Your photographer across the Riviera Maya.

I live and work across the full stretch of the Riviera Maya - from the Cancún hotel zone in the north down through Puerto Morelos, Playa del Carmen, Akumal, Tulum and onwards into the Sian Ka’an biosphere; from Isla Mujeres and Holbox off the northern coast to Cozumel sitting opposite Playa; and as far south as Bacalar’s freshwater lagoon, near the Belize border. When clients are not sure which town or section of coast fits their shoot, this page is the right starting point.

Why I shoot across the whole coast rather than one town. Each place on the Riviera Maya has a distinct personality, and a session that would feel perfect in one can feel slightly off in another. Cancún is wide turquoise water and east-facing sunrise beaches; Playa del Carmen is the editorial base - friendly, walkable, the best logistical hub. Tulum trades polish for atmosphere - wild jungle, ruins on the cliff, the softer cinematic light. Cozumel is the slower island day, with calm water and a famous sandbar. Isla Mujeres is the postcard turquoise of Playa Norte and a yacht-day favourite out of Cancún. Holbox is the bohemian, car-free island in the north with flamingos, whale sharks in season and bioluminescence on summer nights. Bacalar is the freshwater seven-colour lagoon to the south. My job is to help you pick the right setting for the day you have in mind, then plan around the light and the season.

How to choose. The fastest way to land on the right town is to describe the feeling rather than name a place: do you want wild beach and editorial drama (Tulum), wide turquoise and easy sunrise (Cancún or Playa Norte on Isla), boutique-town golden hour with side-street texture (Playa del Carmen), a slower island day on calm water (Cozumel or Holbox), a yacht day on the open Caribbean (out of Cancún, Isla Mujeres or Cozumel), or freshwater in seven shades of blue (Bacalar)? Most clients book in one base and add one travel-day session at a second location. A few do two bases. Once we agree the rough shape, I plan the morning, the route and the backup.

A typical multi-location plan. A common pattern: arrive Cancún, two nights in Playa, sunrise pre-wedding session in Playa on day two, drive to Tulum for two nights, sunrise beach + mid-morning cenote session in Tulum on day four, drive back to Cancún for the flight home. Another: base in Tulum for the wedding, fly in a few days early for a pre-boda on the Tulum beach and a separate cenote stop, then a yacht day out of Cancún on the morning after the wedding before the flight. I can sketch a similar plan for any combination once you tell me your travel window.

Best months across the coast. The cool, dry season runs December through April; clear skies, comfortable temperatures, the cleanest sunrise light. This is high season, so the beach and town are busier; sunrise sessions stay quiet regardless. May and early June are warmer and noticeably quieter - a sweet window. Late June through October is hurricane season; expect humidity, occasional sargassum on the open beach (worst in summer some years), and a higher chance of afternoon storms. The light, when it lands, is incredible - but plan with a backup day. November is the season turning back; warm water, softer skies, fewer crowds, and one of my favourite stretches for sessions. Holbox has its own season for whale sharks (June-September) and bioluminescence (summer); Cozumel is good year-round with the calmest water on the leeward side; Bacalar is best from late autumn through spring when the rains are lighter and the lagoon reads cleanest.

Time-of-day across the coast. Sunrise is the headline almost everywhere - east-facing beaches across the Caribbean coast catch the cleanest pink-into-gold light at first light, with no crowds. Cancún and Playa Norte (Isla Mujeres) give the widest open horizon for that first sun. Tulum and Akumal give a softer, more cinematic version. Golden hour at sunset is gentler than sunrise in colour but works beautifully through the palms in Playa and at the cenote stops. Cozumel’s leeward beach holds afternoon golden hour particularly well because the island shelters the water from wind. Holbox and Bacalar both face west, so sunset is the headline there. Blue hour, the fifteen minutes after the sun drops, is the secret light on every beach - I almost never pack up before it.

Common venues and spots - places I work in regularly. In Cancún, the federal-zone stretches of the hotel-zone beach, Playa Delfines and Playa Marlin for sunrise, the quieter north-shore beaches inside the Costa Mujeres bay. In Playa, Mamitas, Punta Esmeralda, the boutique-hotel stretches south of Quinta Avenida, side streets behind Calle 14. In Tulum, the public beach below the ruins, the long stretch of the beach road south, the Sian Ka’an edge. The cenotes around Tulum and Cobá - Cristalino, Cenote Cristal, Gran Cenote, Yokdzonot. In Cozumel, the El Cielo sandbar on a yacht day, Punta Sur, the quieter east-coast beaches. On Isla Mujeres, Playa Norte and the north tip, the colour-block streets behind the malecón. On Holbox, the long Punta Mosquito sandbar at low tide, the empty east beach. In Bacalar, the seven-colour lagoon from a private dock, Cenote Azul at the south end, Los Rápidos and the pirate canal. For ruins and jungle drama, the public beach below Tulum’s clifftop ruins; for longer day trips, editorial sessions at Chichén Itzá and Cobá by arrangement.

What sessions look like in practice. Whichever town we anchor in, the rhythm is consistent: meet before the light, work close to the water through the first hour, move into shade or jungle as the light hardens, finish in a softer setting. For a yacht day, we leave the marina with the boat kit packed for salt and sun, plan a sandbar stop and a swim break, and shoot the golden-hour run on the return. For a multi-location day, I keep the schedule loose enough that an extra fifteen minutes of light at one stop does not collapse the next.

What to expect when you book. Once your dates are confirmed I send a short prep note covering the route, meeting points, what to bring and what to wear. I work in English, Spanish and Russian; sessions run in whichever language you are most relaxed in. After the shoot I deliver a private preview gallery within a few days and the full edited collection within two to three weeks via a private link, high resolution, ready to print. Travel between locations is built into the quote; for cenote and yacht-day stops I pass through entrance fees and charter costs at cost.

Logistics - Cancún airport is the main international gateway. Playa is about forty-five minutes south of the airport; Tulum about ninety minutes; Cozumel is a ferry from Playa; Isla Mujeres is a ferry from Puerto Juárez near Cancún; Holbox is a longer drive plus a ferry from Chiquilá; Bacalar is a three-and-a-half-hour drive south from Tulum, or a flight via Chetumal. The newer Tulum airport (opened late 2023) offers another option for southern stops if your flights align. Most multi-location plans build in one travel day between bases.

Related pages on the site for the individual stops. Playa del Carmen is my home base. Tulum is the jungle-and-ruins side. Cancún is the east-facing turquoise. Cozumel is the slower island day. Isla Mujeres is Playa Norte and the yacht-day gateway from Cancún. Holbox is the bohemian car-free island in the north. Bacalar is the freshwater seven-colour lagoon. For format-specific pages, see yacht days, cenote sessions, proposals, couple sessions, family sessions, maternity sessions, personal branding, weddings and pre-wedding sessions.

Common questions I get that are not in the FAQ. Can we fit Cancún sunrise and Tulum sunset in one day? In theory yes - they are about two hours apart and many couples do drive between them in a single trip - but I usually advise against squeezing both into one day; the drive is fine but the energy of two sessions split across two locations is harder than one anchored day. Better to split across two days. Do you charge a travel fee inside the Riviera Maya? Sessions within Playa proper do not carry a travel fee; sessions in Tulum, Cancún, Akumal and Puerto Morelos carry a small one for the drive and parking. Cozumel includes the ferry crossing; Isla Mujeres includes the ferry from Puerto Juárez; Holbox and Bacalar are quoted with the longer travel built in. Which location is best for a proposal? It depends on the feel you want - Tulum for the editorial drama, Playa for the soft beach moment with a quick reset back at the hotel, Cancún for the open turquoise sunrise, Cozumel for the sandbar surprise on a yacht day. Tell me what you want it to feel like and I will sketch a few options. Can we do a multi-day shoot across two or three towns? Yes - I shoot multi-day destination weddings, family trips and brand campaigns across the coast regularly. The simplest version is two sessions in two bases; the most involved is a five-day brand campaign across hotels and locations, planned end-to-end as one body of work.

If the right session for you is somewhere on the Riviera Maya but you are not sure which town to land in, tell me the feel you want and the dates you have, and I will sketch a plan that uses the coast’s strengths instead of fighting them.