Vintage Grouse Mountain Wedding: Robert+Fareedah Just Married!

When Fareedah and Robert met with us and mentioned that their wedding was going to be in June, Fareedah said that she is convinced that it is going to be a beautiful day. And truly, the weeks leading up to June 13 have indeed been uncharacteristically gorgeous and sunny for Vancouver. The week before the 13th, however, forecasted some rain. I remember Fareedah, Robert and I sitting at Caffe Artigiano poring over the different weather apps we had on or iPhone to check, nay triple-check, what it's going to be like. Although we did have a scare that we were going to be rained out, it was all for naught for, as Fareedah confidently forecasted, it turned out to be a beautiful day!

Besides the weather, a lot has excited us about this wedding in the details Fareedah mentioned during the planning - the old hollywood, vintage look she was going for, the wedding at the peak of Vancouver, Grouse Mountain, the souped-up rides she (a Rolls Royce) and Robert (a helicopter) and a chance to work with Fairy Godmother Weddings and Photobooth Vancouver, to name a few.

We started the day in Gastown at Burke & Hair with very talented hairstylists, Kelley Schedewitz and Marty Boechler and makeup artist, Oz Zandiyeh.

Old Hollywood glam needs red, red lips!

Hairspray overload!

Fareedah trying to compose herself after reading a sweet note from Robert!

The dress from Bryan's Bridal.

The girls admiring the beautiful bride.

There's something about this shot that I really like...

Nothing puts a smile on bridesmaids' faces but boxes from Tiffany & Co. Heck, even I had a smile on my face watching and shooting this!

The portraits!

The awesome bridesmaids, Jen and Jill, with their custom hairpieces by Heather Mandin of Parts by Heather.

The wonderful custom hairpiece by Heather Mandin of Parts by Heather.

I love the portrait of Fareedah and mom below.

The Rolls Royce Phantom, picking up our gorgeous bride from the Westin Grand Vancouver.

The gorgeous, fragrant flowers, a labour of love by Fareedah's fabulously creative friend, Cassie Plotnikoff.

Robert getting ready!

The ride at Helijet!

Fareedah walking down the aisle with brother, Abdul.

Fareedah was giddy and giggly throughout the ceremony! We couldn't stop from capturing her many facial expressions throughout!

Some portraits!

Korean performers to celebrate Fareedah's Korean heritage.

Yummy cake by Original Cupcakes!

The guestbook (yay!)

Fun times in the photobooth! The booth was busy as a bee throughout the night!

Robert and Fareedah, thank you so much for making us a part of this great occasion! I hope you enjoyed the Tigh-Na-Mara getaway and the Korea/Japan honeymoon will be awesome!

Details:
Hairpiece/Veil - Heather Mandin of Parts by Heather
Hair - Kelley Schedewitz and Marty Boechler of Burke and Hair
Makeup - Oz Zandiyeh
Dress - Bryan's Bridal
Bridesmaids dresses and Tuxes - Isabelle's Bridal
Cake - Original Cupcakes
Hotel - Westin Grand Vancouver
Venue - The Timber Room at Grouse Mountain
Flowers - Cassie Plotnikoff
Photobooth - Photobooth Vancouver
Officiant - Brent Sheppard (Hey Rev!)
Event Planner - Devon Hird from Fairy Godmother Weddings

Punta Cana Day After Session: Karim+Farrah and Jamil+Shaila

The morning we left Punta Cana, we did a day-after session with Karim, Farrah, Jamil and Shaila. Here are some of our faves!

Shortly after we started shooting at the beach, storm clouds began moving in on us and we got some heavy downpour that cut our session short. You can see the rain drops in this shot.

In between short breaks in the rain, we would rush out into the beach and take quick shots. I love this candid one of Shaila and Jamil.

Take two... with feelings!

Soon, the rain would not let up anymore which is how we left Punta Cana, in torrential rain!

We headed back to sunny, yes sunny, Vancouver with fond memories of the Dominican Republic and I'm sure more trips to the Caribbean would be in our future!

Punta Cana Destination Wedding: Karim+Farrah and Jamil+Shaila Part 3 of 3

Despite all the odds, the epic wedding that was Karim+Farrah and Jamil+Shaila turned out to be wonderful occasion. From pandemic outbreak to scheduling chaos to unpredictable Carribean weather to a few minor accidents, these four overcame huge hurdles to produce such an event. After all was said and done, everybody enjoyed themselves, poured their hearts with well wishes and both Karim+Farrah and Jamil+Shaila came out looking unruffled with big smiles that tell you all is well in the world.

What was first set out to be a Mayan Riviera wedding at the Gran Bahia Principe Akumal, the destination wedding was relocated to the equally impressive Gran Bahia Principe Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic just 3 weeks before the wedding. While there was a wedding scheduled almost every day we were at the resort, we found that this double wedding was THE talk of the town. True enough, on the day of the wedding, the beach was jampacked with onlookers who wanted to get a glimpse of THE sisters. Here are some highlights....

I say these two are natural beauties and the makeup just highlighted that!

The lenghas for the reception...

I love how putting on the saree is a special time between mom and bride. It is quite the process, I tell you. But to me, it's more than the act of putting on a piece of clothing. There's a lot of care put into making sure that the length is precise, the number of folds in the pleats is just right, the draping on the shoulder is exact, the tucking and pinning is secure; it's mom making sure her most prized possession looks perfect, absolutely perfect.

Zul, handing over his 2 lovely daughters to 2 upstanding guys.

These exits make me smile!

And these emotional moments make me sigh...

Changing into their lenghas!

So this is the part where the bride and groom are supposed to break a small red clay pot and whoever does it first rules the house. Check out how Karim made sure that HE was going to be the man of the house. It was obviously premeditated and Farrah had no clue...

While Jamil tried to be a gentleman and gave Shaila equal opportunity here, and you can see Shaila's foot sticking out first to get the chance to break the pot:

Unfortunately, a shoe malfunction happened and the pot rolled instead (not obvious in this shot) and as you can see, Jamil won this one!

Time to partay!!!!

Zul's got the moves!

Again, thank you to Karim, Farrah, Jamil and Shaila's family and friends. We truly enjoyed this experience with you. Hope to see you guys again soon!

Nikkah Ceremony at Ismaili Jamatkhana: Karim+Farrah and Jamil+Shaila Part 2 of 3

To continue the epic double wedding that is Karim-Farrah and Jamil-Shaila, here's part 2 of our 3-part blog post - the intimate wedding ceremony or the Nikkah ceremony at the Ismaili Jamatkhana in Burnaby.

You will notice in the photos below that there is no trace of the gorgeous mehndi from the mandvo in Part 1 of this series. The 4-character explanation: H1N1. A couple of weeks leading up to the entire wedding celebration, our lovely couples and their families scrambled to reschedule the entire wedding celebration after all flights to Mexico were cancelled due to the outbreak. The destination part of the entire wedding celebration had to be rerouted from the Mayan Riviera to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. The change in travel plans also meant changes in the other events which brings us to the Nikkah being rescheduled before the mandvo.

Our couples received nature's blessings in the form of Vancouver rain. We still managed to get wonderful photos, saved by the awesome nooks and crannies at the jamatkhana. Seriously, you can never take a bad photo in this environment. Given the time that we had before the ceremony was to start and the wet weather conditions, I say the photos are not too shabby... not too shabby at all!

How hawt are these two? Sizzling!

We started with Karim and Farrah's ceremony...

Jamil and Shaila's turn!

The rings! The rings!

Up next is Part 3, the celebration continues in Punta Cana! Plus a bonus day-after session... steamy!

Engaged: Ayaz + Debbie in Richmond

The day before we left for Punta Cana, we sneaked in Ayaz and Debbie's engagement session. Shooting at high noon is not our favorite time to schedule portraits but we had no other time to do it since these two are currently residing in Edmonton. Regardless, we made the lighting conditions work which I'm sure was actually due to how easy these two move in front of the camera! Check them out!

Welcome back to Vancouver, Debbie and Ayaz! You know you can't keep away from Lotusland! We can't wait for the wedding in July!

Karim + Farrah and Jamil + Shaila Wedding Part 1 of 3 - The Mandvo

As mentioned in a previous blog post, we have a feeling that 2009 will be an awesome year for us. What better way to start the season but with a multi-day Ismaili celebration of the wedding of the fabulous Jiwa sisters topped with a destination wedding in the Mayan Riviera. While this sounds grand and exciting, we found that great weddings are not made of elaborate decorations, fancy clothes or expensive details, rather it's the couple (or in this case, couples), their families and friends that make the experience truly a remarkable one.

Eversince we met Karim, Farrah, Jamil, Shaila and their family, they never failed to make us feel like we are one of their dearest friends, like family, and it's what made us enjoy this experience tremendously. We hope they enjoy the story we tell from the photos we captured on their special multi-day celebration.

Part 1 of our 3-day celebration is the Mandvo, where the families bestowed gifts to our 2 gorgeous brides, Shaila and Farrah. Before the celebration, the girls had their mehndi applied by the same artist who did the one of our previous bride. As before, the artwork was just stunning!

Then it was off to the banquet hall for the mandvo...

Every member of the groom's family presents a different trousseau for the bride to wear. The bride's mother throws coloured rice, places a sweet in their mouth, accepts the trousseau and gives a small gift in return as a sign of appreciation.

The first of our two brides, Farrah, is escorted by Karim's mom with a veil or a scarf over her head.

This shot was a happy accident. I actually love how it turned out blurred...

Next up was little sister, Shaila, escorted by Jamil's relatives.

Farrah and Shaila's sister, Yashina, walks in with a special pot that's supposed to hold holy water. She gets the coloured rice and sweets from their mom as well but she will not give up the pot until she's happy with the gift given to her in exchange for it. The offer started with US dollar bills. With the ongoing exchange rate, I don't blame her for asking for more...

Now, that's more like it!

Next up, the relatives give the brides sherbet to drink and offer them their well wishes!

Farrah with Karim's mom...

An awesome, awesome speech given by the bride's dad, Zul. Can you imagine giving away 2 of your girls at the same time? Quite emotional, indeed!

Tears and laughter in the same breath!

Love how dad honours mom as well...

Another close-up of the detail in the mehndi. LOVE the colours!

Took quick portraits right in the middle of the action!

Meanwhile, Jamil was having his Peethi in the adjacent room. Looks like they're having too much fun!

More portraits!

The double trouble gang! :)

Stay tuned for Part 2, the Nikah ceremony at the Jamatkhana...

Engaged: Karim + Farrah in Gastown & Coal Harbour

Sorry for the lack of posts but we just got back from Punta Cana, Dominican Republic to cover our very first wedding of 2009! Right now, I'm sitting on 6 shoots that we need to blog and process and 6 loads of laundry that I need to wash.

First up, is the other wonderful couple that make up the other half of the double wedding we just covered this past week and a half - Karim and Farrah. Most of the time, I would be communicating with Karim and Farrah on the phone and over e-mail since these two are based in Toronto. While those conversations have always been great, working with them in person was such a hoot. I think these photos will show you just that!

When Farrah first met Karim, she hadn't intended for a long and serious relationship but by the end of the night, she was already asking him to marry her! And how can Karim refuse?

This photo is SOOOO Karim and Farrah!

We are grateful for getting this opportunity to work with Karim, Farrah, Jamil and Shaila. We definitely had a spectacular time with them AND their friends and family. Stay tuned for more posts about these four!!!