First Cambodian Wedding: Sophat and Molica

I was originally invited to attend as a guest but the groom (who happens to be my girlfriend's cousin) gave me permission to shoot on the side since he wanted some PJ style shots and the MOB hired a traditional Cambodian Wedding Photographer who does primarily posed formals. Fortunately the main Photographer had no problems with me being there once I introduced myself and stayed out of his way so it worked out well for everyone. With that being said, this was the first Cambodian Wedding I've shot even though I've been to a bunch of them so it was an interesting experience watching things through the lens this time around.

Here's a few to start off with and the rest can be found here: http://sojournfoto.com​/

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Great job! The spread in #6 looks delicious

Last 3 are the best; nice work. I bet he was happy he asked you to shoot on the side!

1, 3, and 5 are barely keepers. 2 and 4 are decent, but uninspiring.

6, 7, and 8 are amazing! I feel like I could stare at 6 four hours! It's mesmerizing. The detail is exquisite. I don't know how well it'll work in their album, but *I* want to print it out and hang it on my wall.

Pretty. Great shot.

Numbers would help, but the 3rd last one is AWESOME.

The others are good too.

Thanks for the comments everyone. Number 6 on this page is definitely one of my favorites and I can personally attest to the fact that not only did it look good but it tasted just as good if not better!

TheHoff, I'm not sure if he's seen these yet but I know he was thankful to have the extra coverage since he didn't really have a say in picking the photographer.

Jayspec, I just shot these on the side as they had already made plans to buy an album from the Main photographer. They did tell me that they would pay me for any prints/images that they wanted. This was more of a favor to them and a way for me to build my portfolio more than anything.

Linarms, thanks for the comments and I'll even go back and number them just for you!

Beautiful set overall.

#2 - The can of hairspray distracts my attention away from the bride.

I'm gonna agree with everyone else and say #6 is my fav. I LOVE the perspective. How did you get this? Did you just reach over an overlooking ledge?

I've never been to a Cambodian wedding either but I love how colorful everything is.

I can't wait to do one of these, there's so much to shoot I'd have a hard time figuring out how to direct the shooting of something so colorful and beautiful. I wouldn't be able to stop shooting, the cam would need a new shutter lol

As for someone's question to #6 - perhaps he found a stairway, or an overhang of some sort and shot downwards. Also could've used a boom and camera strapped to that (forgot what they're really called but thats what they look like)

Very sharp and vivid shots. Thanks for sharing.

Nice work. Ive shot a few Khmer weddings myself.

Funny, ive seen the bride and groom around LB many times. Congrats to them.

Thanks for the comments. About # 6, Kajuah was right. The house was a two story house with a nice semi spiral staircase and there was a essentially an overhang area where I was able to get some overhead shots. To get the shot I just stuck my camera over the edge, fired a few bursts to see if any were straight or close to being level and straight and went from there. I had to do some minor cropping with the picture you see here to get it as symmetrical as I could but overall it worked out just as I had hoped it would if not better!

BmanH wrote in post #6893474
Beautiful set overall.

#2 - The can of hairspray distracts my attention away from the bride.

I'm gonna agree with everyone else and say #6 is my fav. I LOVE the perspective. How did you get this? Did you just reach over an overlooking ledge?

I've never been to a Cambodian wedding either but I love how colorful everything is.

Ah, I take it you're from Long Beach as well then?

MegaTron wrote in post #6899173
Nice work. Ive shot a few Khmer weddings myself.

Funny, ive seen the bride and groom around LB many times. Congrats to them.

I like your photos. The only wedding ceremonies I've attended have been either civil or christian. I love seeing the cultural/religious differences. Thanks for posting!