I had never photographed a Khmer wedding before so was very excited when Tony contacted me to photograph their traditional wedding in Phnom Penh. Every wedding is unique but a Khmer wedding is particularly different and we had two wonderful and fun days in Phnom Penh at Nayhouy’s family house. Thank you to everyone for making me so welcome and I can’t wait for my next Khmer wedding!

 Aidan

There was so much emotion throughout the week. Although everyone saw each other everyday, each time they met, they embraced like long lost brothers. There was dancing and singing at every opportunity, and everyone had to get involved! And there was eating, lots of it, i dont know how Sandeep and Tarun managed it! And everyone dressed up for evey occassion but Sandeep looked truly stunning in her colourful wedding gown. An amazing experince that I will treasure for a long time and I thank everyone for making me part of it.

I’m flying to India for the first time in 9 years next week, 13 hours transit in Delhi on route to a wedding in Ontario, Canada…and now I cant wait! There are many images from the week and Ill be doing a full post when I return but for now here is a preview.

Aidan

The morning was a colourful traditional Vietnamese ceremony at Nha’s family home in District 5, Ho Chi Minh City. Lunch was served at the wonderful open air ‘Quan An Ngon’ on Pasteur, District 1 before heading to The Park Hyatt Hotel to prepare for the evening.

As mentioned during the speeches, Nha and Lee are so warm and friendly that they instantly become your friends and I look forward to seeing them again during our times in Asia.

With the An Hoi and a wedding reception at each of their home towns, I spent 3 great days photographing Cuc and Huy’s celebrations. The first reception for 550 of their families and friends was held at The Sheraton Hotel Saigon and the hotel put on a quality reception. The second party was at Huy’s home in Binh Duong at a new weddings events hall, The Square, and that night they had over 1,500 guests!

There were so many photo/video crews that it was difficult to get a clean shot of the couple, so the incredible 135mm f2 lens played a big part of the night…

Thank you Cuc, Huy and Cuc’s sister Jenny who helped out so much with the organisation.

We started at Ben’s apartment with stunning views overlooking Happy Valley before making our way to Ivy’s house in Kowloon. After Ben was challenged with some games by the bridesmaids, he successfully brought Ivy home. The ceremony was held in the grounds of Disneyland Hong Kong with Snow White playing the harp and afterwards Mickey and Mini Mouse came to congratulate the happy couple! We then had lunch in the Sleeping Beauty ballroom where the food, although resembling cartoon characters was incredibly delicious! Then a quick drive back to Hong Kong Island for a short rest before the evenings reception at The 4 Seasons Hotel.

It was an incredible day and such an experience that I wont forget, big thank you’s to Ben and Ivy and their families and friends.

Thanks to Kerry, who will be shooting their wedding in Tay Ninh, and came along for the day. We had a great day with a really great couple.

It was a real thrill to be asked to photograph her party and Trang and Duc were looking stunning as ever. Over 300 of their family and friends joined them in District 7 for a wonderful feast overlooking The Saigon River.

Aidan: What a sight! A bright red Mercedes coupe leading the procession of black Mercedes through the narrow lanes in The Mekong Delta. And what a privilage to go with Yuli to collect Quyen from her countryside home in a small village in Ben Tre. Gifts were exchanged, tea and rice wine were drunk and then we made our way back to Saigon.

Ceremony: Ben Tre, Mekong Delta
Reception: The Park Hyatt Hotel Saigon
Coordinator: Bliss Wedding Planners
MUA/Hairstylist: Nam Trung, Beauty Editor, FTV Indochina

In the afternoon, we made our way back to our favourite hotel in Ho Chi Minh, The Park Hyatt Saigon. Quyen looked absolutely gorgeous and her smile lit up the dimly lit ballroom. This was my first time photographing a Japanese wedding but I look forward to the next one. Every time Yuli’s family or friends took to the stage, their speeches had everyone in raptures. I have no idea what they were saying but they really set the mood for a great night of partying!

Special thanks to Bliss Wedding Planners for organising this event.

A lost passport and canceled flights due to heavy snow didn’t prevent Thuy and Evan making the long journey over from the US to Vietnam. Evan’s mother was making her first ever trip out of the US and his father’s first for 40 years. However he quickly picked up the language and his speech, delivered in Vietnamese was met by loud applause by Thuy’s family and friends!

Unfortunately Thuy, a semi professional singer had picked up a cold in Hanoi’s cool weather and could not perform her scheduled song but both families thoroughly enjoyed their evening at The Melia hotel Hanoi.

Not too many pictures from this one as we were all just enjoying the moment with our two good friends. The wedding’s coming up this weekend, and promises to be a great one.