Hold onto your hats folks, this is going to be a big one!
We’re in the middle of our busiest few weeks, and I know a lot of people have been anxiously awaiting this post – thanks for your patience everyone!
After Nitin called to inquire about his engagement party last year we realized that we went to high school together! Unfortunately we were booked for his engagement party photography, but were available and very excited for his wedding.
The first step was the proposal, and we were there to capture the whole thing. You can read the incredibly romantic story here.
Then came engagement photos, and finally the wedding. This wedding took place in Vancouver and Edmonton, and we had a chance to travel to Vancouver for the events.
The first was Sameera’s sangeet, at the gorgeous Dhaliwal Banquet Hall in Surrey.
I love the beautiful decor that Sameera’s family arranged for the Sangeet.
Sameera’s mehndi and Mayaan was at her family’s home in Burnaby (we did a lot of traveling around the greater Vancouver area for this wedding!).
That night, Nitin’s Mayaan and Sangeet were off the hook at the Delta hotel in Richmond. Nitin’s friends got him GOOD at the Mayaan – I’m sure he’ll deliver payback at upcoming weddings (Deepak, get ready!)
Nitin’s sister Aanchal (right) and her fiance Rajat are AMAZING dancers. I mean stunning, expressive, emotional, AMAZING. And, not without a sense of humour.
This sangeet was crazy, complete with guys donning chunnis and dancing with the jaggo. Yeah, you look pretty, dude.
Finally the wedding day arrived. Sameera looked stunning, and in true Vancouver style had to be escorted from her house with an umbrella.
Nitin got ready in a sea of blue.
I love this shot Michael got of Nitin on the horse during the barat. Awesome umbrella!
Nitin’s dad led the family in the barat around the Gurdwara.
The milni is one of my favourite ceremonies. The equivalent relatives of the two families (dads, eldest uncle, brother etc), exchange garlands and embrace (and sometimes try to lift each other up!) to symbolize the joining of the two families that is about to take place inside the Gurdwara. It’s such a joyous occasion.
Inside, Sameera and Nitin met in a sea of family and friends to exchange garlands. Where’s Michael?
The ceremony at the Gurdwara in Richmond was beautiful, and we loved being inside a new Gurdwara. Nitin was escorted in by his parents.
Michael grabbed this shot of the groomsmen waiting for family photos to be done. Totally candid, which makes it perfect. And I love how many of them are on their cell phones, so you know how real a moment this is.
Big bridal party! Thank you Vancouver for having such awesome landscapes for us to use.
And a bit of time alone with Nitin & Sameera. The rain cleared up just enough for our shoot with them, and I love the mood of the cloudy sky and the water together.
Michael rocks.
And, according to Deepak, so do I.
Our hats off to Sameera’s bridesmaids for making an incredibly funny game for the doli – Nitin had to roll a die and perform certain tasks (like dancing with Sameera’s brother while singing him an Indian love song).
Yes, Nitin, we’re all honking. You’re very cute.
At the end, while Nitin was negotiating his way into the house, he put his skills as a lawyer to the test, making sure that he got something in return for his investment. He had the bridesmaids sign a contract demanding Sameera cook his favourite dish once a month and a few other demands. If only they had read the contract more closely….we’ll come to that later.
And with a bit of thrown rice and a few tears, Sameera left Vancouver for Edmonton. I have to admit, I had tears rolling down my cheeks as I walked back to the car afterwards.
A couple of days later in Edmonton, Nitin got to throw a big party, and his friends got to make lots of fun of him.
I had a few moments with the couple before heading to the reception at the Fantasyland Hotel.
I love their cake – can anyone figure out why? That ‘S’ in particular looks amazing…
Big shout out to Danita and Kim from A Chair To Remember for the amazing linens, especially these linen flowers. I love those!
Remember how I said that Nitin’s friends got to make fun of him? Well, they completely roasted him. I think my favourite joke was about him being a 50 year old in a 12 year old’s body… Not sure exactly what the Twilight blanket is all about….
These are Sameera’s parents – I caught several moments during the wedding of them sharing loving embraces, glances etc. They were so welcoming of us in Vancouver and we want to thank them for being so gracious.
Remember that contract the bridesmaids should have read carefully? Well it turns out that Nitin had included a clause whereby Sameera must always agree to cheer for the Oilers, except in games against the Canuks where she must remain silent. She only found out about it at the reception. Sorry Sameera…
Here’s the amazing Aanchal again.
There was a hilarious skit/dance by all of Nitin’s guy friends, loosely based on Jerry Springer – check out the guest appearance by Poonam as Nitin’s mom!
The party was nothing less than I expected – spectacular and high energy. Nitin flew out DJ Code Red from Toronto for the occasion.
As a photographer, you always have to be on your toes – just as I was packing everything up, Nitin & Sameera donned jerseys and were hoisted into the air. My poor second shooter Raymond had me yelling at him to get the flash unit set back up ASAP and I managed to get the shot. Whew! Thanks Raymond!
Nitin & Sameera – we spent an amazing week with you, but we’ve been lucky enough to follow you throughout the past few years of your romance. You are an extraordinary couple, and we hope to be friends for many years. We look forward to seeing you at weddings in the future!
