We photograph Jewish destination weddings: the ketubah, the chuppah, the breaking of the glass and the hora, documented with respect for every tradition and an editorial, golden-hour eye. Based on one of the world's premier coastlines for the celebration, travelling worldwide.
Plan Your WeddingA Jewish destination wedding weaves two worlds together. The chuppah rises against the Caribbean sky, the rabbi delivers the seven blessings in Hebrew, and the hora lifts the couple into the warm night air on chairs. IVAE Studios specializes in documenting all of it. We are a luxury destination photography studio based in Cancún and the Riviera Maya, and photographing a Jewish wedding well is a deliberate part of how we work: we know when the bedeken begins, why the glass is wrapped in cloth before it is broken, and how the private yichud should be given space.
This is our service for Jewish families planning a wedding on this coastline, or anywhere else they would like the studio with them. We approach it with the same editorial hand we bring to every destination wedding we photograph: warm, restrained color, the honest light of the last hour before sunset, and direction quiet enough that the camera disappears into the celebration. The difference here is the depth of the tradition we are ready to honor, frame by frame, ritual by ritual.
Led by Director Vianey Díaz, the studio works in English and Spanish, holds a 5.0 rating across its real Google reviews, and is ready to coordinate with planners, rabbis and kosher caterers across several time zones at once. We are based where so many of these weddings happen, so we already know how the light falls on the resort beaches of Cancún and the Riviera Maya, and where the quiet corners are for the ketubah and the bedeken.
This coastline has become one of the strongest destination-wedding regions in the world for Jewish families, and several real forces explain why. Each of these is a reason couples from across North America and Europe choose to marry here.
Mexico has a long-established Jewish community, anchored in Mexico City, with synagogues, rabbis and kosher caterers who travel to Cancún and Los Cabos to officiate and cater destination weddings. The infrastructure that a Jewish wedding needs already exists within the country.
Luxury resorts along the coast have learned to host a chuppah, a bedeken room, a tisch and kosher catering on a single property, often with a kosher caterer flown in. A multi-day celebration can unfold start to finish without leaving the grounds.
The light and the sea turn the ceremony into something almost cinematic. A chuppah on white sand at golden hour, the breaking of the glass against the Caribbean, the hora under string lights: this is a backdrop that elevates every tradition photographed against it.
Cancún International is one of the best-connected airports in the Americas, with direct flights from New York, Miami, Toronto, Los Angeles, Mexico City and Europe. Guests and grandparents can travel in without a complicated journey.
The region is built for the multi-day celebration a Jewish wedding deserves. A welcome dinner, a Shabbat gathering, the wedding, a farewell brunch: the resorts, the beaches and the cenotes give each event its own setting along the same coast.
The dry season from November through April brings clear skies and comfortable temperatures, ideal for an outdoor chuppah and for guests travelling from colder cities. We help time the ceremony to the best light the day has to offer.
The signing of the ketubah, the marriage contract, in a quiet room with the rabbi and witnesses, photographed in close detail with the document itself framed before the signatures. Then the bedeken, where the groom veils the bride, an emotional moment we cover discreetly.
The tisch, where the groom is surrounded by family and friends before the ceremony, often with singing, words of Torah and a warm, building energy. We document the gathering and the procession that flows from it toward the chuppah.
The ceremony itself, beneath the chuppah, the canopy that stands for the home the couple will build. We frame the processional, the circling, the rings, the reading of the ketubah and the seven blessings, working unobtrusively under the canopy throughout.
The breaking of the glass that closes the ceremony, the glass wrapped in cloth and shattered underfoot, the room erupting into "Mazel tov." A single decisive moment we are positioned and ready for, every time.
The yichud, the first private minutes the couple share alone after the ceremony. We respect its privacy completely, photographing the entrance or the exit only as the couple wish, never intruding on the moment itself.
The hora, the couple lifted on chairs above a circle of dancing guests, is one of the most joyful frames in any wedding. We cover the lift, the held napkin, the music and the full energy of the reception that carries the night.
A Jewish destination wedding is a coordinated production, and we fit our coverage around the celebration rather than the reverse. Well before the day, we align with the people shaping it so nothing meaningful is missed and every custom is respected.
We confirm the order of service with your rabbi or officiant and ask about any guidance on photography during the ceremony or on Shabbat. We work discreetly under the chuppah and never let the camera interrupt the meaning of a moment.
Your wedding planner holds the timeline, the venue access and the run of show. We coordinate with them on scouting, the ketubah room, the bedeken, the procession and the reception, so our shot list maps cleanly onto the real schedule of the day.
When a kosher caterer is flown in or working on site, we keep our movement and equipment clear of the kitchen and service, photographing the table, the details and the celebration without ever getting in the way of the catering team.
Many of these weddings begin after Shabbat ends on Saturday night, or fall on a Sunday. We set call times around sundown and the rabbi's guidance, and we are entirely comfortable photographing a late ceremony and a reception that runs deep into the night.
The welcome dinner where guests meet, and a Shabbat gathering or aufruf for families who observe it. We cover the arrivals, the toasts and the candid energy as the celebration begins to gather.
Full coverage of the wedding day itself, from the ketubah and bedeken through the chuppah, the breaking of the glass, the yichud and the hora, into the late reception. The heart of the archive.
Multi-generational family portraits, often the only time several generations are gathered in one place. We build a calm window into the timeline so grandparents and relatives are photographed without rush.
A farewell brunch to close the weekend, then a fully edited private gallery, organized into ketubah, ceremony, reception and family, with a print release, ready to share with everyone who travelled and those who could not.
Many luxury resorts across Cancún and the Riviera Maya host weddings and can accommodate a chuppah, a bedeken room and kosher catering, often with a caterer flown in for the occasion. We describe these in general terms below, and we are glad to coordinate with whichever property your planner selects. For more on choosing a setting, see our venues overview.
The newer luxury enclave north of Cancún, home to large resort campuses with the space and private beaches that a multi-day Jewish wedding needs. Properties here regularly host destination weddings and large guest groups.
Resorts such as Moon Palace and Hard Rock along the strip are built for weddings at scale, with ballrooms, beachfront ceremony sites and the catering capacity to accommodate kosher requirements when arranged in advance.
Dreams and similar properties south through Playa del Carmen and toward Tulum offer quieter, garden-and-beach settings. The Riviera Maya suits couples who want a more intimate, nature-framed celebration along the same coastline.
Photography and film can be booked together, with the two teams working as one. A film holds what still images cannot: the rabbi's voice, the seven blessings, the sound of the glass breaking and the room rising into "Mazel tov." See our wedding videography for how the moving image complements the photographs.
An editorial, golden-hour record of the full celebration, from the ketubah to the last dance, delivered as a fully edited private gallery organized by event and ready to share and to print.
A cinematic film that captures the voices, the blessings and the music of the day. Booked alongside photography so the chuppah and the hora are covered from complementary angles. Details confirmed on consultation.
Photo and film plan the day together, sharing the timeline and the shot list, so neither team is ever in the other's frame and the two records of your wedding feel like one consistent story.
Yes. A Jewish destination wedding is a specialty of the studio. We document the full arc of the day: the ketubah signing, bedeken, tisch, the chuppah ceremony, the breaking of the glass, yichud and the hora. We understand the rhythm and the meaning of each ritual, so the camera is always in the right place at the right moment.
Always. We coordinate with your rabbi, wedding planner and kosher caterer well before the day, confirming the order of service and any restrictions on photography during the ceremony or on Shabbat. We respect every officiant's guidance, work discreetly under the chuppah, and fit our coverage around the celebration rather than the reverse.
Yes. Many Jewish destination weddings begin after Shabbat ends on Saturday night, or are held on Sunday. We plan call times around sundown and the rabbi's guidance, and we are comfortable photographing a late ceremony and reception that runs well into the night. If you observe Shabbat, we schedule around it without question.
Yes, and we recommend it. A Jewish destination wedding is rarely a single day. We can document the welcome dinner, an aufruf or Shabbat gathering, the wedding itself, and a farewell brunch, so the whole celebration lives in one consistent archive. Multi-day coverage is shaped to your itinerary and the number of events.
Several luxury resorts across Cancún and the Riviera Maya, such as Moon Palace, Dreams, Hard Rock and the Playa Mujeres properties, host weddings and can accommodate a chuppah, a bedeken room and kosher catering, often with a kosher caterer flown in. We are happy to share what we know of a venue and to coordinate with the property your planner selects.
The high season runs from November through April, with dry, clear weather and the most comfortable temperatures for guests travelling in. Many couples plan around the Jewish calendar, avoiding restricted periods, and around the seasons of family in the United States, Canada and Mexico. We help time the ceremony to the best light of the day.
We are based in Cancún, so we are already where your wedding will be, and we welcome couples flying in from New York, Miami, Toronto, Los Angeles, Mexico City and Europe. We also travel worldwide for couples who would like the studio with them at a wedding elsewhere. Tell us where you are planning and we will confirm availability.
Yes. Photography and film can be booked together, with the two teams working as one so the chuppah, the breaking of the glass and the hora are captured from complementary angles. A film holds the rabbi's voice, the seven blessings and the sound of the room in a way still images cannot. Details are confirmed on consultation.
We document the customs that shape a Jewish wedding: the ketubah signing, the bedeken veiling, the tisch, the processional and the circling under the chuppah, the seven blessings, the breaking of the glass, the private yichud, and the hora with the couple lifted on chairs. We plan a shot list for each so nothing meaningful is missed.
Yes. We deliver a fully edited private online gallery, organized into the ketubah, ceremony, reception and family portraits, ready to share with grandparents and relatives who could not make the trip. The gallery includes a print release, so the chuppah portrait can be framed for the next generation.
Send your wedding date, the resort or region, and a rough itinerary by WhatsApp or email, and we reply the same business day with availability and a planning conversation. To hold a date we ask for a signed agreement and a deposit, with the balance due before the wedding. The exact figures are confirmed in your proposal.
Send us your wedding date, the resort or region, and a rough itinerary. We reply the same business day with availability and a planning conversation. Bilingual, coordinated with your rabbi and planner, a private gallery to follow.