20.07.2018
This is the beautiful wedding of Orlagh & Farhad. With so many of the couples I work with, the relationship begins twelve, eighteen or sometimes even twenty four months before the big day but not with this couple! When I arrived home from Asia after a 3 month back-packing trip, to my delight there was an email waiting for me, composed by the lovely Orlagh. Orlagh told me how I had photographed two of her best friend’s newborns some time ago, she absolutely loved the photos but more importantly she loved how I had captured everyone so naturally…oh and these two best friends were also going to be honorary bridesmaids.
With a serious amount of enthusiasm (which of course peaks my interest in her wedding even more) she hoped I was available to capture this special event. Oh and from the time I read her first email, the wedding was approx 6 weeks later! From her description of a small intimate wedding in the Shelbourne Hotel which would include their immediate families (Farhad’s family would be flying in from their home in Dubai) and only the very closest of friends – plus with Stephen’s Green on the doorstep – this was a wedding I didn’t want to miss.
What would follow was a handful of emails, a very relaxed meeting in person the week of the wedding so that I could plan how the photography would work around Orlagh & Farhad’s wedding plans. Cut to a couple of days later and I’m at the stunning Shelbourne Hotel (man this place has class) for a really gorgeous, intimate ceremony that incorporated humanist traditions, Persian traditions and the couple’s own unique touches. For instance rather than prayers, Orlagh’s nephew’s read self-written poems to the happy couple, the weddings bands were placed in a little pouch and passed to every single guest who held the pouch and gave their blessing and as the newlyweds exited the ceremony they were showered in confetti as well as dollar bills to offer wealth on their journey forward as husband and wife. This wedding ceremony was all about love, family, friends and focusing on what really matters for their own big day.