The gentle giant is married ~ Moey's wedding

By my estimation, Moey is 7ft something... heheh.... ok, maybe not that tall, but Moey's a tall guy. When I met him at Mervat's wedding, he stood head and shoulders above everyone at the reception. No one is taller than Moey... but big as he is, he's a gentle giant. soft spoken, genuine, a good all round guy! Oh, I forgot to mention, Moey's mervat's younger brother :)

Rain was forecast for the whole week leading up to Moey's wedding. I have never shot a wet wedding before. So I was counting on my luck to prevail. Sydney-siders would know that it's been bucketing down non stop for a week straight! I knew that if it rained abit the eve of Moey's wedding that we'd have some pockets of sunshine, awesome blue skies and crazy clouds! And rain it did the night before and the morning of Moey's wedding. Phew!

I was re-acquainted with Mervat's videographer... who is very hands on with what he does. I mean that literally! He would demonstrate what he needs done by pretending to the groom and using the groom as the 'prop'... hilarious! I think the group of bystanders at The Rocks had the most fun with his spontaneous grabbing of the groom and his boys. Both Mindy and I were safe... cos I am part-girl after all. The boys however... sighs, not so. The bride, Khadija couldn't escape... she had to do a sprawl-on-the-bed pose for the camera and even do a cat walk with the bridesmaids... all in good fun!

Oh, I had Mindy with me for this wedding! Mindy was very popular at this wedding... mums, grandma's.... young kids were all calling out for Mindy to help them with a picture.

Everybody, if you need handsome, well chiseled male for modelling, just give Mervat's husband a bell. This man, not only makes a suit look good (rather than the other way around), the camera loves him! Sal's, going to be my Arabic sidekick in the not too distant future :)

Enjoy.

 

Malinda & Lan ~ their wedding

I remember the night as though it was just yesterday! No, it's not when I first met Ella, but it was when Mally made the announcement. I was almost ready to go to bed... and my phone buzzes and ooh, message from Mally announcing their engagement!!! I have to admit, I was somewhat emotional when I read the text. Sad huh. And here I am bagging out masterchef contestants for being cry babies! And yes folks, these days everything is done via the mobile! I was so excited I just couldn't hit the right buttons on the phone to type a reply! On ya, Lan! Good proposal and an equally superb ring to match the occasion!

Here's something you might not know. I first met Mally when she was 21. Yeah, a long time ago it seems. She shared a birthday venue with a friend of mine (RayRay de Dog), just because they had mutual friends. Back in those days, Mally was quite funky... not that she's any less funky now of cos. Well, if you were at the wedding, Marissa would have explained it all in detail! "Fly-Girl", yup... that's Mally! It's all true, what Marissa said! Cos I was there and I have pictures to prove it. Don't you just love Mally's shoes for the day!

A quick word about Lan: who incidentally, looked almost as hot as Mally on his wedding day in his Hugo Boss suit and shoes....and that smile! Thanks for turning it on for the camera, Lan...although I do know that your electric smile comes natural to you... gotta give me lessons... cos everyone knows I can't smile to save my life and am contemplating attending night school to "Learn how to smile properly for photos".  Note to all the boys that are planning their wedding: a well fitted suit makes a huge difference! And of cos, if you have the muscles to back it up, that helps too once the suit comes off...see example below :)

The reception was held at Simmer on The Bay. Mally's friend, the lovely Yu-Ching who is happens to be an amazing (professional) chef and well-known Sydney food blogger Lemonpi, deserves a special mention: she baked the wedding cake and also the cupcakes for the guests... massive effort Yu-Ching. You can read all about it here too.

So folks, some of you have waited 9 years for this day... may I present, Mally and Lan....or as I like to call them, 'SchMally & Vin Diesel'.

** link to the Photobooth pictures ** 

Malinda & Lan's wedding ~ a sneak peek

Mally and Lan have been together for awhile now... just a tad close to 9 years AND they finally got married on the 2 May 2010!

For those who are friends with Mally, you would find phrases like "Oh my god... yeah right....as iffff...it's going off..." which Mally uses alot. And for those who know Lan, you'd prob all know him as a gentle person with a killer smile. I often describe him as the 'asian Vin Diesel'. In Mally eyes, he's the asian Ian Thorpe (more on that when I write up a full account)...funny that, Ian Thorpe announced a possible comeback this morning! I used to call Lan 'muscles'...(no prizes for guessing why). Anyway, it's not fair, cos Lan not only has the muscles, he's also very easy to shoot (as is Mally) and comes from a family where all his siblings are good looking!

Anyways, this is just a short teaser..... I should have more in the next day or so! Well done to Marissa for the co-emceeing of the wedding along with the talented Wayne (you guys should do this professionally) and also to my precious, Ella.

Congratulations again, Mally and Lan!

When 2 people fall in love { nelson & mandy }

Work place romances ~ love them or hate them, I have to fess up, that's how I met Ella. My parents also met when they were at work, my sister too... and countless of our other friends. I mean, the average person spends 8hrs or more at work per day.... some people see their work mates more than their own family (although some choose to do so to avoid going home..haha).

Well, today "we" (I'll get to this part later) got to witness a really touching wedding ceremony between Nelson and Mandy. Nelson first came to know Mandy when he landed in Canberra and was doing a 'thing' in the neurosurgical ward. Fresh from Nu Zeeland, it wasn't long before Nelson fell for Mandy.... ok, we've seen it all... on countless dramas: ER, Chicago Hope, Greys Anatomy, Scrubs and closer to home, All Saints: these work place romances between medico professionals never work out right? Well, not these 2! The love that Nelson has for Mandy is just amazing... the way he gazes at her, the way he gushes over her... it's electric!

Congratulations Nel + Mandy... what a day and night on the harbour...I can't stop bobbing from side to side.... argghhh....

Oh, I promised to elaborate about "we".

My sister in law, Carol was part of the bridal party.... "so what, you say?" well, as it turns out, Carol's a buddy of Nelson and so in true spirit, Nelson asked Carol to be part of the groomsmen. Got your attention yet? That's right... a female amongst the groomsmen.... I think they call them grooms-maid or grooms-woman. It was a first for me... but Carol did really well. Part 'bro', part 'sista'.... well done, Carol! You must share some of the pictures from the buck's night.

Alright, enough of me...here are some highlights.... got to also thank Ella for driving Carol and I around...fresh from her 5 day work conference (hmmm...we know what they're all about).

If you're wondering, Nelson's offering mate's rates on plastic surgery... just mention promo code "nelson-HEARTS-mandy"! I'm booked in for some butt implants....oh wait, can I say "butt" here?

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Ahlam's engagement

A week ago I had the opportunity to take some pics for Ahlam at her engagement party. Ahlam was initially quite overwhelmed by having a larger than normal camera pointed at her. Not before long, she was up to her usual self (so her friends tell me), the portrait below says it all.

Folks, if you want to take smiling lessons, Ahlam will show you how it's done... I'm at the head of that line...

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Eloise and Liam

There was something very different and unique about Eloise and Liam's wedding. For one, it was out of Sydney...that in itself was exciting! We hit the road really early cos we were forewarned about the unpredictable traffic. We got to Blackheath with plenty of time to spare and in true Ella style, within 5 minutes of hoping off the car, she found something to buy. Yes, Ella is one reason for Sydney's inflation figures...

The weather was perfect. Blue skies and a sunny spring day. The reception marquee was very elegant. Thank you for a lovely day, guys...we had lots of fun out there...

Shanti-shanti.

My sister got married!

Oh wow, the day finally arrived. It's quite funny how it all just crept up. We've been counting down to this date for awhile now. Jokes about dieting and all... and it hit me the day before that my sister was actually getting married. I felt an immense amount of excitement and also nervousness (good kind of nervousness) for her and Bob. Well, for those that know her very well, you'd know my sister is very particular about the details...the invites, the dress, the food, the flowers, her hair, her makeup, her dress, the material of her dress.... errr...wait, I think that's called being a "bridezilla". I even wanted to get her a Godzilla suit for her entrance into her reception...I wish I did! I still remember it was only yesterday she brought back samples of her invite. I made comments like "looks like a Westpac ad.... this one's too Thai Airways..." I can't seem to shake my day job.

The day went thru without a hitch. We were blessed with great weather (Ella's been checking the weather weeks leading up to the wedding), peonies were in season and we were all certainly excited to be part of this special day, as were our many international guests. It was a colourful event with lots of speeches, well wishes from those who couldn't make it (gotta love technology), dancing and of cos, FOOD.

Congratulations Bob, Shrek is all yours.... remember what Dom said at the reception: Safety first! Get yourself a safety helmut!

As they say in Swahili, P O N G U E Z I!

My sister is almost married

7 days before her big day, we took my sister and uncle BOB for a photo shoot. There was no short of enthusiasm from the couple...erm, maybe just frm Shrek.

My favourite moment is asking uncle BOB for "big eyes".

Almost there, Shrek.... come this weekend I get to convert your bedroom into my very own walk-in-wardrobe.

Agnes and Clifford ~ The wedding

A week ago, Agnes and Clifford were kind enough to meet me for a early morning, ahem, 6am shoot on the last day of Sculptures by The Sea at the lovely Tamarama.

A week later, on their wedding day, Mother Nature decided that it too, wanted to test the resolve of the couple and wound up the temperature for the weekend, with temperatures on Saturday peaking at the mid to high 30s! Nonetheless, Clifford stayed cool in his 3-piece suit. With 8 'brothers' in tow, he had nothing to worry about...except: (1) making sure he shouted loud enough from the ground floor, 11 floors up, "Agnes I LOVE YOU", (2) passing the 'touch test' and (3) mastering and choreographing the macarena dance with the 'bros'... all while making sure his set of to-die-for angle wings and devil horns were in place.

Agnes, great taste in flowers! Am a big fan of peonies! And oh, good pick on your man too...

Congrats on your wedding, guys...and Clifford, I think you need to get Louis a new pair of socks.

Mervat and Sal

I've known Mervat for quite some time now. If I think about it, it's prob close to 10 years, beginning with the time we first worked in Balmain followed by a couple more years in North Sydney.

Mervat's been planning the perfect wedding for the longest time! The perfect dress, the perfect cake and the perfect man! All these elements came together on like a perfectly made macaron on Sunday! For Sal, the 42 deg heat was literally a walk in the park! One day Sal, I might be lucky enough to visit Oman!

So folks, here's a little slideshow of highlights for the oh-so-hot couple! Oh, for those that are wondering, the lovely dress Merve chose for her special day is a Pronovias.

As they say in Arabic, "M A B R O U K"

agnes & clifford ~ a 6am start

My day actually began at 4.45am this morning having spent the day before at 3,500ft by 9am, coming home to do some DIY and being covered in paint speckles and finishing off with a wedding reception in Liverpool.

Caught up with our friends, Agnes and Clifford who are getting married this weekend. We thought to catch the last day of Sculptures by the Sea 2009...bright and oh-so-early (too early for some!)

Some highlights:

Catherine & Kevin

Elaine & Raymond's wedding day

I've known Raymond since high school. I remember the first day we met, at Woodwork class. We were assigned a project to build a coffee table each. We chose our wood, I picked mine and Raymond quietly pinched my wood for his project. Being the new guy in school, I didn't want to pick a fight. No matter, I topped the class ...and the year (sorry, i know, NERD) fast forward many years, I introduced Raymond's now wife to him... along with many other things.... "thanks Raymond, I'd be expecting that big fat thank you cheque in the mail!"

It was nice to attend a wedding a guest for a change.

Ginny & Michael

M & M

Gareth & Jo

Sarah's and Tony's wedding

Deb's wedding

Diane got the marrieddddd

7th June 2008 - II