Incredible Love Story

Imagine you have a client who wanted you to shoot their wedding, but the client was unaware if the wedding would ever actually happen. This is exactly what happened to me when the bride-to-be, Kimberly, had first reached out to me. Immediately after our introductions, she pitched her love story, a love story that was seemingly out of a fairy tale. Kimberly was a young aspiring artist, she had wrapped up her schooling in 2013, finishing with a bachelors in illustration and a minor in drawing. While searching for a career in her field, she spent most of her time alongside her best friend, Beatriz. One day Beatriz was recounting a family reunion in Venezuela. While discussing her experience meeting her family there for the first time, she recalled her one cousin, Francisco, thought Kimberly was cute. Although Kim shrugged off this strangers’ affection, Beatriz instigated and set them up on a web chat. Kimberly is bi-lingual as her family is predominately from Columbia, thus allowing her to communicate with Francisco, who could not understand English. 

“Wow! She is much more beautiful in real life!”

Kimberly remembers Francisco remarking over webcam, “Wow! She is much more beautiful in real life!”. While their first interaction was brief, she soon noticed that Francisco appeared in her, “Friends Online” section on Facebook. She then realized that she had added him to her friends list nearly a year ago when she had seen a picture of him uploaded by Beatriz. She was reluctant at first but with nothing to lose, she messaged him, “Hi”. Little did she know these two measly characters would change her life forever. Immediately they were engaged in deep conversation, exchanging ideas, opinions, and the hardships of one another's lives. Something had clicked, as for the next two and a half years they communicated via webcam nearly every single day. It wasn’t always easy though, during 2015, Venezuela was going through a terrible humanitarian crisis. Water supplies were being poisoned, riots were breaking out, and crime was at an all time high. Francisco, who transported money for a living, was even held at gunpoint and robbed that summer. The possibility that Kim could fly to Venezuela and see him became more and more slim. However one day in the fall of that year, Beatriz’s father, in light of hearing of their long distance relationship, offered to personally escort her to Venezuela. It was seemingly a dream come true, a few weeks later she received her Visa and she was on a plane to Venezuela. Francisco awaited her at the airport, roughly seven hours away from where he lived. When she first saw him, he stood with his mother, holding a video camera and a sign. Her heart stopped, three years after they’d first began talking, her eyes met his for the very first time. 

“I can’t believe it, you’re actually real!”

She dropped her luggage and rushed to embrace him, “I can’t believe it, you’re actually real!”. They headed back to Francisco’s hometown and slipped away to a family owned bar, ran by his uncle. After a glass of limoncello, Francisco excused them, leading her to a room upstairs. A hammock hung from the ceiling, and a small garden took up the middle of the room. He took her hand and placed it upon his heart, he then fell to one knee. “Kimberly, you have made me the happiest man alive; and if given the opportunity, I would like to make it my job to make you the happiest girl alive for the rest of my life. I love you so much. Te Amo.” She exclaimed, “Si! Te amo, te amo, te amo!”. The next morning Francisco took her out to coffee, making it officially their first date. Yes, they had gotten engaged before they ever actually had their first date. After coffee, they setup an arrangement with a family friend, Ricardo, whom was a tattoo artist. They were both marked with matching wedding bands on their fingers. They then created a covenant in honor of scripture: "May nothing separate what God has joined together; no turning back".

Her trip ended the same way it began, with Francisco and his mother bidding her farewell at the airport. Although they had not left together, she felt as if she had not left empty handed. She was now engaged to the love of her life, her best friend, her other half. When she arrived back in the States, she announced her engagement. One of her friends who’d supported her, gifted her a wedding dress free of charge. What are the odds, the dress fit perfectly. It would be another two years before they would be reunited again. During that period Francisco was trying desperately to acquire a Visa and come to America. He followed all the procedures and even became bi-lingual himself, as would be required if he’d ever want to integrate with American culture. It was a long process and one that seemed would never end with a resolution. However, one day Kimberly received a message from an old friend saying, “I’m an immigration lawyer, I heard about your situation, and I’d love to help you free of charge!”. Two years after applying for a Visa, Francisco would finally be granted entry into the United States. It was a long journey, but on August 8, 2017 Francisco finally arrived in Virginia Beach, Virginia. I acted quickly and conducted an engagement photoshoot with them the very next day. This may seem a little hasty, but with their wedding in only 5 days, time was of the essence. It was an amazing experience being there for that incredible moment in their lives. I had dreamt up a conceptual shoot idea that would illustrate their love story and Kim, being an artist, was completely on board. 

The day of the wedding, I arrived at the Royal Courtyard and to my surprise, the halls were littered with shots from our engagement shoot. I felt flattered. Never before had a client blown up my images to that scale, it was truly a remarkable feeling. The wedding went without a hitch as I was introduced to Kimberly’s rowdy Columbian family. However it soon became apparent that Francisco felt very isolated during their big day. When he decided to come to America, he consequently made the commitment of leaving everyone and everything behind. This caused the mood of their wedding to be rather bittersweet as tables lay vacant, reserved for Francisco’s family. Nevertheless, Kimberly’s family welcomed Francisco with open arms and took him in as one of their own. Countless tears were shed, moments were had, and eyes were opened as the young couple finally solidified their love with marriage. To this day, they continue to shatter expectations and beliefs about the limits of love. It was an absolute honor to have been a witness to such an event, and to have created a long-lasting relationship with the two. They were among the first few weddings I've ever shot, and I'm forever grateful for the opportunity and their continued support. 

You can see more beautiful photos from their wedding “here.”