Entries Categorized as 'destination'
October 21, 2009
Don’t count vineyards out just because you’re having an east coast wedding! You can certainly have a Napa Valley kind of occasion with the charm of New England.
Stephanie and Brian got married at Sakonnet Vineyards in Little Compton, Rhode Island.
The ceremony was outside next to the vines… and much dancing ensued at the tented reception!
Sakonnet Vineyards is a part of the Southeastern New England Wine Trail that stretches from southern Massachusetts to Rhode Island and Connecticut. They are open from April to October.
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October 16, 2009
I love the way he looked at her all day.
Jenny and Matt were married on a sopping wet day in Pennsylvania, the kind of rain that never ceases. The ceremony was at the historic church in Harrisburg where Jenny grew up, then the reception was at the Hershey Country Club.
Check out Jenny’s Fluevog wedding shoes!
In honor of the wedding location, we did a cool ring shot. I’m proud of this; it took about 20 minutes and an entire table full of guests to accomplish (lighting, ideas, arrangement).
[ view artist selects here ]
more images added soon.
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October 14, 2009
More from the Bulgarian wedding, by popular demand – some of the prewedding preparation photos. (It’s not every day you see livestock on a spit, right?) Because Bulgarian wedding aesthetics are quite different from the modern, personalized wedding decor featured on wedding sites and in magazines, Anni decided to take the design of the flowers and pretty things into her own hands. She’s native to a small town in Bulgaria and had to kinda fight the prevailing “oh, for weddings we use lots of TULLE and SHINY THINGS!” mentality. It’s stressful to disagree with the older women in your village, because they make your wedding their business!! I was amazed to see how Anni pulled things together though she was working from the US until the month before the wedding.
People have different ways of dealing with their feelings as they mentally prepare themselves to make a life commitment in marriage. It’s extremely interesting to me to catch a glimpse of the introspection right before a wedding ceremony is scheduled to begin.
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October 13, 2009
Just wanted to pop in and share some fun scans from film I just got back. I had forgotten what was on the rolls — the left is my husband in Bulgaria, and the right is my friend and fellow photographer Maggie in Washington, DC.
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September 10, 2009
Beth and Dave took me on a little adventure in Huddersfield, England before their August wedding. It was so much fun to get to know them in person, since most of our correspondence came about through email.
I like the way Beth is looking at me here. I’m guessing this was moments after Dave had said something inappropriate.
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August 31, 2009
August 29, 2009
August 12, 2009
Jashn-e Aroosi (Jashne Arosi, Jashne Aroosi), the actual feasts and the celebration, features feasting, music by entertainers, and lots of enthusiastic dancing. The wedding day Jashn-e Aroosi is very similar to a western-style wedding reception, but with distinctly Irani styling. The ones I have seen feature huge spreads of fresh fruit, women dressed in traditional clothing serving tea to guests, tables full of sweets. [ MORE INFO ABOUT JASHN-E AROOSI HERE ]
This wedding gets its own barrage of posts, because I am kind of in love with the detailed attention that goes into the planning for a Persian wedding celebration. All of the Iranian people I know LOVE life’s beautiful things… flowers, fresh food, family, dancing, fancy clothing, bling. So you can see why they as a people group would excel at weddings! It’s an excuse to go shopping, catch up with friends from out of town, and eat the best food ever. (Side note: I am also starting to understand why my own off-the-rack J.Crew wedding dress didn’t sit well with my mother-in-law!)
Anita and Haady’s reception was breathtaking. They utilized the terrace of Anita’s family home up in the foothills of LA, overlooking the entire city skyline. The space was well-planned and lit up with twinkle lights and candles as it got dark. As a bonus, the wedding fell on the 4th of July so we were treated to about 30 different fireworks displays throughout the evening.
Of course the dancing was spirited, the food was delicious, the fruit bowls and candy dishes overflowing. It was an intimate wedding and the guests (all pictured in final photo above) stayed late into the night.
As a final note, one of my favorite portraits of the day. I did a similar shot for Suzy and Rod, who were married at the same location in April.
couple: Anita and Haady
date: July 4, 2009
wedding location: private residence, Palos Verdes CA
photography: Rachel Hadiashar
SEE MORE FROM THIS WEDDING:
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August 12, 2009
For people from Iran, the official wedding ceremony is an elaborate ceremonial affair that centers on the sofreh aghd, or wedding table.
The first part of a Persian wedding is called Sofreh-ye Aghd (or Payvand-e-Zanshooi) and is the time for the legal process of getting married by signing a contract. In front of the closest friends and family members, the bride accepts the marriage after being asked 3 times… and is then showered with gifts. Traditionally this is at the home of the bride’s parents, and the wedding guests act as witnesses to the marriage.
The lavish, eastward-facing spread, the Sofreh Aghd, is filled with symbolic items meant to bless the couple and prepare them for a happy marriage. For a listing of these items, look here or here.
Remember Hasti, who did the manghal with esfand for Suzy’s wedding? She performed her role at Anita’s wedding as well, carrying the hot coals with confidence up the hill leading to the indoor location for Anita and Haady’s sofreh aghd. [ MORE INFORMATION ABOUT MANGHAL HERE ]
Look at the people at the top of the hill, waiting anxiously for the bridal procession to walk up! Also, check out my mother-in-law (who was a guest at the wedding) waving and trying to catch my attention!
Above you can see some of the very photogenic details of Anita and Haady’s sofreh aghd spread, which was lovingly done in traditional style by a family friend (go, Ghodsi Madani, M.D.!!), with a natural look to balance out the silver and gold elements. Note that each of the designs (the yin-yang motif and the paisley with the arabic script) are done by hand with seeds. Now THAT is a lot of work.
The last black and white image is from the end of the ceremony. After the talking is finished, the bride and groom kiss, exchange rings and do a quick honey ceremony. Relatives throw esfand on the manghal to make it smoke more, family throws candy in the air, and everyone starts to loudly and joyously cheer and sing traditional songs. In the image, you see an uncle greeting the couple and bringing a gift of jewelry. Persian brides are loaded up with gold jewelry and bling as a gift from family members.
One of the traditional portraits that is important to take at a Persian wedding is the bride and groom sitting with the sofreh aghd, preferably with the mirror in view. I have seen wedding photos from some of Ali’s relatives, and laugh because you can ALWAYS see random family members and sometimes even the photographer in the mirror. I tried to avoid that.
One more thing I want to mention about this delightful wedding was the fact that it took place at a private residence – the home where the bride grew up. When the kids were still at home, her family would often hike together in the hills around the house, and Anita’s mother and father had staked out some lovely places for family portraits.
couple: Anita and Haady
date: July 4, 2009
wedding location: private residence, Palos Verdes CA
photography: Rachel Hadiashar
SEE MORE FROM THIS WEDDING:
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August 11, 2009
couple: Anita and Haady
date: July 4, 2009
wedding location: private residence, Palos Verdes CA
photography: Rachel Hadiashar
SEE MORE FROM THIS WEDDING:
Posted in clients, destination, ethnic wedding, wedding No Comments »
