It was a cold cold February day (about 29˚F) , but we made it right on time, 8:00 A.M sharp. For those of you who don’t know, I’m far from being a morning person and I hate the cold, but this was worth it. We were excited (me more than Bashir) to have our pre-wedding photoshoot. This is a more modern wedding tradition in China and other Asian countries. The idea is an all out fashion, style, photoshop-included fantastical photoshoot so you can have awesome pics to show on big projectors during the wedding ceremony. Just FYI, Chinese people don’t usually have a church wedding, but instead opt for big venue type places such as hotels, huge restaurants, and conference halls. They usually say the “I do’s” on stage and then have a feast of traditional wedding foods. We will be getting pics from the actual wedding soon so you have another stupid wedding post to look forward to. Ha!
Anyways, there we were, in the basement of the photo studio my uncle recommended. We picked the simpler package which included the 8-hour photoshoot,three changes of clothes, 3 different hair and makeup styles (for me), and a bunch of physical photo products to hang on walls and mantles.
The whole thing was a two trip process where first you have a consultation, pick out your clothes, and discuss shooting locations (if you want outdoor shoots) and any creative thoughts, then you come back for shooting day. When I say pick out our clothes, I mean the store is stocked with dresses and tuxedos galore and you get to try on everything before you decide. Yes girls, it was hella fun! The long red dress below is mine that I bought but the others were supplied by the studio. So without further adieu....
We started off inside with different backgrounds, lighting, poses, etc. I decided to wear my actual wedding dress for the inside shots because, you know, who wants to get that dirty before the wedding. Then, I changed, redid makeup and hair, and we headed for the Hutongs (ancient narrow streets of Beijing that are neighborhoods).
P.S. The left one on top is Bashir's favorite, I'm assuming it's because we think we're cool. Haha, but the one below is MY fave.... #maytheforcebewithyou
Then I changed for the last time into a cute red dress which I froze my ass off in. And if you’re wondering, yes we changed on the side of the street with the help of blankets for cover. Also, the beautician whipped up another hairstyle on the spot and retouched my makeup. These people are pros…
The shot above is my second fave. Apparently most Chinese couples like to edit out the people in the backgrounds but we thought it added a bit more romance. But what do we know, we're just strange foreigners.
At last, we headed towards the Corner Towers of the Forbidden City for the sunset shots.
In the pic above, those two gentlemen were actually asked to pose for the photo. They're photographers too and we quickly became their subjects. Knowing the fact that we liked people to be in the background, our photographer asked these two to be a part of it.
So we found a random broom in the bushes and decided to use it as prop... #harrypottermoment
Ok... here are the rest....
Bonus behind the scene shot taken by Bashir. It's me trying to warm up in-between the takes.......Yes, it was that cold
