First blog post since the coronavirus officially shook our nation. I contemplated on how to begin this one… I wondered if I should even write it? I wondered if I did that I’m not being sensitive to those who are having to reschedule weddings… Many thoughts crossed my mind, but a friend helped me organize my thoughts! First, she encouraged me to not allow the coronavirus to have any power in my life. She said, “write that blog, girl!” because this couple’s love, life and story needs to be heard to give hope because their love is real and beautiful. So thanks to her encouragement, here I am blogging this stunning wedding story! Thx, Lindsay… (She’s my fellow wedding photographer friend in Colorado. She and her husband run a wedding photography business like Craig and I, and as you can imagine, we can relate to one another alot!)
As many of you probably have, I’ve been reflecting on so many things…. the world took a huge turn and in just a couple of days, I’ve realized how much I’ve been taking life for granted. The things that seemed to be simple, mundane and “everyday” is what I miss the most. Like… making the kids’ lunch for school, like grocery shopping (without worry) and like checking the mail. For our business, I already miss the “normalcy” of things. The last two days have been filled with phone calls with brides who are beyond disappointed, sad, frustrated and worried, and I don’t blame them one bit. I would be too and my heart aches for them… After today’s calls, it makes me appreciate this blog post even more. I’ve never been so thankful to be able to write a wedding blog post! I’m truly grateful that I get to do this and show off Lenore + Goke’s amazing day because it truly was… This is even more special because it’s TWO days worth of portraits. Yes… they had their Nigerian wedding day one and then their American ceremony the next. As you guys know, we shoot multicultural weddings and culture has become our ‘social speciality’, and Nigerian weddings are one of our favs. Why?
First, there’s an overflow of joy. YES! I mean, what’s a wedding without that, right? But, at Lenore + Goke’s wedding(s), it was an outpouring of joy, laughter and true happiness. I’m telling you… some people have the MOST genuine smiles and laughter and our bride, Lenore, defined it. She greeted us not just with a smile, but a shout! She squealed! The moment that happened, I KNEW we were going to have a great time. With the two days combined, we were probably together for over 13 hours and every minute was seriously fun. It’s my goal this year to attain Lenore’s type of joy in life!
Another thing that stood out to me was all the friendships. The family members are really tight, but so are the friendships. So, we got to know Lenore + Goke at Asia + Ansu’s wedding from 2017. I love how the "domino effect” of weddings can happen through just one. The friendship between these two couples is pretty incredible. This is what you call, “FRIENDS FOR LIFE”! They were so helpful and because we already knew them, we felt comfortable asking for any help that we needed. They have such kind and generous hearts and I was impressed by how they knew how to help. I don’t about you, but especially being in this industry, I have noticed many people who just “look busy”, but don’t know how to get anything done. HA! Not Asia! She deserves the best bridesmaid award EVER and I can’t write about every one of them, but all of Lenore + Goke’s bridesmaids and groomsmen were great to work with AND so fun! Wedding squad indeed! If you watched our insta stories from this wedding, I know you laughed alot watching, right?
Ah… and how do you not like the dresses! I love the bright colors of Nigerian traditional outfits. It’s gorgeous and it especially looked wonderful on our couple and the wedding party. I love the different designs that each bridesmaid uniquely had too. Nice touch! Lenore + Goke are jaw dropping GOOD-looking folks. I mean, I need to just submit these photos to magazines, don’t you agree? And then, it didn’t end there… Lenore wore her wedding dress and I was like, “OH MY GAW….” First thought in my mind was, “Um… can I borrow that?” LOL! Totally not kidding. ;) Ya’ll seriously - Lenore’s dress was one of the most unique ones we’ve ever seen. You can’t tell, but it was a two piece too! I even loved the color and with her height and figure, it was literally PERFECT. And you know what? I loved the fact that this couple was confident. Yes! They knew they looked great. They knew that this was the best day of their lives. They knew they were happy to be married and they knew how to embrace it… ALL of it! Yes, as photographers, that is one advice that we give… Be like Lenore + Goke and be confident about yourself because that confidence shows through the lens. Every time we hit the shutter, it felt like a masterpiece. Wow!
Lenore + Goke, can you tell that we loved your wedding? :) We did… every bit of it. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for choosing us. Loved getting to know you and becoming friends with you. We hope to see you again and celebrate more life events with you. Stay safe during this uncertain time in our country, in our world. I’m faithfully praying that we will all come out of this together, stronger! I know that we will all be able to safely celebrate together again. We hope that you totally fall in love with your wedding photos - I know I have! Take care and until next time…
With much love,
Craig + Unchong
