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Indian Groom Wedding Photographs

Posted on April 21, 2017May 11, 2021 by Avipsha Neogi

There is always so much hungama about the bride in Indian groom’s weddings. Even rituals seem to be a lot more in a bride’s home than that of the groom. The bride and groom’s wedding make the wedding and it’s unfair that only the bride gets all the attention.

So, I decided to put this post together which will focus only on the groom’s wedding. Are you thinking, what’s there to focus on the groom, it’s the same old boring stuff? No my dear friend, the Indian Groom of today has evolved a lot and is uber cool compared to his counterpart a few decades ago.

How much has the Indian groom changed? A lot!

The simple traditional dressing is overtaken by a lavish royal dressing. This is just the beginning. Ornaments and accessories are now bolder, richer and sometimes even designer. The Indian groom of the 80’s or 90’s probably slept through the night before the wedding. Not the Indian groom of the 2000s. He has bachelor bashes that are nothing short of a Bollywood extravaganza!

In all, the Indian groom’s wedding today give stiff competition to the brides as far as the wedding rituals, preparations or photography goes.

A wedding album is there with you much longer after the madness of an Indian groom’s wedding subsides. You would want to revisit those wonderful moments before, during and after the wedding once you settle down to normal life.

Do not hesitate to be equally seen along with the bride in your wedding photographs. Buddy, you make half of the relationship and half of the wedding. The least you can do is show up in half of the album.

Here are some must-have pictures of you as an Indian groom in your wedding album.

Indian Groom’s wedding Dress for the big fat Haldi

Almost all Indian weddings or let’s say Hindu weddings have the haldi and mehndi rituals; even on the groom’s wedding side. You would be surprised how much fun these pictures would be in your album. Instead of shunning it away as a simple ritual, rejoice in these two important rituals. Important from a wedding point of view as these rituals sort of declare the beginning of it. Important from a photography point of view, as these rituals offer a series of a rich picture to capture. The bright haldi, the really dark green of the mehndi, the assorted flowers, the diyas, all these offer great scope for really good wedding photography.

These two rituals also offer a lot of fun moments with your side of the family. Moments that will speak stories even after long. Be sure to be your naughtiest best and let the photographer capture these images for good.

Sass it up with your Wedding Dressing Theme

The Indian groom’s wedding story is absolutely incomplete without his yaars or friends. The teasing, fun, tips about marriage, tips to avoid wife in a tricky situation, tips about when to say yes and no, oh the list is endless when it comes to the topics of conversation between the groom’s wedding and his friends. Needless to say, all this means a lot of laughter and lightness. A perfect backdrop for some really candid pictures!

Do mention to your photographer the really close and dear friends you have in the group. It will mean a world to you to see a picture of you with your best bud during your wedding after years pass by.

Indian Groom’s wedding Dress with the Casual Bachelorette

Another brilliant part of your pre-wedding time that will offer wonderful pictures to shoot for your photographer. Do not hesitate to share the theme of the party, the naughty cake (if it happens to be there) or any other things you have planned as a groom for your friends, with your photographer. You will be happy to show how cool a dude you are to your future kids too.

Get your best friend to read this post. He has a role to play too.

Any surprises you as the best friend are planning for the groom has to be captured. So befriend the photographer and make sure that a surprised look on your groom’s wedding friend is preserved for generations to come.

Wedding Trousseau

The Indian groom’s wedding wardrobe is no less than that of the bride’s. If the bride has a super expensive hand-woven kanjeevaram to show off, then the groom has an equally rich sherwani to show off. If the bride has her solah shringar, the groom is not far behind.

The pagdi or the sarpech, finger ring, watches (even Rolex sometimes), the motikahaar or some fine jewelry (Tanishq advertises platinum jewelry for men too!), the cufflinks, the jooti and so on goes the list of the groom’s wedding trousseau.

Make sure your photographer captures your pictures adorning all these fine elements. Candid shots of just these elements with a good backdrop or in good light conditions will make wonderful pictures to see.

Pappa’s Son

A father is proud of his son’s wedding. It is a very happy occasion. Maybe there will not be any tears as in a bride’s case but nevertheless, the groom’s father is equally emotional.

Get some alone time with your dad and get your photographer to shoot it. It’s a man to man connection, you see.

Better still, get your dad to help you dress, which he will happily oblige and get pictures taken. Maybe while he puts the pagdi on or helps you adjust the sherwani, there are so many ways to do this.

Darling, I am Here!

Just like his western counterpart, the Indian groom’s wedding also waits for his bride. It is a moment of anticipation even if you have dated the dame for a decade. In a way, the look on your face that time is poetic. Instruct your photographer not to miss these moments.

You can always prove to her later on that officially you have proof of waiting, if not anything.

The list doesn’t stop here. As a groom’s wedding, you have the baraat moments, the var mala moment, the meeting the in-laws moment and so on. What you need to do is to help your photographer understand all that needs to be captured. Once he/she gets an essence of it, let go of it and enjoy your wedding.

How to Choose a Wedding Photographer?

Posted on April 14, 2017May 11, 2021 by Avipsha Neogi

A photo stays, even after you are no more. So, it is really important to get the right kind of wedding photographer. Especially if it’s to do with wedding photography!

You would want your children and grandchildren to see your wedding album. Of course, you want to show your best side to them.

So, how to go about choosing a photographer? The answer in one word – carefully.

If you want a longer answer with to-do steps, then read on.

Choosing a wedding photographer is a 3 step process – Identity, Interview and Initiate.

Identifying the ideal Wedding photographer

A really basic tip about identifying the ideal photographer for your wedding photographer needs is to not just go by popular lists.

Go by the style of the photography you want – traditional, contemporary, journalistic or fashionable. Pick the style you want and look for good photographers in those styles.

Start your search for a wedding photographer as early as possible. I’d say start looking for your photographer as soon as the wedding date is finalized.

Recommendations within family and friends should be checked out first. But only after you personally check their albums. Your idea of good photography need not necessarily match with your family or friends.

If you are looking for photographers online, read up on the testimonials. It will work best if you actually get in touch with the people giving the testimonials to be doubly sure.

Once you are done the searching, identify a short list of top 10 photographers according to you.

Interviewing to find the ideal photographer

Interview each of the short listed photographers until you find yours. The best way to go about it is to have your partner along. Indian wedding photographer is a family affair, no doubt, but a major part of the photography will focus on you both. So, both of you need to be comfortable with the photographer.

Check the style elements in the photographers’ past work. Look at their experience with different kinds of shots. Spend time in assessing their portfolio of work.

Definitely, check their ability to edit and compose pictures. The final album will depend heavily on this ability.

Understand clearly the financials involved. Clarify the effort – hours, equipment, assistants involved in the entire deal.

Check the post-photography deadlines; they need to meet your expectations of getting the hard copies home.

Do not confirm a deal with the wedding photographer in the very first meeting. Take your time, check with family and friends, if need be.

Initiating the ideal photographer

After carefully shortlisting and picking your wedding photographer, initiate them for your wedding. What does this mean?

Get the photographer to meet your family and friends who will be extensively covered during the rituals.

Acclimatize the photographer with the venue, the decorations that are going to be used and the events that will be part of the entire wedding.

Indian weddings are elaborate, rich, colourful and ritualistic. It is important for your photographer to be aware of all things specific to your wedding.

When you are sure that you have finally found and want to retain the ideal photographer for your wedding, sign the deal. Pay only a part of the advance and remember to take a receipt.

7 Popular Indian Pre-Wedding Photoshoot Ideas

Posted on April 11, 2017April 11, 2023 by Avipsha Neogi

Indian Pre-Wedding Photoshoot Ideas, my search words in Google. The results, a staggering 15,50,000 in 0.50 seconds. Whoa! That’s a huge number of ideas to actually see and process. But, what really captures my attention is the sheer number of results!

What a pre-wedding photoshoot is? Honestly, going by the words, I feel it is a photoshoot done on the day the couple gets engaged. Engagement happens much before the wedding. So, it has to be the pre-wedding photoshoot. Simple isn’t it?!

Not really, the trends in Indian wedding photography have changed so much. There is a specific pre-wedding shoot after the engagement and before the actual wedding! There are also so many themes for it. Let’s look at a few popular ones, just for the record.

Engagement Ring themed Pre-wedding Photoshoot

The engagement ring is probably the very first sign of a couple if you dismiss the joy of finding a partner on the faces of the couple. Oh yeah, the constant talking on the phone is another sign that someone is engaged. So naturally, the all-powerful engagement ring can itself be a theme for the pre-wedding shoot.

How to pose with it? That’s left to your imagination. You can show your fiancé through the ring, both of you can hold the ring together or you can just get a close-up photo of your hands with the ring. There is no end to the possibilities.

Nature Scapes for Pre-wedding Photoshoot

Another very popular theme is nature as the backdrop of the entire pre-wedding shoot. India has abundant places where nature is in its full glory. Plus there is a whole variety available too. From mountains, plateaus, forests, beaches, waterfalls to lakes, the list is endless.

Choosing a location can also be guided by the favorite holiday destinations of the couple within India or plain and simple accessibility. One advantage with the nature-based pre-wedding shoot is you really don’t have to spend much on the backdrop, after all, its God’s creation!

“Save the Date” themed pre-wedding photoshoot

Many couples use the pre-wedding shoot to share the date of the wedding in creative ways. These pictures also act like cute reminders to save the date for the invitees. Couples can act coy or funky or outright naughty with photography based on this theme. It leaves ample room for creative posing.

Classic and Elegant themed pre-wedding photoshoot

India is also home to some great forts, palaces and extremely rich looking 5-star hotels. These are some really lavish and popular locations for your pre-wedding shoot if you want to go all classy and elegant. You can sport regal looking Indian wear or classic western outfits.

Choosing the right outfit becomes really key to this theme of a pre-wedding photo shoot. Not just that, pairing the outfit with your partner in a manner that the style quotient is maintained is important too.

Retro Styled Pre-wedding Photoshoot

I guess the ’70s produced the most iconic styles in fashion in India. Bollywood, Tollywood or any other wood you belong will provide you with enough samples to choose from. The high bun, the dangly jewelry, the side flowers and so many more accessories empowered the women of that time to flaunt their style.

Men weren’t left behind too! Bell bottoms, huge sunglasses, and big collared checks shirts set the tone for their style. You can go all retro of just pick some style elements. You can also use some vintage cars or vehicles that go with your theme. A cycle according to me one must have in this theme for a few couple shots.

Fun and Funky Pre-wedding Photoshoot

Picture Credit-: pre_wedding_photoshot

Indian weddings are rich, lavish, splendid and ritual driven. There is fun but in a classy way. The pre-wedding shoot, on the other hand, can be outright fun and sometimes funky too. Have you seen couples sporting those red blingy horns on the head with props that say ‘she’s mine (in the boy’s hands) and he’s lucky (in the girl’s hands)?

Or the ones that say ‘My ATM or My Cook’. These are typical examples of fun themes. There are a lot more options too as you are limited only by your imagination in this theme.

Cityscape for Pre-wedding Photoshoot

I guess this is one of the latest entries in the pre-wedding shoot themes. Couples waltzing in a busy traffic street or posing under a traffic light or proposing marriage on a footpath are just a few examples. All this while the city around them goes about their work unmindful of the exhibition of young love!

The contrast itself makes a story of each picture. There is something very cinematic about this theme. You can try this theme, provided you are not too shy to show your love for your partner in public. No matter which theme you choose or create, the most important factor is to be yourself.

Bask in the warmth of the newfound relationship and do not hesitate to show it. The photographer can do a brilliant job of your pre-wedding shoot only if you are brilliant in being utterly yourself in front of the camera. You see, the camera cannot lie!