India met Czechoslovakia in Cupertino, California, recently at the wedding of Lacee and Tejas. This overachieving couple planned not one, but TWO weddings for the same day at the lovely Cypress Hotel.

The morning began joyfully with drumming; bright colors; intricate details, from the mehndi-henna hand painting, to the intricate jewelry, and stunning fabrics; and motion.

The afternoon was happy, as well. Typical Western customs were observed. A string quartet, the bride and groom with their attendants, the ceremony, the banquet, the dancing. A custom of swapping out a “matron’s bonnet” for the bridal veil had Lacee traditionally Czech for her dances with the male guests.

Which brings me closer and closer to the BIG JUMP.

This entire day was particularly marked with visual movement: the two events themselves; the quickly swapped patio, converting it from Eastern to Western style; the fabrics; the hand painting; even the wedding cake itself was decorated with details that “moved.”

So, as you can see from Lacee and Tejas’ wedding album, I used static shots in fluid ways to bring some of that energy into the experience of watching these pictures. Easy tricks are using a series of quick photos in sequence; close-up of the beautiful fabric used on the ceremonial wedding arch, with its pattern that ebbs and flows; capturing the bride’s gown swirling around her legs as she dances. These are all static tricks to show motion.

Another technique to insert motion into a shot is to MAKE your models move. And this is where my inner sadist has its fun. You KNOW that the wedding party is devoted to a bride and groom, when—dressed in tuxedos or fancy dresses with tall high heels—these folks will JUMP. Not once, not twice, but many, MANY times until every single toe floats off the ground at the same time. That is a powerful moment for the photographer.

As you can imagine, a double event like this, with so many transitions within the single hotel, cannot succeed without someone overseeing the day. Both Lea McIntosh and her team, Creative Events By Ashley were the behind-the-scenes wedding coordinators for Lacee and Tejas. Lea is one of my favorite professionals to work with because her skills ensure a smooth event. You can check out this talented woman at her websites.

I admire Lacee and Tejas for their profound commitment to each other and their families and for pulling off a Herculean challenge of two weddings on the same day in the same place. It was a joy and a challenge for me, too, to be focused on the job for such a long time. So, if the couple can get through this, who doubts they’ll succeed together?

—Michael Soo

Labels: california, Cupertino, Cypress Hotel, Czech, Czechoslovakia, double event, drumming, Eastern, gown, henna, India, jump, mehndi, motion, wedding, wedding coordinator, wedding gown, wedding party

posted by Soo Photography  # 1:39 AM 0 Comments Links to this post

Before I tuned my life into wedding photography, commercial photography, food photography, and fashion photography, I was a computer geek…

There could be double entendre in this title, having grown up in an area that was a colony of the United Kingdom (Malaysia), but the job I’m going to feature in this blog has a twist that takes me back to the time when I was a computer guy with Sun Microsystems.

Kirsten (the bride) and Barbara (bride’s mom), a Sun Microsystems employee—whose husband, like me, successfully switched careers to become a lawyer—discovered me after I left the company. Kirsten found me via Maggiano’s Little Italy’s amazing Banquet Sales Manager (Thanks, Vicky!). I have photographed Maggiano’s entire staff outside the restaurant, a hefty few hundred employees; and one of my most memorable weddings in Maggiano’s was with Demara and Reynold.

In my new career as a photographer (with no dreams of going back to computers), I had the chance to get to know Barbara and her family. Happily, Kirsten met, and is now married to, Marcos. I worked on both the engagement and wedding photographs, giving me lots of time with the couple. I have the positive impression that Marcos has sparked a new sense of adventure in Kirsten. I think they’ll be very, very happy.

And in the sense of adventure, we tried for adventurous locations for the engagement shots. For San Francisco cognoscenti, see if you can recognize some of these locations in this clip! A couple of hints: Pulgas Water Temple in Woodside; and the Sutro Baths and Stockton Street Tunnel in San Francisco.

Fortunately for us, the famed “pulgas” (fleas), after which the Water Temple was named, didn’t try to get into the pictures. No itching on the way home!

At the old Sutro Baths ruins, we found a cave that presented a wonderful backdrop. One of these pictures was blown up, made into a framed photograph, and all the guests at the wedding later on got to sign it, making an interesting alternative to the traditional wedding guest book.

Of course, engagement photos can only mean a wedding coming up. Kirsten and Marcos’ day was a treasure trove of photo opportunities. Someone in the family must have a connection to Santa Clara University, because they were able to book their wedding at the historic Mission Santa Clara de Asis. I understand use of this church, the eighth oldest of the original 21 California missions, is restricted, and it can take more than a year to secure a date!

From the photographer’s view, the Mission was wonderful. The inside is fantastically colorful. Outside, with its old, adobe wall, gated walkways, and ancient garden plantings, we got some great pictures.

After the ceremony, it was off to Santana Row in San José for the partying. Carrying on the adventurous theme, Kirsten and Marcos have a shared/learned passion for travel. Their reception tables, rather than being numbered, were named for locations they visited together already or plan to visit in the future. You can see from these photographs that there were two different venues: Hotel Valencia Santana Row, and Maggiano’s Little Italy, directly across the street from the hotel. The food was great, the reception was great, and—if I do say so myself—we got some great pictures, too. I hope all their future journeys are successful and happy!

–Michael Soo

Labels: Hotel Valencia, Maggiano’s Little Italy, Mission Santa Clara de Asis, Pulgas Water Temple, San José, Santa Clara University, Santana Row, Sutro Baths, Wedding Photography

posted by Soo Photography  # 10:12 AM 0 Comments Links to this post