When you ask someone to describe paradise, one of the first images that come to mind is Bora Bora. That was certainly the feeling I got when stepping off the plane in December.
I have been fortunate enough to travel to some pretty idyllic destinations but this place has got to top the list. Huge skies filled with puffy white clouds, aquamarine water filled with tropical fish, and timber boardwalks connecting one piece of heaven to the next!
Matt + Kim first contacted us over a year ago to discuss the possibility of filming their wedding in Bora Bora. Kim was pretty adamant she wanted untitled film works to capture her wedding which was quite lovely. Our shoot last year in the Maldives may have just tipped her over the line.
Destination weddings can be incredibly intimate and this was no exception. Matt and Kim only had their parents in attendance, when made for some real quality time for all of them. We were also incredibly blessed with perfect weather from the moment we arrived.
I decided to shoot the wedding in 4K (4096×2160) resolution on the Canon 1DC camera. There really was no other option as opportunities like this don’t come around every day. The shooting tools I travelled with was a Miller Solo tripod, Manfrotto Monopod, a Glidecam4000 (for all the motion shots) as well as an Aquatech housing for the 1DC. I also utilized heavily an array of polarizing filters to really make the sky pop. Shooting a ceremony solo can be tricky as you really need to plan your angles in advance and not rely on a second shooter. I setup a static on Matt to record his reaction to Kim walking down the aisle and then captured her final steps. During the ceremony I used two tripods for static angles on the vows (one centre aisle and one on Matt) and then picked up a third angle on Kim for her vows.
After the ceremony we took an outrigger across the reef to a special spot where you can swim with blacktip reef sharks. Our skipper sang and played a small ukulele as we cruised across the crystal clear waters. Filming our bride Kim swimming with the sharks on the wedding day was quite a moment!
The hospitality we received from the staff at St Regis as well as Matt and Kim and their families was just amazing. They really made us feel part of the wedding.
The response we are receiving from this short film piece has been amazing.. with many warm words of feedback.
Destination weddings are becoming more and more popular and we feel blessed that so many couples choose to have untitled film works along to capture the whole experience!
- Abraham Joffe, cinematographer
