My First Quinceanera

Though I have traveled a lot, I have lived in Southern Arizona my whole life.   In that time, I have never actually been to a quinceanera.    We were invited to be second shooters for one by a friend who has been mentoring me.

Evidently, these are a huge thing where planning and such starts a year in advance.  The part of the process we got involved in the pre-quinceanera shoot.   This was done at Madera Canyon about a month before the actual quinceanera.

When the night of the quinceanera came, it was quite the event!   It was almost like a wedding, but instead of a bride and a groom, it was the family celebrating their daughter turning 15.  We got there in time to see some of the prep and set up.   There was a beautiful three-tier cake (strawberries and cream) which I expected to see at a birthday party.

What I had never seen before was a table with a bunch of different candies for everyone.   This had everything from macaroons and chocolate covered strawberries to mazapan and snickers.

Once the guests began to arrive, dinner was served.   The family mingled and socialized during the meal.    After the meal there was a formal introduction of the quince’s family and then the quince herself.

Very shortly after that was the changing of the shoes.  This is supposed to symbolize the quince going from being a girl to becoming a woman.   Her sneakers were removed by her father and replaced with a pair of heels.

Just like at a wedding, there is a father-daughter dance.   This was immediately followed by a mother-daughter dance, as well as a sister dance.

After the dances with the quince were done, anyone present is allowed to get in line to get their picture taken with the quince.   This was a big thing and just about everyone present wanted to participate!

There was a bit of a break at this point where the cake was cut and served.   This break was also time for the quince and a couple of the girls with her to change outfits to prep for what was the last major event of the evening.

The quince and her friends came out in traditional dresses to do a special dance for those that came.   This was a choreographed dance and was a big deal.

After the special dance was done, the quince changed again.   At this point all the special events were done and all that was left was for the family to dance and celebrate the rest of the evening.

While we were unable to stay for the entire night, we did get to photograph all of the major events.   We had a ton of fun, and it was quite an experience!     The family was super nice to us and it was amazing to see the quince’s parents doing all they could to make sure the night went off perfectly for their daughter!