The Story Behind One Of Prince Harry And Meghan Markle's Best Wedding Portraits Is As Sweet As The Photo

It’s been nearly a week since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle became the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and we’re still on cloud nine about their nuptials. 

On Tuesday, the Kensington Palace shared one of the new Royal couple’s official wedding photos and the black and white snapshot that captured the newlyweds radiated nothing but love and stole the internet’s heart. 

Now, the official wedding photographer, Alexi Lubomirski, is spilling the details of the moments before the breathtaking photo was captured. 

“So after we’d done the set up [the family] shots, then we all went to the reception, and if the couple were going to have any energy after that, we were going to go into the rose garden and just take some intimate quick shots,” he said according to PEOPLE. “So eventually we went out there, we had about three-and-a-half minutes to take some pictures, because everything was like clockwork, and it was just one of the those magical moments, when you are a photographer and everything falls into place.”

Lubomirski, who is based in New York, also took the engagement photos of the Royal and the former Suits actress last fall after the youngest son of Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana popped the question in November. 

As the newlyweds and Lubormirski wrapped up taking photos in the rose garden before taking off to enjoy one of two post-nuptial receptions, something magical happened. 

“You have Windsor Castle in the background, the sun is setting just over the top of Windsor Castle behind them, it is just the most serene beautiful light. They are in love, walking around this beautiful garden, and then we walked around for a bit, and then just got pictures of them. And they are in this elated state of mind.”

He continued, “I said finally, ‘Okay, let’s go back. You can go back to your thing now, but listen, just before you go in, let’s sit down on these stairs.’ And she just slumped in between his legs, and there was this moment where they were just laughing because they were joking about how they were exhausted and finally it’s all over. And they just looked at each other and they were just laughing, and it was this just beautiful moment.”

So basically what Lubomirski is saying is that this simply gorgeous, absolutely museum-worthy portrait is a candid. A candid?! It doesn’t get any better than that!

“When you are taking the pictures, you know you have something, but obviously you haven’t got time to look at it. So it wasn’t actually until I got back to the hotel that I looked at it, and it was just amazing — a very happy moment.”

An amazing, happy moment indeed.