Have just been talking with my Somali bride for tomorrow.  She was in about to have her henna painted on her hands, and is a really lovely girl. She is even getting me a blue – my favourite colour – Somali dress to wear for the occasion so even though I am the wedding photographer, I will be part of the family and fit in nicely. Wahoo!

I was supposed to just capture her arriving at the venue – Al Waalis Banquesting Hall – but now am going to meet her at her house to capture her getting ready and to get to know her family and friends too, so we get natural smiley pics on her wedding day reception!

 

And here they are  – the first few pics of the bridal preparations before our lovely Somali bride sets off for her wedding reception party.

 

Last but not least in this series of images – wedding photographer Elaine (me) in the lovely blue dress the bride gave me.

 

 

 

 

 

Get in touch with Elaine on Facebook or via our website

 

 

 

 

I met our modern-day British born Nigerian bride in London, before agreeing to photograph her white wedding in a church in London.  Then I discovered she was also going to Nigeria with her family – to have a cultural wedding!  A few emails, Facebook messages  and phone calls later, and I was heading out to post my visa application …  The following pics are from the second day  of the celebrations, the first having been in the family’s original village, with the tribal elders.

If you would like to see more pictures by Elaine of Reel Life Photos, or to have her photograph you wedding in Nigeria or any other wedding destination or venue, then visit the contact us page on our website.

xx Elaine and Jorge

The bride’s coral necklace is often a family heirloom, that has been handed down overt the generations.  Our bride here is also wearing a coral-beaded hat, and her mother a traditional Nigerian headdress, in stiff shiny fabric.

I was captivated by the little girls and their colourful reflections in the shiny surfaces of the vehicles left and right , as the bridal party processes down the road.  The bride’s mother in the centre in fuchsia pink , with a patterned magenta and orange wrapper gently restrains one of the girls so they can rush past.

The marquees are sectioned off to accommodate the different family members and labelled so all the relatives know whereabouts  to sit.

I love this picture.  The barbed wire on the wall above is typical of the walled and gated  compounds  – to protect the residents against thieves and worse… The reflections in giant puddles that have appeared while the bride was getting changed, and the brooding sky add drama to the image.

If your don’t have a bar code scanner you can download it for free for your Android https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.app_weddingpics.layout&hl=en
or iPhones/iPads
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/best-wedding-photos/id778911635?ls=1&mt=8

 

It was developed for us by a great guy in Florida called David. http://www.appmobileplanet.com

xx Elaine and Jorge  – Reel Life Photos