Hi Crystal...congrats and welcome! I've found this forum very helpful. What we did first was pick a destination. We were between Mexico and Jamaica and picked Jamaica because there are fewer requirements to getting married there. Then we settled on the brand of resort we wanted based on the activities we wanted to have available. We picked Couples Sans Souci in Ocho Rios. Of course I had my dress before we had all this decided! I then spent some time deciding on a photographer, and decided to fly one down rather than using the resort photographer...it actually fit better into the budget that way. Good luck with the planning...we are all happy to offer our advice.