They met in Canberra years ago, while they were doing their masters. After years of traveling, and time apart, they are now living in Malaysia. Stu works for the Australian embassy, and Amy works with an NGO dealing with families. The moment I met them, I could feel an instant warmth radiating from their direction. It’s hard not to like them.
From various trips to Langkawi, 2 things stands out. The heat. And great sunsets. The other guys shooting with me (Mark, Kee Sitt and Nigel) were downing liquids through out the wedding. And I don’t mean alcohol. The Andaman is a really beautiful resort. Look at the view from Amy’s room!
Amy and Stu, getting ready for the wedding.
Isn’t she stunning?
I think these Malaysian ‘satay’ fans are a great idea!
I took so many shots of the rings, I can’t decide which are my favourite.
One week prior to Pierre & Lay See’s actual wedding day, they had another grand dinner. This time, it was held at the Holiday Inn Hotel in Malacca. The theme: Chinese. I absolutely love the thought that went into every little detail of the wedding. Definitely one of the best decorated dinner halls I have ever seen! Don’t you agree with me?
Pink was the colour theme of the night. Lay See had 3 lovely dresses to wear, just that night itself!
After seeing Alfred & Geeta’s photo slideshow during their dinner, Raj and Charan approached me on that same night saying that they were keen on hiring Wedding Story to cover their Sikh wedding. I was really excited as I’ve never covered a Sikh wedding celebration. Yesterday was the first day of celebrations starting with the groom and bride’s Sangeet. Held separately, it’s a joyous occasion where the groom and bride are individually covered with mustard oil on their faces and body.
There’s lots of singing and dancing, mainly the women are the ones participating. Since I am in the midst of preparing their express slideshow to be shown tomorrow night at the main dinner, I thought I’d share a few shots here. Tonight will be the bride’s mehndi, and then tomorrow the temple ceremony. Looking forward to it! I LOVE cultural ceremonies and colours!!
Part of the ceremony involves a woman being dressed as a man. There were 2 in this party. :)
Two weeks after Alfred’s and Geeta’s colourful wedding celebration, the Wedding Story team traveled down to Malacca to photograph their wedding dinner. It was held at MITC Hall in Ayer Keroh. The hall was decorated beautifully with lots of flowers and decorations everywhere.
The cool thing about Alfred’s outfit was that he rented it just about a week before the dinner.
The walk in was led by really cute children. Halfway through, they didn’t know which way to go, to the dining table or the stage!
They walked in to the tune of one of Michael Jackson’s songs. How cool is that!
Definitely multicultural. A Hindu wedding in a Chinese temple. Chinese tea ceremony with hands covered in henna. Sarees amongst Chinese lanterns. I love it. I love the fact that we live in a world that is so colourful. Alfred and Geeta are definitely a fun couple. Geeta is an old school friend of mine whom I hadn’t seen in years till last year. After shooting their engagement in 2008, they had to go through a change in plans after Alfred was diagnosed with cancer. The wedding was postponed to this year and I am soooo pleased to photograph this event. It really goes to show how love can really be the glue that holds 2 people together. Through thick and thin. Alfred & Geeta even had to go through the challenges of long distance relationship, with him being in Africa for a period of time, then KL, and she in Malacca. Here’s their story from Geeta’s perspective.
“We met through a mutual friend, Sharon in 2005. We started chatting on YM and met after Wesson’s wedding. We didn’t click right away. Then, he calls me from Africa and we talk almost everyday. I was attracted to his simple and honest nature – and he is a good listener. He surprised me by turning up unexpectedly at a conference at which I was presenting my paper. That’s when our love blossomed – and the rest is history.
We have gone through ups and downs throughout our relationship, that which only strengthened our love for each other. I was already a wife to him and he was already a husband to me when we stood there for each other during the hardship we faced when he was going through chemotherapy. Going through that difficult part was like on an auto-pilot mode – just going through one day at a time together – supporting each other with loving words and hope that tomorrow will be a better day. Now looking back, we are thankful for having each other and we thank God for the second chance He has given to us.
This is just the beginning of a happy journey where every passing day is happier than the preceding day. Our toast to each other, ‘Grow old along with me, The best is yet to be.”
Alfred and Geeta, I wish you years of bliss together. Thank you for your friendship! Photos were taken by Grace, Mark and Ian.
Thean Hou Temple in Taman Seputeh.
The ceremony had a few parts to it – firstly the groom’s ritual where he is offered a ring made of tharpai grass to wear on his right ring finger. A Pillayar poojai is then conducted by tying a saffron thread to the right wrist of the groom. During this time the groom will hold a coconut, uncooked yellow rice, and some other items in both palms. Then a few women will come and perform the nallungu to signify the fertility of the union.
