Cave | Olivera Rusu

Today is a day I’ll always remember: july 13, 2011, my first real Cave Wedding.

When Henry and his fiancee, Leticia, saw my photoshoot in Cave, they decide right away: “Our Destination Wedding: Belize! Photographer: Olivera Rusu! Our Wedding Location: Maya Cave! Method to reach Belize: Cruiser!”

They contact me 2 weeks after I had my first cave shoot and all of us were really excited about what was about to happen’.

We talk for months many details and we were really excited about everything… I went in Europe to visit my parents and I make my trip VERY SHORT just because I had to be back in time for Henry&Tisha’s Cave Wedding. And than… everything start to go upside down.

You might know (or you find out now) that Belize have 2 seasons, 6 months each: the dry season, when is not raining at all, or is raining very little and the rainy season or hurricane season as some of us call it. The Rainy season start in july and end at the beginning of december. Being rainy season right now, from 2 weeks is raining in Belize…. tropical rain! The Cave was flooded and yesterday closed down as was not safe to visit. We were speechless… Plan B… we go to a ruin… the closest the time permit us is Altun Ha! I did not wanted to go to a mayan Ruin! I really wanted to go in a cave. They came for cave! Their dream wedding was a cave… I was worried sick as everyone was. I never thought could rain so much at the beginning of the season. So, was decided… Altun Ha!

We were in the car in the morning, and I had 1 last try. The guide we hired to take us at Altun Ha told me “Oli, the cave is open. We can go if you want”. Are you kidding me? Of course I want! So, long story-short, we went in the cave. Same Krystal Cave where I was before with Samira&Mark, same cave I shoot for Belikin Calendar 2012. But this time… was really different! Really Low light, raining, water dripping from the stalactites, mud, now there is a fence at the entrance of the cave, water way higher… and many many other stuff. I did not freak out. I was happy we were there and we could do it in a way or other. Took me 20 minutes until I figure it out where is the best light to photograph and after I explain them what’s the story, they listen my suggestion to have the ceremony right outside the cave and the photo-shoot inside.

This wedding wouldn’t be possible if my friend and business partner, the wedding coordinator Iraida Gonzalez and her assistant and daughter, Kristi Gonzalez, wouldn’t do their magic to fix all the details in a Guinness Book record time.

That’s why I like to work with PRO’s who are here for me all the time I need it and deal extraordinary in stressful moments! No matter how bad is the situation, I never panic when I’m working and I’m trying to pick my business partners who are the same with me… and definitely Belize Weddings is one of them.

Because of all weather and light conditions I decide do Cave Photo-shoots only in dry season, from january until may.

So, here it is a sneak peek of what’s coming soon…

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Wedding Ceremony Cave Entrance

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unusual & sophisticated

To be continued….

You are already familiar with Samira & Mark… the guys whose love began in Belize City. I had the honour of photographing them when he proposed at a Mayan Ruin and again when they celebrated their wedding in Belize City in February…
Well… we did it again!!
When they purchased their Wedding Package, they had an engagement photo-shoot included and I was thinking a lot about doing a “Trash the Dress” or a Bridal Photo shoot after the wedding (the location unknown at that time, but I told them I want something out of the ordinary). I really wanted them to have the “Platinum Package” (engagement, wedding and post-wedding photoshoot).
I have been photographing them for a few years now and over time they have become very good models so I suggested to them something that sounds really cool: a Trash the Dress session in a Cave! Sounds too cool to be true! I knew Belize has a really rich cave system under the Mayan mountains and I’ve always wanted to go there… so finally we decided “it is time!”
I’m not about “trash the dress”… I don’t encourage a bride to destroy something beautiful and special, and I don’t feel comfortable to see the wedding dress all dirty. But Samira told me “this dress was made especially for me… and I’m really small. I can’t sell it and I definitely won’t use it again”. So…that’s why we did this. The cave was EXTREMELY CLEAN… no dust at all so even after the entire photoshoot, the dress was like new! I was really happy about that :)

Unique Gift Certificate ideas
This photoshoot was my wedding gift to them… I really wanted to offer them something to have for the rest of their lives and to remember me by. That’s why I wanted so badly to do something cool for them. You can do the same thing for someone who is special to your heart! Purchase a Photo shoot Gift Certificate! Just imagine being able to offer a helicopter flight to the caves, mayan ruins or barierr reef… in Belize! Imagine giving that special someone a wedding gift, anniversary, honeymoon, birthday present they can keep forever! Photos! Albums! Canvas! Fine art prints! You can purchase whatever you want! I can make it happen and have it delivered to their door. And trust me… they’ll LOVE IT! I’ll make sure of that! :) I’ll blog about this soon!

Back to our shoot!
I didn’t know what to expect. I was really worried about the light, actually about the darkness :)). I really wanted this to be a success, but to be honest, I didn’t hope for much. I had 2 suitcases with lights (including underwater lights I had borrowed from a really good friend) and my entire equipment (2 more bags).

The trip
There were only the 4 of us: Samira, Mark, my husband and I. We left San Pedro at 8 am…Somehow, I made a mistake and gave them the wrong directions so we ended up driving for few hours the wrong way! My husband was “our rock” and he keep telling us “take this how it is… make it like a normal trip, have some fun with whatever we have” ! Another incident happened and my mind was no longer on the phootoshoot. 7 hours later, when we finally arrived I’d already given up on the idea of photographing anything but then it happened: we finally were in the right spot, with the right people and ready to do a photoshoot. I had got to a point where I was thinking “whatever… let’s just have some fun. We’re here already so let’s check out all the caves around and pick the one we like the most for when I come next time”.

The entire trip was a lot of fun… we were laughing non stop. My shoe broke right at the beginning of the trip and the entire time I was focused on trying to find a leaf or something to tie it :)))) We walked through the jungle for about 10-15 minutes and then we floated along the river… Samira thought our guide would stay in front so she took the first position… She freaked out when the guide told her “you lead, I always stay behind”… You should’ve seen her face… I had my pocket camera and I snapped some photos (just to have an idea). Was too funny!
Everything I looked at, I was checking out for photo ideas… and I liked almost everything I saw. I think I could easily stay a week there and do shoots every day… We were all in awe.
We finally reached the cave: it was BREATHTAKING! I have never before seen something like this in my life! We had about 1 hour left to do the photoshoot. It was already late and getting dark.
We had the wedding dress in a bag and also Mark’s outfit. They changed in about 2 minutes!
Samira did not have her hair or makeup done. I have a “magic clip” (my brides know what I’m talking about) and I arranged her hair in about 2-3 minutes and I did her makeup with my fingers in about 2 minutes. We did not have a mirror so she could not see herself. I told her “just trust me on this” and she did. Totally!
Here are our first photos… We’re going through the jungle, river, entering the cave… I took the first 4 photos with my pocket camera just for you, so that you may be able to better imagine our trip.

A huge THANK YOU to Seaduced by Belize the tour operator who provide me all the info’s I need about the cave!

If you like Caves and if you’re interested to purchase underwater cave videos, visit Marty’s O’farrell website . He is one of the best cave divers from the world and he live in Belize. Marty, thank you one more time for borrow me the underwater lights. I couldn’t done it without you!

Thank you CAVES BRANCH OUTPOST, (the location of this photoshoot) and THANK YOU to all the guides who helped us with equipment and took care of us! You were FANTASTIC and I’ll definitely recommand you to everyone!

Cave Photography: Unique, Unusual, Simple & Sophisticated.

Those are first 4 words I have in mind about this photo shoot.

More photos and Unique weddings ideas coming soon! Enjoy!