It had been seven years since I last set foot on this idyllic Pacific nation, and its pristine, crystal clear water and reefs and lush jungles had been on my mind since. This was where I had originally completed my PADI Open Water licence for Scuba Diving, and it had allowed me to dive around the world over the years.

So when I met up with Jason & Nicole to discuss their destination wedding in Vanuatu, and that they are both enthusiastic scuba divers – I had to be there.

The couple are both fun, outgoing and adventurous – so the ability to take underwater photos and video for the pre-wedding shoot done before the wedding day, was easy to achieve and not something I can do often back in Australia. We also had the ability to shoot inside a real casino with the entire bridal party, with a casino dealer and real chips by the table too, courtesy of the lovely Scottish manager allowing us. Something like this is impossible to photograph in Australia so we made full use of the photo opportunities.

The enormous, sprawling grounds of the Holiday Inn resort served as the backdrop for the wedding day. I’ve stayed in many resorts around the world over the years, and this has to be the biggest I had been at. Where hotel cars are needed to shuffle guests from bungalows to the reception and facilities etc, and complete with its own river and lagoon for water activities.

Would we go back again for another destination wedding in the future? You bet, any chance to be underwater again for snorkeling and scuba diving is a yes for me. Oh, and the nation itself is a great setting for any type of wedding or pre-wedding photography, it’s hard to go wrong for photos and video here in the South Pacific.