If you’ve followed our wacky entries for any length of time, you’ve inevitably come to the conclusion that we are in LOVE with our Indian / South-Asian wedding couples. The wedding weekends are stocked full of crazy-fun shenanigans, family and friend choreographed dance performances, and, [ last but not least ] fun.
Enter Shilpi + Nanak. Enter another one of our amazing Indian weddings. Enter a large, sharp sword.
Enter perfectly-placed sun-flair encircling their golden faces.
Do you think Shilpi is thinking about Nanak’s perfectly manicured beard? I think she’s thinking about his perfectly manicured beard. Or perhaps her newly minted status as “married”? I’m going with the beard though.
I tried to tell you. Dat beard doe. I also love how the warrior sword snuck its way into this image as well. Sneaky sword.
The Mehndi for this particular wedding was so beautiful. Believe it or not, Nanak’s name is woven into this masterpiece somewhere. It’s a goal to find it 🙂
I think he’s wondering where it’s gonna be.
Nanak’s Barat was quite a raucous affair. For the uninitiated, this is basically a giant celebration/dance-party/get-together of his family as they make their way to meet her family before the ceremony. It’s an absolute blast. I’ll be forever jealous that Western weddings don’t have a similar tradition.
Imma hang on this horse in the back, carry this warrior’s sword and look cool, ok?
Alright, n/m. Imma hop off and show everyone my moves. Goodness gracious does he have moves to show.
This is a moment before a ceremonious moment, but you know what they’re thinking…. “Goodness gracious does he have moves to show.”
The Sikh Wedding Ceremony took place in Richfield. It was set up just beautifully. Such wonderful attention to detail. The yellow. Phenomenal.
There is just a collective “awwww” every time these little girls make an entrance.
Sikh wedding ceremonies typically span a couple of hours. We’re always looking for a moment before or after the moment. The in-betweens. This is cute.
A Sikh Wedding Ceremony is peppered with readings, tradition, blessings, and prayers. It’s interesting that the weight of steeped tradition and ceremony can still be felt across cultural and language barriers.
Ring-ceremony action shot. Nanak may look like he’s receiving direction, but he’s not unsure. This is all planned. Man, he plays it so cool!
Our schedule commanded a place that was close to home, so we popped a few minutes down the road to the Richfield Heritage Preserve for our Creative Session. This brick straight up compliments Shilpi’s attire. It’s like they’re talking to each other…but like in a nice way. Nice talking. Courteous talking. Yes.
So, Nanak told me he was good at skipping rocks but in reality he kind of sucked at skipping rocks. I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt and calling it nerves. It’s his wedding, after all….
Sharp. Incredibly sharp.
We were afforded a beautiful strain of sunlight during this session. There’s no match for it. Listen, we love to light things. As wedding photographers we love to create when the creating needs to be done, but sometimes the sun just creates for you. In times such as these, the only goal is to harness what’s already evident.
The wedding reception took place at LaCentre in Westlake. We’ve photographed a fair amount of Indian wedding receptions there and always had an excellent experience. It’s popular, not only because of merit, but also because it’s a huge space that can welcome a huge family 🙂
K, lemme stop you right quick. The little girl farthest to the right. Amazing dancer. Like, best best dancer I’ve ever seen at 1/4 of my age. Just remember her face so you can say you saw her before everyone else when she’s famous. Crazy.
Nanak showing off aforementioned surreal dance moves. The man is chopping the air like fyre brought to lyfe.
No first dance is complete without clouds. Ok, that’s not true. It’s not necessary, but it’s pretty effing cool when you have your first dance on clouds at your wedding reception!
Are these clouds or a visual depiction of love? Because love is….cloudy? Gracious, this is off the rails. I’m not deleting it though. It’s staying.
Another tradition I wish Western weddings incorporated. Performances. Friends and family typically perform special songs and dances for the couple as tribute and celebration. It’s always unique, different, maybe a little Bollywood [ maybe not ], and fun.
One of my favorites!
Don’t worry guys, that baby is having fun… and perfectly safe.
Shilpi + Nanak, Thank you. Thanks for putting up with our entire banded team of craziness. We’re almost as crazy as you. Like, almost. Like 87.90% of the way there. We appreciate you and consider you friends. Let’s even forget about planning, because we’ve known you for like a year. So much happened in just the two days that we got to spend together. Not only won’t I forget it, I’ll be seeing you soon for my dermatological needs 😉
