Peppermayo in Puerto Rico During a Birthday Trip
My sister and I have birthdays that are incredibly close together. We're four years and one day apart, which means we've spent most of our lives celebrating around the same time.
In fact, she technically ruined my fourth birthday party by being born and stealing all the attention. My entire birthday party. Gone.
But that's a story for another time.
These days, she's one of my best friends, and celebrating our birthdays together has become one of my favorite traditions. This year, we decided to plan the birthday trip of our dreams and headed to Puerto Rico with my husband and our amazing mom for a week of sunshine, adventure, and family time.
Before we left, Peppermayo hired me to photograph a few pieces from their upcoming releases. I got to select three dresses for the project, although I ended up saving one for a future shoot because I already had too many ideas for it.
The moment the dresses arrived, I knew exactly which one I wanted Halle to wear.
She wore the most stunning dark blue dress, and from the second I saw it, I could picture the photos. I wanted ocean water, nighttime, and flash photography. I wanted the dress moving through the waves and reflecting the city lights. Sometimes a location and a piece of clothing just click together in your head before the shoot even happens.
While Halle modeled the blue dress, I wore another Peppermayo dress for our birthday celebration in San Juan. The fit was beautiful, and I felt amazing wearing it throughout the evening. Between the architecture, the energy of the city, and being surrounded by people I love most, it felt like the perfect way to celebrate another year.
Some of my favorite images from the trip happened almost by accident. We would spend the day exploring, eating incredible food, wandering through Old San Juan, and then suddenly find ourselves stopping because the light was perfect or the location felt right. Those unplanned moments often become the photographs I love most.
As a fashion photographer, I love creating elaborate concepts and planned productions, but I also love the spontaneity that comes with travel photography. Being somewhere new pushes you to see things differently and work with whatever opportunities appear in front of you.
More than anything, this trip reminded me how much I enjoy blending travel, fashion, and storytelling. The dresses were beautiful, the photos turned out exactly how I imagined, and I got to spend the week celebrating with my favorite people.
Not every fashion shoot requires a studio or a large production. Sometimes it just takes a beautiful location, a great dress, a camera, and a sister willing to walk into the ocean at night because you had an idea.
