Forums
JZX Forums
Your Cars
Multimedia
JZX Tech
Shoutbox
Classifieds
Sponsors
Help
Fun & Games
Goodies
Custom Name Style
Game Arcade
0
Paid Supporter
As you know I recently went to Agra to shoot my 2nd ever wedding gig. A lot of pressure from right from the start, but it was totally worth it. The experience and photographing at one of the greatest wonders of the world was truly amazing.
Weddings in India are sacred and very ritual. They are long ritualistic and elaborate affair with lots of pre-wedding, wedding and post wedding events. You will see the photos soon
But to be honest, you will never see a wedding like this anywhere else in the world. This wedding was actually pretty tamed compared to others. The aim of this wedding gig was to capture as many natural moments as possible. They already hired out another local photographer there to do all the group shots etc. So my main aim was to focus on capturing the un-expected, the natural smiles and photographing in a journalist type of way.
The wedding events started on Friday and ended Monday. It was pretty full on to be honest and very tiring. All images you will see on my website are hand held. Pictures were taken from my 5dm2 or my 40d. Lens wise, i used 24-70L, 70-200L, and 50 f1.4.
So now for all the wedding details:
Friday: Mehandi (henna) - Girls side only.
Sample Pics: http://www.sidd-rish...Agra%20Mehandi/
Explanation: Mehendi is applied to young girls, as its believed the mehendi will give a handsome groom. During an Indian wedding both the bride and bridegroom apply henna (also known as mehendi). It is also a symbol of love between husband and wife. The bride?s intricate mehndi pattern normally has the name of the groom written into it. The groom is expected to find his name in the pattern. If he cannot do so, it is said that, the bride will control the marriage. However in this case, they did not do this. She thought it was too cheesy.
Oh and did i mention they love drinking!! Whisky Whisky Whisky!! seriously these guys were drinking till 3 or 4am in the morning.. They tried to get me drunk by doing shots lol.. Indians love drinking thats for sure. They kept on drinking right till sunday night!!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Saturday morning: Both families met at Taj Kema (which has the taj mahal as the backdrop!!) This was just a casual lunch/meet up.
Sample Pics:http://www.sidd-rishi.com.au/gallery/Agra%...Saturday/Greet/
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Saturday Night: Sangeet
Basically this event is for the girls, where they put on some shows/sing/dance etc.. However they totally changed it, and they actually swapped wedding rings that night, which i thought was totally strange. Normally sangeet is all about dances!! anyways...
The hardest bit on this night was trying to white balance and control your flash against the stupid video recording guys flood light
If you see the pics you can see his flood light, which just makes the whole image orange. btw not referring to the pic below. Check sample pics, you will see what i mean.
Sample Pics: http://www.sidd-rish...edding/Sangeet/
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Sunday morning: Haldi
This event normally takes place a day before the wedding, but due to time restrictions it was held Sunday morning. The ceremony is considered auspicious and is meant to purify both bride and groom before the big day. Because of the medicinal properties, it?s like a mini-facial/body scrub the day before the wedding. Its actually fun to watch!!
Sample Pics: http://www.sidd-rishi.com.au/gallery/Agra%...g/Sunday/Haldi/
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sunday night: Wedding ceremony
Ok so basically the first bit is the bharat. This is where the groom and his side of the family rock up in style
On this occasion hes on a horse with all his family dancing around him on the street. This was seriously one of the coolest experiences ever!! 
After that, the brides side of the family greet them and do a little aarti (hard to explain.. basically a very small ritual). The groom then sits down and waits for his bride to arrive.
After this is over, the actual proper wedding ceremony begins (pretty late into the night). Theres a lot of rituals that i don't understand. But basically they are saying their vowels.
Sample Pics: http://www.sidd-rishi.com.au/gallery/Agra%...Sunday/Wedding/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Monday Morning: Taj Mahal Photo shoot
Wasn't too happy with this shoot at all. Firstly no flash was allowed or any tripods or a lot of camera equipment. They were pretty strict due which is fair enough.
So now the next bit that didn't help was the crowd. It was seriously packed and it was hard to get the right spots. Plus we didn't have much time in there. I had to leave to the airport that day which was a good 4 hour taxi ride back. Also it was the wrong time to do the shoot (12ish), with harsh sun!!
Well i think they turned out ok i guess..
Sample pics: http://www.sidd-rish...Wedding/Monday/
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well thats pretty much in a nutshell. It was seriously an incredible experience. The clients loved the photos and im getting a lot of positive feedback which is good.
My fav photo has to be this one:
Well hope you like the images and learnt something new
Thanks for your time.
Sidd.
Standard Member
Root Admin
S0unIQ
whiterolla
