How often does a wedding photographer get to photograph two separate ceremonies in one day, and it’s the same couple getting married? How is this possible? Clue: It wasn’t a civil ceremony followed by the religious ceremony. That would be too easy! It was a spectacular, multicultural wedding-wedding. Rakhi and Gabe were married at the beautiful Palmdale Estates. Thank goodness at least one thing was in the singular at this celebration.
Two old and rich wedding traditions, Indian and Jewish, were celebrated. The format of each of these traditions is really different, to say the least. People form in different groups at different times, this thing happens here in one tradition, not at all in the other tradition, this kind of appropriate attire in one, that kind of attire in the other, standing, sitting, white wedding gown, red wedding dress, henna, chuppa. Are you keeping up?
All I had to do was figure out how to be in the right place at the right time. Of course, I’d done some multicultural weddings before, so I wasn’t worried at all. OK, not so many Indian Jewish weddings. And OK, I was a little nervous. I really was looking forward to it though; to the newness of the situation, to the adventure, to what I was going to see that I’d never seen before. Who wouldn’t want to be there? This was going to be something!
And it was. I came, I saw, I photographed, and I loved it. It was dynamic, emotional, upbeat, serious, light. A true celebration. And really beautiful.
Time passes so fast. It was only around last Christmas (speaking of not Indian and not Jewish) that I was shooting their engagement session, and boom! here were are in July and now Rakhi and Gabe are already married.
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