When Irene first approached me about photographing her wedding, I was excited…and nervous. 450 guests – by far the largest wedding I’ve ever photographed. Egyptian Coptic Orthodox ceremony – absolutely nothing familiar about this. But familiar is, well, boring…and way overrated in my opinion. When it comes to both my professional and home life, I like being out of my element, because it pushes and challenges me to work harder and try new things. It’s one of the main reasons I love my job so much because nothing is ever the same – lighting is constantly changing and things are moving at what often seems like an incredibly fast, out-of-control pace. But when it’s all over and I look at the camera’s screen and see that awesome shot, I know it’s all worth it.
When I woke up the morning of the wedding, I had a pit in my stomach. Not so much because I was nervous, but because there were threatening rain clouds everywhere. We had planned on going to beautiful Burke Lake to take photos. At 12:30 when I arrived at Irene’s parent’s house, the rain seemed to still be holding off, so I asked her what she thought. I couldn’t help but be glad when she told me that she’s a risk-taker and that she wanted to just go for it. Well the rain did in fact hold off long enough for us to get some serene, scenic photos at the Lake. It even held off throughout the entire ceremony and then promptly when the bride and groom needed to exit to get in the limo…holy thunderstorm! Talk about timing…
Sameh and Irene were married at St. Mark’s Coptic Orthodox church with the reception at the Hilton Dulles. The ceremony was BEAUTIFUL. Coptic Orthodox ceremonies are vibrant and energetic. The bride and groom mark their union together which what are referred to as “pictures,” which include their rings, a set of crowns, vestments, oil, candles and incense. While there was so much going on throughout the hour long ceremony, my favorite part (as simple as this is going to sound) was watching Sameh and Irene together. They couldn’t stop smiling at one another – it was too cute.
On a side note, this wedding was extra special to me because I got to photograph it with one of my favorite people in the whole world – my Dad and one of the main reasons I’m a photographer today. Growing up as kid with a professional photographer for a dad, who would have thought that 15 years after he gave me my first Nikon FM10 camera, we would be shooting a wedding together. I love you Dad!!!!
So enjoy the photos and the holiday weekend! I will be leaving this evening after an engagement session for a short trip to the Outer Banks. I will not be available via phone and will probably not be checking email so please be patient if you send me something and dont’ hear back for a few days. I will be back on Thursday and ready to share some highlights from David and Lindsay’s DAR wedding!
There is something about this shot of her father…he looked so proud of his daughter when he saw her for the first time.
Sameh waiting for his beautiful bride.
So sweet! This is one of my favorites of them from the day.
She looks amazing.
In Coptic Orthodox tradition, Irene is given away by her father at the entrance to the church and from there, the bride and groom walk down the aisle together.
During the ceremony, the bride and groom are cloaked in beautiful capes and crowned as a symbol of their marriage and union together.
There are those smiles I was talking about.
The reception decor was simple and elegant.
LOVE this one of them dancing together.
Lots of good laughs during the toasts.
Congratulations Sameh and Irene!
