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Weddings are equal to photographing a child or a baby. You have to wait for the right moment and click the moment of a lifetime. No wedding will offer a second chance. And that is true with Vietnamese weddings as well. They are highly ritualistic and capturing one such modern western Vietnamese wedding was quite an experience for me as a Vietnamese wedding photographer.
I am a professional wedding photographer and so being quick fingered with cameras is a second nature. Being familiar with wedding practices usually prepares a photographer's mind and he or she will know what to click next, what are the important events and which one of them will make a great photo. However, being a first time Vietnamese photographer meant a lot of homework and groundwork regarding the rituals and traditions.
Familiarizing with the different ceremony in itself was thrilling. The couple to be married took me to a friend's wedding, which happened to be an authentic Vietnamese wedding. The experience was quite enriching. There is a formal engagement ceremony in presence of elders from both the bride and groom's side. They solemnize the engagement at least half a year before the wedding date is set. A priest or fortune-teller sets the date.
Lot of gifts are replaced and everything is wrapped in red or pink and gold. These colors symbolize luck and prosperity. On the day of the wedding, the groom wears a traditional áo gmm a formal men's attire, which is typically in red or blue. The bride wears an a dai, which is the feminine version of áo gmm . She wears it in red or pink.
The parents pray at the family altar set up at the bride's house. The groom's family is greeted by the bride's family. The groom's family brings lots of jewels and gifts for the bride, which they present to her at the end of the wedding to mark the acceptance of her into the family. There are lots of speeches given by elders from both sides.
Modern twist
The modern twist is that, the wedding nowdays, takes place at larger wedding halls or temples or churches (in case of Catholic Vietnamese). The grooms no longer wear the traditional attire, but have changed to formal suits. Also, in case of Catholics, the bride wears a white wedding gown, rather than the pink or red ao dai . Exchange of rings is another modern addition.
The concept of a reception too has been adopted to keep in mind the changing lifestyles. Most non-Vietnamese friends would like to attend a familiar reception than attend a non-familiar wedding ceremony.
A Vietnamese photographer needs to keep all these in mind and come up with a plan of action that will make sure that none of the important ceremonies such as the praying at the altar or tea ceremony or candle ceremony or candid moments are missed.
Attending a prior Vietnamese wedding helped me as a photographer to picture and plan what I wanted to cover for the wedding and I was happy that my clients were impressed by it!
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Source by John Delorean
