Muslim and Ekaterina came all the way from Russia to get married in Shangri-La Boracay. We were already set to cover their wedding and just talking about it over emails when it occurred to me to ask how many guests they were having. Ekaterina said they were having no guests. Not a single one. I literally squealed when I read this. I love big weddings and small weddings for their respective charms, but I have always carried a torch for elopements. It’s romantic and adventurous. Have I mentioned romantic? It bears repeating. I was swooning at the thought. I wanted to run off to Italy with Jeff and get married there instead of having a wedding here in Manila back in 2006, but my mom wouldn’t hear of it. Maybe for our 10th anniversary?
Anyway, Google Translate made corresponding in English easy, so much that we all had some adjusting to do when we met in person. They were our first non-English speaking couple, and I don’t think I’ve had to gesture so much in my entire life. Haha. We spent a day and a half with them: an afternoon for their engagement shoot, and the following day for their wedding. We had the best time shooting these two. Besides being ridiculously good-looking, there was a genuine warmth and kindness there, which I found translated quite easily without words.
They brought with them sooo many handmade wedding details from Russia, I was completely charmed. Love, love, love. This goes down as one of our favorite shooting experiences to date. Jeff and I always say our work is personal, but this brought it to a whole new level. They asked us to join them for dinner, and we essentially became their wedding guests. It was very sweet and touching.
Muslim and Ekaterina, thank you for sharing your beautiful intimate wedding with us. Jeff and I loved being there with you, more than we could possibly put into words. We wish you all the best, always. Большая любовь из Филиппин. ♥
Leave a Reply