Orthodox weddings include lots of pageantry and celebration.
To remind you, I’ve met a couple few months ago – to take pre-wedding pictures.
The couple has chosen two different places for the preparations – the groom got ready at his parents house, the bride at Boscolo Exedra hotel. Both the villa niçoise and the hotel were beautiful locations for photographing all these little wedding details I so like to capture.
It’s not difficult to notice, the bride is a beautiful girl, she makes a perfect Russian bride and she loves to pose which made my work so much easier and enjoyable. The make-up were done by Olga, who’s Russian and hair by another Olga who works at Dessange salon in Beaulieu-sur-mer. I loved both a bridal up-do and a natural but flattering make-up. The groom looked very distinguished and elegant, his costume and accessories were very classy.
Once the bride and the groom got ready, a white Rolls Royce took them to the beautiful St Nicholas Orthodox Cathedral. The light in the church, decorations and the couple holding candles created a special atmosphere.
The Orthodox wedding is a long and solemn ceremony, consisting of two parts – the betrothal and the mass itself. The bride and groom each have a “witness”, who hold gold crowns above the heads of the couple while the ceremony is taking place. The kissing of icons, painted images of Jesus and the saints, is the primary form of veneration in Orthodox Christianity. Veneration of the holy images is an ancient custom dating back to the 5th and 6th centuries, and is still practiced today in Orthodox Christian worship. Through veneration, Orthodox Christians show reverence for the people and the events depicted in the icon.
After the religious ceremony, we took a couple of pictures at Promenade des Anglais in Nice (although it was quite windy on this day) and at the villa, right after “the bread and salt” tradition. There was a little cocktail and then everybody attended the dinner at Les Salons de la Rotonde Lenôtre in Beaulieu sur mer.
Both bride’s bouquet and floral compositions at la Rotonde were made by Herve Frezal.
They were sumptuous, impressive how the bridal table was decorated. The surprise of the evening was a magician’s show including a flying table and..birds. The couple and guests could have their pictures taken with the doves and a parrot. Even their wedding cake was original.
Thank you so much for trusting me to “tell your story”!
I couldn’t stop myself from taking a picture with a magician too:-)
You can see another wedding I have photographed at la Rotonde by clicking here.