As Antoinette is South African, her and her family were all new to the traditions of a Hindu marriage, like myself, so it was the perfect first foray into this amazing and colourful celebration.
Having had a lot more sleep than the congregation I'm sure, I arrived at the groom's house, ready to capture the start of the traditions, led primarily by his Uncle and Auntie. Sukhi's family were so warm and welcoming towards me, it was a really great having got to know them the day before.
After the last gift was exchanged I jumped in the car and drove to their venue to meet Antoinette as she began the mammoth job of getting herself ready in all her Indian finery. The weight of that dress is truly astonishing but she looked absolutely stunning, with a few of Sukhi's family on hand to help the bridesmaids into their Saris.
The ceremony had so much to photograph but I tried my best to follow along ;-) It was so evident to me that the guys managed to put a lot of happiness and personality into what was serious moments.
Later, the bride and groom were announced in by drummers to cut their cake and have their first dance before the dance floor was flooded by what seemed like 400 people (probably was!). I've never seen dancing like it so apologies for a million sample shots but found it difficult to narrow it down.
We were not blessed with outdoor space at St John's Hotel so I managed to find a park close by which was perfect in the setting sun. It had the added bonus of allowing the guys the chance to escape the Indian craziness for half an hour and have a little 'them' time which I know they appreciated.
If that all wasn't enough, our good friends were getting married in Spain on the Monday which meant flying out the very next morning at 7am! Getting to the airport at 5 was a bit tough but I honestly didn't mind as I was still on such a high from the epic two days that I had the honour of being involved in.
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