To all my fellow modern Cambodian brides (and grooms) out there, if you have the opportunity to have a traditional Cambodian wedding ceremony I would highly suggest you consider it.  Yes, it’s long.  Yes, it’s exhausting.  You may not have all the time you need for it, but these days you can always choose to shorten or omit parts of the ceremony like Tara and Josh did.  Plus, your parents and community elders will appreciate that you’re honoring your cultural traditions.  You only get one chance to do it so why not?  Also, it can be fun getting all dressed up and decorated in beautiful traditional wedding attire.

When Tara and Josh got married recently we were pretty sure we would have to skip out on the traditional Cambodian wedding ceremony in order to be well rested for the rest of the wedding day.  I decided last minute that I would go check things out.  Because there were still a lot of wedding prep to get done that day most of the wedding party didn’t get the chance to attend the Cambodian wedding ceremony.  I was unable to stay for the whole morning, but I’m glad I was able to capture parts of the ceremony to share with those that couldn’t make it.  My favorite part of a Cambodian wedding is the outfits, jewelry and props.  Everything is so animated and full of color!  That’s definitely something you can’t ignore about traditional Cambodian weddings.  Enjoy these images!

Congrats to Tara and Josh  for getting through the morning.  Stay tune for part two of Tara + Josh’s wedding day!

This past October we had the opportunity to assist Sina Ngov of Vaylia Photography with a wedding in sunny southern California.  The fact that Vaylia Photography got voted #1 in 2010 for Best Photographer on San Diego’s A-List made it quite a privilege.  We also couldn’t ask for a better couple to work with.  Monica and Steve are incredibly sweet and their wedding turned out to be one of the most fun we’ve had on the job.  Our day started out with the groom and his groomsmen on the naval base grounds on Coronado Island.  It was a calm and relaxing morning before the wedding ceremony which took place at St. Joseph’s Cathedral in downtown San Diego.  After the ceremony the whole wedding party stopped at a taco stand to snack.  Monica claims she can’t go without San Diego tacos.  It doesn’t matter where she’s at in the world, she misses her San Diego tacos and I have to say those tacos were good!  Then it was off to take group photos back on Coronado Island at the famous Hotel del Coronado.  This place is beeeeautiful and I can’t wait to go back to spend more time there if I’m in the area again.  I heard that summer came late for San Diego-ians, but I was glad it wasn’t too hot that weekend.  It was a beautiful day.  After the photos it was party time back at the Island Club on the naval base.  The reception was so much fun!  I think I laughed and smiled all night long.  I laughed because there was never a dull moment in the night.  I smiled because there was just so much love in the room I honestly felt like a close friend to the couple despite never meeting them until the wedding.  Even when Sina had dismissed us from our shifts we still hung around.  I even ate two (okay, maybe three) slices of cake =).  We want to thank  Monica and Steve for taking such great care of us (all the wedding vendors actually).  Of course again we can’t thank Sina enough for giving us this opportunity.  We hope to cross paths and collaborate again in the future!  Now here are some images from this sweet and beautiful day.

Amber and Paul traveled all the way from Southern California to get married in front of their families and friends in Edmonds, WA.  We actually met the bride for the very first time the day before the wedding!  This was the first wedding where we didn’t meet with the bride and groom beforehand and it’s normally not how we would like to do things, but everything worked out in the end.  While Seung was with the guys, I was with the girls as they got ready.  When it was time for the bride & groom and wedding party portraits the idea of a “first look” came up.  I was thinking it, but didn’t bring it up because that’s something I usually bring into discussion during our face-to-face consultation and not on the day of the wedding.  Anyway, I was so glad and happy Amber wanted to do it.  One phone call over to the guys and it was a done deal.  We met with the guys at the Edmonds waterfront to do this.  I’m just going to say that I highly recommend a “first look” for every couple, unless it’s strongly in their belief that a bride and groom shouldn’t see each other before the wedding.  I’ll save my reasons and preference to have a “first look” for another post!  After the formal portraits, we headed to The United Presbyterian Church of Seattle for the church ceremony followed by the reception and traditional Korean “Pae Baek” ceremony in an adjacent building on the church grounds.  I love learning about different cultural wedding traditions and it’s always an honor to be a part of it (photographing it that is).  Although I married a Korean we didn’t incorporate the “Pae Baek” ceremony into ours and so this was also my first time witnessing one.  Loved the traditional outfits and colors!

To see more pictures of Amber and Paul’s wedding please click here for their slideshow.

Part II of Ronelda + Dexter’s blog post – their wedding/family portraits.  Since their wedding day was a busy and jam packed day we decided to do a post wedding shoot.  This actually worked out better with the kids since it gave us more time and provided a stress-free environment for all.  We headed out to the University of Washington campus for the wedding portraits.  What I enjoyed the most that day was watching the way Ronelda and Dexter interacted and looked at each other.  They had the same look from their wedding day, full of love, joy, smiles and happiness.  Or maybe that’s how they look at each other everyday.  It’s a contagious look, one that makes me smile and happy just remembering that day.  Aren’t they just a beautiful and picture perfect family?  They also ordered a flushmount wedding album.  The album should be arriving in about two weeks and we’re ALL very excited for it!  We’ll definitely post some pictures when it gets here.

One of our sweetest couples/clients turned friends – Ronelda and Dexter got married back in June at the Renton Community Center.  It was a beautiful summer day in June.  As we all know around here summer doesn’t officially start until the day after July 4th.  The groom and groomsmen arrived to the ceremony on their bikes and the bride made a grand entrance in a 1964 Impala with the top down.  Ronelda and Dexter had a traditional Catholic ceremony combined with traditional Filipino customs, but the couple also incorporated a lot of their personalities and interests into their wedding day.  Afterwards, it was one big party with their dearest families and closest friends.  Do I really need to say more about Filipino weddings?  BTW, I’m sure I witnessed quite possibly the best cake fight ever that night and at the end of the night I packed enough pancit to last me at least three meals. =)  This has been a long overdue post, but stay tune for part II coming very, very soon!