fbt
Screenshot
polly-profile-pic-2

About

Polly and The LoveBites

Hi, I’m Polly – British-born human, based in Akumal Mexico. Wedding photography is my 3rd career – my first love is fashion. I studied and worked in London and Paris as a designer in the 2000’s. Highlights include a prototype shoe made by Louis Vuitton, preparing Haute Couture with Givenchy, and my years spent as a designer for Jean Paul Gaultier. Working with talented individuals at the top of their field instilled in me endless love of creativity, exquisite craftsmanship, and fierce beauty.

Fast forward to: quitting fashion, backpacking in East Africa for 3 years, becoming a scuba diving instructor, then – hop – Mexico. Buying an underwater camera, meeting my freakin’ awesome husband, and becoming a wedding photographer in the Riviera Maya.

After a decade of working for others as an associate photographer, I created The LoveBites. A space to pursue my vision of beauty. Authentic, raw, and powerful photographs, blending artistic, expressive imagery and candid, documentary photography. I am of course inspired by beautiful fashion editorial imagery – my forever love.

This first thing I want to say about polly is everything about her is amazing from her personality to her photography. When you first meet her she is the easiest person to talk to and laugh with. She makes you feel like you’ve known each other for years! On top of all of that her photography is outstanding! She gets the most amazing candid moments as well as doing her best to get all the photos you ask for! One of many things I was impressed with was her survey that she has designed to make sure she understands and is informed with exactly all the photos and styles you want to be captured. She has a talent for capturing the audiences as well as your emotion in every picture she gets. She is so fun and easy to work with and does everything she can do make your day amazing! She absolutely was a huge part in making my wedding day the best it could be! Polly photographed me and my husbands engagement and we loved her so much we asked her to do our wedding too! We love Polly!
Katie + TrevorSpring Farm Wedding
Katie + Trevor
The photos are BEAUTIFUL! We’re so happy with them. Pauli said “I always thought it was a waste of money to pay for photos/do a photoshoot while on a trip but we’re doing it every trip now.” They’re awesome. Thank you so much. We’re so happy to be able to have these as a memory of our trip and time together. Also, thank you for not resisting on the black and white edits. Turns out I love them equally as much as color!
Pauli & JacobAkumal Vow Renewal
Pauli & Jacob
Wow! These photos are amazing! We are blown away!!!! Thank you for capturing our day, love for each other and friends. I love the intimate moments between us. This is exactly what I hoped to see. We look forward to making an album with these. Hugs and again many thanks!
Liz & ScottAkumal Bay Wedding
Liz & Scott
Polly is an absolute dream to work with! She went above and beyond to make us feel completely comfortable, and the entire shoot was such a fun and relaxed experience. The photos she delivered are beyond stunning — truly magical! We are obsessed and will 100% be coming back for more. Highly, highly recommend!
DharmaMayakoba Babymoon Session
Editorial Film + Digital Maternity Session at Banyan Tree Mayakoba
We met early on a Saturday on the beach and here comes Polly dressed in all black, camera in hand with a grin on her face. We hugged and immediately went into a wild Tuesday of sisterhood and fun. Every image she captured of each sister present illuminates the essence of their being. I personally felt playful and creative. Every shoot I have been blessed to experience with Polly has pushed me to be a better model—to affectively communicate with my body what I would usually say with words. It’s an honor to know her and I believe if you’ve read this entire review, it’s time for you to experience the magic.
Alia Shanti GumboSupermuse
A black-and-white photo of three friends smiling and laughing, laying closely together outdoors with relaxed, joyful expressions. Two are wearing sleeveless tops, while the third has braided hair and a visible hoop earring. All appear happy and carefree, capturing the spirit of Playa del Carmen.
Polly was INCREDIBLE. She photographed my women's retreat and was so professional, caring, fun, and just a joy to be around. It felt like she was genuinely invested in my business and the experience of the women in the retreat - and she was so thoughtful about getting the most gorgeous shots in spots I wouldn't have even noticed. She went above and beyond and I highly recommend Polly and am so grateful she was recommended to me
Tasia HawkinsZoya Wellness Retreat
Tasia Hawkins
Our family photo shoot with Polly was truly a highlight of our trip. She was very helpful and patient working with our group of 6 (including a toddler). She is creative, professional, and thoughtful. We received the full set of images within days and they are spectacular. Highly recommended!!
Donna ThorsenVidanta Family Photoshoot
Donna Thorsen
Polly is an amazing photographer who is committed and passionate about every shot. I love how she directed us throughout the shoot and had awesome ideas and brought together the right vibe for our Sisterhood theme. I highly recommend Polly if you need to capture your beautiful memories here in Playa Del Carmen!
Rizalyn CorcueraArtistic Friends Session
Rizalyn Corcuera
SIMPLY AMAZING!!!! I recently met Polly while doing a photoshoot with my loves here in Playa and I am in awe with her work!! Phenomenal, to say the least! I've never done a photoshoot of any kind and really wanted to step out of my comfort zone and I was made to feel so comfortable, guided and beautiful. Thank you for SUCH a beautiful experience, Polly! I speak that we'll be connecting again for more magic soon! <3
Niah NicoleArtistic Friends Session
Niah Nicole

Featured In

FAQs

I’m a wedding photographer based in Akumal, working across the Riviera Maya including Tulum, Playa del Carmen, Cancun, Playa Mujeres, and destination weddings across Mexico especially Merida and Oaxaca. My work blends documentary and editorial, fashion-led imagery and film photography.

I live in Akumal, roughly 30 minutes drive from Playa del Carmen or Tulum – I’m right in the middle! I regularly photograph weddings and portrait sessions in the Riviera Maya, Cancun and Costa Mujeres area and I also shoot on the Islands of Cozumel, Isla Mujeres and Holbox. I love to travel and I’m available across Mexico, and I have recently shot weddings and events in Merida and Oaxaca – I love to travel!

My photography style is very varied in approach, and my particular style leans into sculptural, poetic, fashion led imagery.

Needless to say I vary styles and techniques based on the energy of the couple, the venue and the vibe of the wedding. I love dynamic wedding galleries, what Lensel calls: THE MIX.

I mix candid and documentary photography with editorial posing, I love to shoot natural light and then fire off a few pops of flash, I love the speed and precision of digital and the grungy romance of film, I’m drawn equally to dark, moody imagery and soft, dreamy moments.

I love to spend time working on a creative direction for each wedding because I am at my core an adamant individualist and I truly believe every wedding should be unique.

Photography is my 3rd career – I was a fashion designer, then a diving instructor, before entering the wedding world in 2014. I worked for 10 years for a boutique wedding photography company and I have photographed 100s and worked on post production and client care for over 1000 weddings.

You won’t see those 10 years of weddings here, but you will see work that I’ve created as an independent photographer taking everything that I’ve learnt and filtering it through my point of view.

Yes – I love film, I shoot hybrid film and digital for all my weddings because I love the texture it brings to a final gallery. I shoot some portrait sessions on film too, and I recently started working with a friend to offer Super8 videography.

Most of the film you’ll see on my website in 35mm shot on an SLR, there are some point and shoot shots and some 120mm shot on a Holga too.

My wedding blog posts show a curated and representative image selection from a full wedding, from getting to party, including quieter in-between moments and not just the headline shots. If you want to go deeper, I’m happy to share a complete client gallery on request (with my client’s permission), though, fair warning, a complete final gallery can run to 800–1000 images.

I do help with posing and I’ll tailor that help to you. Unless you’re a professional model I do not expect you to know how to move in front of the camera, so of course I’ll set you up. That goes for whether we’re doing more editorial or candid posing (spoiler alert – those gorgeous candid wedding photos you see are often guided by photographers). Needless to say I will never make you do anything that feels weird, or like something you would never do – I don’t impose, posing is something we work out together.

I have experience photographing weddings in everything from blazing way too hot sun, to torrential downpour, to there-was-a-hurricane-yesterday (or there is one on the way). My most memorable was the beach wedding that started raining as the bride walked down the aisle and turned into a full white out in minutes. And while the rain is tough harsh sun and difficult light can be equally if not more tricky – but there is always a way. While of course I’ll always advise my couples when the prettiest light is for photos, in the real world as a photographer I have to be adaptable and have solutions to any challenges to weddings as they pop up. 

Yes I photograph I’ll be just as happy to photograph a 20 hour wedding weekend or a 2 beach elopement. I can adapt to whatever you have in mind for your day.

Many of my couples host welcome dinners, beach days, ceremonies, and late-night parties, and I document the entire experience as a connected story rather than isolated moments. Each part of the weekend has its own rhythm and energy, and I approach it with that in mind shifting between documentary storytelling and more editorial moments depending on what the moment calls for.

Absolutely. I photograph LGBTQ+ weddings and offer inclusive wedding photography for all couples and celebrations.