Carrie and Brett had one of the most personable, and honouring weddings I have ever photographed. One of the most significant components to this wedding was the blending of two cultures; Chinese and First Nations. To begin the morning, they held a traditional Chinese tea ceremony in a home adorned with beautiful First Nations artwork. It was a symbolic start to the unity that this day represented.
To begin the tea ceremony, the groom had to earn his way into the house. The bridesmaids had planned several challenges for him. The first, was he needed to say 3 reasons why he loved Carrie. However, he needed to yell them loud enough that from in the house, Carrie would be able to hear them. Brett successfully let the entire neighbourhood know that he “LOVED CARRIE’S BOOTY!”
The next challenge was to pass a piece of paper from one groomsman to the next. The rules were simple: no hands, only blowing the paper. For every time the paper dropped, the groom had to pick up one groomsman that many times, saying “I love you Carrie!”
Last but not least, Brett needed to identify his lady’s lips! Each time he guessed incorrectly, his groomsman had to pucker up and give Brett a big ol’ smooch.
Alas, he found her!
Since he proved himself to the bridesmaids, he was finally able to go knock on the door that led to his beautiful bride.
The tea ceremony is an act of honouring those that have played a vital role in raising you into the people you are today. The bride and groom served their parents and other relatives tea. In return, the relatives offered gifts, and words of blessing and encouragement over the couple. It was such a beautiful tradition to be able to witness.
Throughout the week, the weather was looking quite unpredictable for this day. At one point it said there would be lightening storms…so we felt prepared for anything. In true Vancouver fashion, it was sunny in the morning, cloudy in the early afternoon, poured during the ceremony, then cleared up for the end of their portraits. As a result, we got to work on the fly and find places that were covered, but still had a fun look to them. I think we did alright!
The following showcases why this wedding party was awesome…
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