Welcome to the official blog of Simple Weddings by Simple Treasures Photography!

We specialize in destination wedding packages that include your wedding ceremony, officiant, and photographer, as well as special touches like bamboo canopies, arches, chairs, musicians, and sound systems.

We offer complete beach and outdoor wedding packages throughout the Tampa Bay area and on the Pinellas Beaches including Fort Desoto, St Pete Beach, Treasure Island, Madeira Beach, Indian Rocks Beach, Redington Beach, Sand Key Park, and Clearwater Beach.

Feel free to read through the posts below to see real wedding stories and pictures from our actual clients, as well as tips and advice for planning your Florida beach wedding.
To learn more and see our packages, prices, frequently asked questions, and even more pictures, please visit our website at www.simpleweddingsflorida.com or call us at (727) 537-9331!


Monday, November 23, 2009

Debby and Timmy's Sunset Beach Wedding

treasure island beach wedding photoDebby and Timmy are from Plant City, Florida, about an hour east of St Petersburg. They decided to have their wedding on the beach at Sunset Beach in Treasure Island, Florida, with about 30 of their closest friends and relatives.

We provided our new two-post bamboo arch with white fabric (which looked stunning, if we do say so ourselves!) and chairs for their beach wedding. Claire provided their wedding photography, and Ron officiated their beach wedding ceremony.

Debby and Timmy looked stunning themselves, and enjoyed a beautiful evening on Sunset Beach for their sunset wedding!

Debby and Timmy: Thank you so much for choosing Simple Weddings! We wish you all the best in the years ahead. Below are a few of our favorite pictures from your Sunset Beach wedding. Keep and eye on our website for the rest in a few days.

Sincerely,


The Simple Weddings Team
Simple Weddings | Florida Destination Wedding Packages
www.SimpleWeddingsFlorida.com


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Wedding Photography by Claire Copeland

Bamboo + Brown = Beautiful Beach Wedding!

bamboo beach wedding decor
Paula and Jonathan were married on Pass-a-Grille Beach, at the southern tip of St Pete Beach, Florida, this past weekend. Jeff officiated their wedding ceremony, and we provided our bamboo canopy with ivory fabric and brown accents, along with bamboo chairs. The floral arrangements were provided by our friends Kim and Marsha at Seaside Florals of St Pete Beach.

The decor was absolutely stunning! And although Paula and Jonathan didn't hire us to provide their wedding photography (they used a family friend), we couldn't resist posting a few pictures of our bamboo canopy, bamboo chairs, and ivory and brown decor!

Enjoy!


Jeff & Claire Copeland
Simple Weddings | Florida Destination Wedding Packages
www.SimpleWeddingsFlorida.com


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Photos by Jodi Jacobson

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Joshua and Audrey's Pass-a-Grille Beach Wedding

st pete beach wedding photography
Joshua and Audrey are "locals" from Tampa, Florida. They opted for a beach wedding on beautiful Pass-a-Grille, at the southern end of St Pete Beach. Their wedding plans included our bamboo canopy, sound system, music, and chairs for around 45 of their friends and family.

It was a beautiful evening on Pass-a-Grille and there were two weddings taking place about 4 blocks apart. This caused quite a bit of commotion, as the wedding guests weren't quite sure if they were at the right wedding, and kept sending the "other" guests to the "other" wedding - some ended up passing each other more than once while going back and forth! We even had to send a runner to make sure we had the right guests for Josh and Audrey's wedding.

Josh and Audrey took it all in stride, and when we eventually got everyone in the right spot, Jeff opened the ceremony by saying, "If you aren't here for Joshua and Audrey's wedding, speak now or forever hold your peace". This got everyone laughing and the wedding went smoothly from there on out.

Josh and Audrey enjoyed a truly stunning sunset for their wedding on Pass-a-Grille, and had lots of fun taking their wedding pictures by Claire, then headed off in a limo (which was a surprise from their friends and family) to their reception in Ybor City.

Josh and Audrey: Thank you for choosing Simple Weddings! We were honored to be a part of your big day and we wish you all the best!

Below are a few of our favorite pictures from your Pass-a-Grille beach wedding. Keep an eye on our website for the rest in a few days!

Sincerely,



Jeff & Claire Copeland
Simple Weddings by Simple Treasures Photography
Florida Destination Wedding Packages
Simple...Elegant...Perfect!

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Josh & Audrey's
Pass-a-Grille Beach Wedding Pictures



Josh & Audrey's
Pass-a-Grille Beach Wedding Video

Heidi & David's Beach Wedding at the Tradewinds Resort

tradewinds beach weddingHeidi is from South Dakota, and David is from Minnesota. So when it came time for them to plan their November wedding, they decided to leave the cold midwestern fall weather behind and have a destination wedding on the beach on Florida!

They opted for an intimate beach wedding at the Tradewinds Island Grand Resort on St Pete Beach (which is listed on our preferred vendors list as one of our favorite beach resorts). It was just David, Heidi, and about 2o of their closest friends and relatives, and it was a lovely wedding ceremony on the beach - even if it was a little windy!

Afterwards, Heidi and David took advantage of the beautiful sunset and the lavishly landscaped grounds of the Tradewinds Resort for their wedding pictures with Claire.

Heidi and David: Thank you so much for choosing Simple Weddings! We were truly honored to be a part of your beach wedding plans and wish you all the best in the years to come. Below are a few of our favorite pictures from your Tradewinds Beach Wedding. Keep an eye on our website for the rest in a few days!

Sincerely,


Jeff & Claire Copeland
Simple Weddings by Simple Treasures Photography
Florida Destination Wedding Packages
Simple...Elegant...Perfect!



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Tradewinds Beach Wedding, St Pete Beach, Florida

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Bill & Jenifer's 'Reverse' Wedding on Pass-a-Grille

pass-a-grille beach weddingBill and Jennifer are locals who live here in St Petersburg, Florida. They contacted us a couple of months ago to book their beach wedding on Pass-a-Grille Beach, FL. They went all out with our bamboo canopy, a violinist, and dancing bridesmaids and groomsmen!

However, they forgot one small detail: Daylight Savings Time! Bill and Jennifer had their pastor perform their wedding ceremony, and they had scheduled him to arrive at 5:30pm...ten minutes before sunset! When we explained to Bill that we normally start our beach weddings an hour or more before sunset in order to allow time for the ceremony, family pictures, and wedding portraits before it gets dark, he had a simple reply..."Can't we just do it in reverse?".

So, we said sure...why not?!!! Claire took Bill and Jennifer's pictures with their friends and family before the wedding at their condo on Pass-a-Grille. Then everyone headed across the street to the for the ceremony, and Bill and Jennifer were married right at sunset!

While it's not the way we normally do things, it worked! Bill and Jennifer looked stunning and their beach wedding on Pass-a-Grille was, well...Simple, Elegant, and Perfect!

Bill and Jennifer: Thank you so much for choosing Simple Weddings to be a part of your big day. It was a pleasure and we were truly honored! Below are a few of our favorite pictures from your beach wedding. Keep an eye on our website at www.SimpleWeddingsFlorida.com for the rest!

Congratulations!

Sincerely,


Claire & Jeff Copeland
Simple Weddings by Simple Treasures Photography
Simple...Elegant...Perfect!
St Pete Beach, Florida



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Pass-a-Grille Beach Wedding, St Pete Beach, Florida

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Elaine and Michael's Simple Wedding on Sunset Beach

sunset beach, treasure island, fl weddingElaine and Michael were visiting Florida from England. They had been together for years and decided to finally "make it legal", so they contacted us to inquire about getting married whilst on holiday in Florida.

We set them up with our "Just the Two of Us" Wedding Package, which included their beach wedding ceremony and a half hour of photography with Claire.

The beach, the sunset, the weather (and of course the wedding!) couldn't have been more perfect.

Elaine and Michael, We hope you enjoyed the rest of your Florida vacation and had a safe trip home. Below are a few of our favorite pictures from your Sunset Beach Wedding. Keep an eye on our Simple Weddings website for the rest in a few days!

Cheers,


Jeff & Claire Copeland
Simple Weddings by Simple Treasures Photography
St Petersburg, Florida


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Sunset Beach Wedding, Treasure Island, Florida

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Laura and Peter’s 'Presidential' Sunset Beach Wedding

treasure island beach weddingLaura and Peter are both busy working professionals, so Laura wanted a simple, stress-free wedding. Since that happens to be our specialty, we were a perfect match! Laura’s mother, Madeline, was instrumental in helping us plan the couple's wedding ceremony, and even surprised the happy couple by booking our violinist and some special decor for their beach wedding!

Though their beach wedding ceremony was relaxed, intimate, and fun, the hour leading up to it was anything but for us as we worked to set everything up! Laura and Peter opted for our white wedding arch and chairs for a few of their closest friends and family on Treasure Island’s gorgeous Sunset Beach. We arrived and started unloading the van, but on the first trip from the parking lot to the beach, we realized someone else had already set up for a beach wedding in the exact spot we had planned to use for Laura and Peter! We quickly sprung into action and moved the ceremony down the beach a few hundred yards. It was a lot more work for us, but the setting (right next to the rocky jetty at the southern tip of Treasure Island) was absolutely stunning!

Of course, once we had everything set up, we also had to redirect Laura and Peter’s guests to the new ceremony site and even repark a few cars. It was certainly exciting! But once we got everyone in place, Laura and Peter’s Sunset Beach wedding was perfect! Afterwards, Madeline wrote to say:

"Thank you for all you did to help make this weekend special with a wonderful wedding ceremony...We are so glad you made the decision you did and loved the new location even more. The arch and decorations were perfect and the chairs with your starfish and bows were also just right. The violin added a special touch and Jeff's ceremony was sweet, simple and meaningful. We all were very happy with everything!"

After the ceremony, there was one final moment of excitement. President marine one wedding flyoverObama, who was visiting Florida to give a speech on energy policies, paid homage to Laura and Peter's beach wedding with a fly-by in Marine One! Of course we can neither confirm nor deny whether the President was actually in his helicopter, but it's a safe bet. In any case we threw in the fly-by at no extra charge!

Laura and Peter (and Madeline!): Thank you so much for choosing Simple Weddings! We were honored to be a part of your Sunset Beach wedding. Below are few of our favorite pictures from your Sunset Beach wedding ceremony. Keep an eye on our website at http://www.simpleweddingsflorida.com/ for the rest in a few days!

Sincerely,



Jeff & Claire Copeland
Simple Weddings by Simple Treasures Photography
Simple…Elegant…Perfect!

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Jamie and Phil’s Pass-a-Grille Beach Wedding

st pete beach wedding bamboo canopy
Jamie and Phil contacted us several months ago from Iowa to help them plan their Florida beach wedding. In fact, it was Jamie who first requested our now infamous bamboo canopy for her wedding. So she can rightly claim that it was custom-built for her beach wedding! The bamboo canopy looked stunning with white fabric and pink trim.

There was a little bit of excitement with regards to their wedding music; Jamie had requested our sound system with recorded music for her ceremony, and was very specific that she wanted John Michael Montgomery’s “I Can Love You Like That” played during their sand unity ceremony. Jeff spent hours preparing her playlist and making sure everything was there. But wouldn’t you know it – a half hour before her ceremony as he was doing sound checks, he realized that particular song was missing from the play list!

With no time to spare, he jumped into action and called our good friend Ron (who also happens to be one of our wedding officiants) who lives nearby. He had Ron download the song to his iPod as Jeff raced to Ron’s house to pick it up. It was ready just in the nick of time. Jeff changed clothes and was back on the beach with the music queued up with 4 minutes to spare. Most importantly, Jamie was thrilled to have the music of her choice played for her wedding!

As mentioned above, Jamie and Phil were married under our bamboo canopy on Pass-a-Grille Beach. Jeff officiated and Claire provided their wedding photography on what turned out to be a gorgeous evening and a beautiful Pass-a-Grille Beach wedding ceremony.

Jamie and Phil: Thank you so much for choosing Simple Weddings! We were honored to be a part of your special day. Below are few of our favorite pictures from your Pass-a-Grille beach wedding. Keep an eye on our website at www.SimpleWeddingsFlorida.com for the rest in a few days!

Sincerely,


Jeff & Claire Copeland
Simple Weddings by Simple Treasures Photography
Simple…Elegant…Perfect!


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Jamie and Phil's Wedding Pictures



Jamie & Phil's Wedding Video
Courtesy of Chad Whelan
www.ChadWhelan.com


Jennie and Will’s Pass-a-Grille Beach Wedding

bamboo canopy for beach weddingJennie and Will contacted us a few months ago from Minnesota. They were interested in having a Florida destination beach wedding, and we helped them plan it every step of the way.

They were married on Pass-a-Grille beach (at the southern tip of St Pete Beach) under our bamboo canopy. The weather and the setting were absolutely perfect and it all looked stunning!

Jennie also opted to have us provide our sound system with recorded music and a microphone for her ceremony. The music added a very special touch, and her guests were able to hear every word of their beach wedding ceremony over the gentle background noise of the wind and surf. It was simple, elegant, and perfect!

Claire probamboo beach wedding canopyvided the happy couples’ wedding photography, and after the wedding ceremony Jennie, Will, and their handsome three year old son, Connor, enjoyed a vibrant beach sunset for their wedding portraits while their guests retired to the infamous Hurricane restaurant right across the street.

Jenny and Will: Thank you so much for choosing Simple Weddings! We were honored to be a part of your special day. Below are few of our favorite pictures from your Pass-a-Grille beach wedding. Keep an eye on our website at www.SimpleWeddingsFlorida.com for the rest in a few days!

Sincerely,


Jeff & Claire Copeland
Simple Weddings by Simple Treasures Photography
Simple…Elegant…Perfect!


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Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Dianne & Leon’s Treasure Island Beach Wedding

Dianne lived in Key Largo, Florida, and Leon near Lakeland, Florida. They decided to have their wedding on the beach on Treasure Island’s beautiful Sunset Beach with just a few of their close family and friends.

Dianne claimed to be very nervous, but we can’t imagine why – their wedding was laid back, intimate, and fun, and she was all smiles! The only slight hiccup came just as Dianne was just about to walk down the aisle: One of their guests took a phone call from another guest who had taken a wrong turn on their way to the wedding. They were just down the street, so Leon decided to wait for them to arrive. Dianne took the delay in stride, and once all of the guests were seated, her daughter walked her down the aisle.

It was a beautiful beach wedding ceremony that included our sand unity ceremony and champagne toast. The weather was absolutely perfect, and we all enjoyed a stunning Treasure Island sunset.

Dianne and Leon: Congratulations and thank you again for choosing Simple Weddings! Below are a few of our favorite pictures from you wedding. Keep an eye on our website at http://www.simpleweddingsflorida.com/ for the rest!

We wish you all the best in the years ahead!

Sincerely,



Jeff & Claire Copeland
Simple…Elegant…Perfect!


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