Lauren & August. Casa de Campo · Teeth of the Dog

I knew it from our first call, before I’d even signed on to photograph them: Lauren has this way of making you feel like you’ve known her for years within the first five minutes. Open, warm, genuinely curious about you, not just polite. By the time I met her in person, it wasn’t a surprise anymore. It was confirmation. She is one of those people who stays with you.

Their Casa de Campo wedding weekend unfolded over three days, and what stayed with me was watching that warmth extend to every single person around her.

It started with a rehearsal dinner at La Casita in the Marina, surrounded by family and closest friends.
The next night, a bigger welcome party at Dye Fore in Altos de Chavón brought in the rest of the guests.

And then the wedding day itself — joyful from beginning to end. Lauren moved through the day giving people something that can be surprisingly difficult to give on your own wedding day: her full attention. A real hug, real eye contact, real presence, for one person after another. Nothing about it felt obligatory. She was simply there.

The ceremony looked like it was set directly on the water — the ocean was there in every frame — but it actually took place at a villa bordering Teeth of the Dog, the golf course that anchors Casa de Campo Resort & Villas. A single majestic tree stood exactly on that line between villa and course, and that’s where Lauren and August exchanged vows — her parents walking her down the aisle, the ocean behind her, a first kiss that had the whole wedding party celebrating before they’d even turned around.
Portraits came next, chasing the last of the daylight along the water while cocktail hour spilled out poolside behind them.

The reception leaned fully into the setting — rattan pendant lights, a tablescape built around tropical florals, a live band that kept the dance floor full well past dinner. The photographs from that night probably say it better than I can. It was one of the most joyful weddings I’ve photographed in a long time, and it ended the way it should have: fireworks over the water, Lauren and August kissing one more time before the send-off.