours before sunset. I like to lump 3 hours before sunset as golden hours because of potential cloud coverage. If you have a cloudy day, then the golden hour is going to happen much sooner. I also don't consider the golden hour the same thing as sunset photography. It's simply the time when the sun has direction and the photographer can use the angle of the sun to capture some really cool effects.
When a couple decides to elope many times the cost savings is a consideration, This doesn't mean that an elopement needs to be cheap. I have photographed many elopements in which the bride wore an very expensive gown. I have shot elopements in which the bride had hired the most expensive florist in town. Some of the elopements I have photographed have even had several wedding guests. There is a fine line between an elopement and a small wedding. One of the nice things about an elopement or a small wedding is the fact that the ceremony can take place any day of the week. This could be a money saver for the bride and groom. In Fort Lauderdale, most of the big weddings take place on the weekend. Since an elopement is so few people, all of which are usually on vacation the ceremony or elopement day, can happen during the week. When hiring a photographer, your photographer will not have to check the Saturday off as booked. I have even shot elopements in the Caribbean on weekdays. I had no problem shooting a small ceremony in the Bahamas on a Thursday or during the week, then flying home for a big Saturday wedding in Fort Lauderdale.
There a plenty of lovely hotels which are perfect for elopements in Fort Lauderdale. There are also wonderful wedding and elopement venues all over South Florida. However, there are not many hotels in Fort Lauderdale that are located directly on the beach, or have there own private beach. Most of the Fort Lauderdale hotels are located on Ocean Ave on the opposite side from the beach. The Harbor Beach Marriott is on the beach and the beach is private. Actually the only other Fort Lauderdale hotel located on the beach is the Pelican Grand Beach Resort It's a nice venue, just not a big as the Harbor Beach Marriott, To see more from the Marriott Harbor Beach check out these links: Photo taken in the Harbor Beach Marriott Spa. One of my favorite pictures taken at the Harbor Beach Marriott. Creative bride and groom photo taken at the Marriott Harbor Beach. A very creative wedding picture taken in Fort Lauderdale. On the beach in Fort Lauderdale
Location: 3030 Holiday Dr, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316.
