Tina and Divakar's Beautiful Wedding in Garner: Reception at the Grand Marquise Ballroom by Raleigh Indian Wedding Photographer

Tina and Divakar’s reception was held at the Grand Marquise Ballroom in Garner. The Ballroom is beautiful. I had recently photographed Mitali and Viru’s Indian Wedding Ceremony and Reception there. After capturing Tina and Divakar’s wedding ceremony at Hall and Gardens at the Landmark, I headed to the Ballroom. I used the little break between ceremony and reception to download ceremony images and recharge the batteries. I also setup and tested my lighting. Location lighting can be tricky. There are different color casts from the accent and uplighting. Add to that the videographer’s lights, and decorator and DJ’s spots! The overall lighting can be exciting but can make it hard to photograph people. Of course, the short-cut is to turn every image Black & White (I guess that also counts as “artistic”!). But, I like to work little harder. You will see a mix of images which were captured with ambient light, and created with both on-camera speedlights and studio lights. Lighting is also important to capture fast-moving action which takes place on the dance floor, especially during the dance performances.

The evening started with cocktail hour. I did a mini portrait session of the bride and groom during the cocktail hour. I also captured many detail shots before the guests arrived to the ballroom. There were dance performances before the dinner. Tina’s younger sister Krisa did a spectacular dance. There were speeches and toasts which had guests smiling. It was refreshing to hear Tina’s Dad do a toast in Gujarati! Of course, being from Gujarat, I am partial to Gujarati! There were also tears when Krisa gave her toast. The dinner was delightful. The DJ Hangama team- Sohil and Vashishth played great music selection and also provided accent lighting. I worked with DJ Hanagama following weekend in Fayetteville (Rashmi and Tarun’s wedding- preview images coming soon).

The reception ended with group photos of family and friends. It was closing time, so I had to work quickly. I really enjoyed working with Tina and Divakar. Great couple! And my special thanks to the Tailor family…

Wedding vendors:

Photography: Tesh Parekh and IWP Photography, 919-622-5399, email: tesh@iwpphotography.com, www.iwpphotography.com

Wedding venue: Hall and Gardens at Landmark, Garner NC

Reception venue: The Grand Marquise Hall, Garner NC

DJ: DJ Hangama, Sohil Kharva

Cake: Ashley Cakes

Decorations: Ketan Shah and Elegant Designz

Videography: Sammy Seyal and Prince Production

Tent: Andy Karras and A Special Event

Caterer: Royal India

Wedding Coordinator: Angela England

– Tesh Parekh