Danielle and Jonathan
The secret plan was to tell everyone it was a surprise birthday party for Danielle, so they gathered for a fun evening event… what happened though was Jonathan and Danielle got married earlier in the day and turned up as a bride and groom! Preparations were in Raglan and then everyone headed off to the ceremony at Whale Bay Reserve. It was a hot but beautiful day for a Raglan wedding!
WEDDING VIDEO
THEIR STORY…
WHY A RAGLAN WEDDING?
We chose our ceremony venue in raglan because we wanted a beach wedding, but not on the sand so a grass setting was ideal and as for the reception, we are having that at Danielle’s father’s house. We are very laid-back people and like the idea of a more casual, fun, and relaxed vibe for our wedding.
HOW DID YOU MEET?
We met over in Mexico, we were both working as dancers/ entertainers at a resort together.
WHY DO YOU WANT YOUR WEDDING CAPTURED?
We want to capture our wedding so we are able to look back on memories of a fantastic day celebrating our love for each other.
WHY DID YOU PICK ME FOR YOUR SECRET RAGLAN WEDDING?
We chose you because 8 years ago you did a dance photoshoot with me (Danielle) and I absolutely loved those photographs. You knew about me heading off to Mexico and it just seemed fitting that you were the one to photograph our wedding!
TELL ME ABOUT YOUR PROPOSAL?
So he proposed 7 years ago on Christmas Day and I said yes but both agreed afterward that we weren’t quite ready for that next step, haha but we have taken our time to get married and couldn’t be happier about making the decision to finally tie the knot.
YOU GUYS… WHAT DO YOU DO? HOW DO YOU SPEND YOUR DAYS? WHAT’S IMPORTANT IN LIFE?
Jonathan is a machinery assembler and Danielle is heading into her 2nd year of study to become a midwife. Jonathan is passionate about soccer and plays for the Ngaruawahia club. Danielle is passionate about dance and takes classes and performs in local musicals every now and then. We are parents to two boys 7 and 3. They keep us busy! Family is probably the biggest importance in our life, we love being together and creating memories. Jonathan hasn’t seen his family in 7 years so it has been hard for him. We both want nothing more than to be able to travel back to Mexico to see them and finally introduce them to our boys.
SO RAGLAN WEDDING… WHAT EXPERIENCE DO YOU WANT TO GIVE TO YOUR GUESTS?
We just want everyone to have a good time. If our guests walk away at the end of the night with big smiles on their face and feeling the love then we have accomplished our idea of a perfect wedding.
IS THERE A HONEYMOON PLANNED?
Yes, we are headed to Nelson for 5 days after the wedding. It will be our longest outing away from our boys so it’s bittersweet. But absolutely looking forward to having time just the two of us.
WHERE DO YOU SEE YOURSELVES IN 10 YEARS’ TIME?
It’s a hard one to answer however we would love to be in Mexico. It’s definitely something we have talked about a lot and we would love to give our boys a chance to live and breath their Mexican heritage and make memories with Jonathan’s family too. Hopefully, Danielle can practice Midwifery over there and Jonathan can help with his father’s business in aluminum joinery.
PHOTO GALLERY
DOES THIS RAGLAN WEDDING LOOK COOL?
If you like how Danielle and Jonathan’s Raglan wedding came out, then send me a message about your wedding. If you want to see some more general samples then my Instagram or Facebook pages are great places to hang out or get inspiration!