By Frank Simonetti

Katherine and Carl had their destination wedding at the Casa Ybel Resort on Sanibel Island. The weather was great with a strong breeze to cool the warm June sun. Family and friends gathered for the late afternoon wedding performed by Dr. Dan Lamey. The ceremony was on the lawn directly behind the Thistle Lodge Restaurant. The children had a great time and it was a photographers’ delight to capture them ‘on film’ . Will is the brides’ son and Sarah and Lauren are her nieces. Of course, the girls were very photogenic and with their wedding bouquets. So, Will had a fall while we were taking photos before the ceremony, someone had a colorful children’s band-aid for the invisible cut….oh another photo op as the bride kisses to make it better!. Meanwhile, the groom and guests were arriving to the ceremony site on the lawn directly behind the Thistle Lodge. The staff at Thistle Lodge had cold Lemonade and Tea for the guests as they gathered and waited for the bridal procession to begin. Then Nicholas the ring bearer strutted down to the ceremony with absolute confidence, another photo op! After the ceremony, the Lieutenant Commander quickly picked up his bride as they walked down the aisle. We then made a group photograph of everyone. The guests walked to the Thistle Lodge Patio for cocktails while we photographed the two families on a beautifully landscaped area at the Casa Ybel Resort. The wedding reception was upstairs in the Waterfront Dining room of the Thistle Lodge. After the dinner, we went for beach photos at sunset and tried to release some lanterns into the Gulf of Mexico….the wind did not cooperate but again….it was a great photo opportunity! Thistle Lodge is the restaurant located in the Casa Ybel Resort. Wedding music and dancing was provided by Steve Farst. Shown here are some of my favorite photographs we created.