Arindam Ganguly, OP
Bhubaneswar: Since long, wedding photography has been an integral part of all marriage ceremonies as much as the various rituals involved in solemnising the union of two individuals. The latest trend is pre-nuptial photo shoots, as more and more couples are in- clined to capture their moments of togetherness before tying the knot. Pre-wedding photography is a growing trend where engaged couples decide to have professional photos taken in a special location before their wedding day. Interestingly, this trend has its origin in Asia and is now spreading fast across the globe. Since the last four years, pre-wedding photo shoots are also the in-thing for couple in Odisha with every second couple in the capital city opting for this new fad.
Such photo shoots also offer a chance for the couples to get together with their wedding photographer in the run up to the big day, usually at a venue of their choice, and to have some portrait pho- tos taken. These days many wedding photographers include a pre-wedding photo shoot in their package in return for an additional payment. Orissa POST interacted with some wedding photographers as well as newly-mar- ried couples, who hired pre-wed- ding photographers, to learn about their ex- perience.
According to Rahul Roy of Roy Photography, mar- riage is a very special moment for a per- son as it unites him/her with another per- son for life. “We offer couples pre-wedding photography packages as it helps us to capture important moments that we may sometime miss during wedding photography. During such photo shoots we create a space where couples can flaunt their love for each other,” he ex- plained. “Based on the locales and the cou- ple’s demands, the budget for pre-wed- ding photography can often go beyond ` 1 lakh,” Rahul said, adding, “The trend of pre-wedding is growing and this year I alone served more than 50 clients.” Elucidating on the details,
Umakanta Jena of Photozone said, “Couples prefer beautiful locations for capturing their cher- ished moments for pre- wedding photography. We decide the location or set the location in a park or tourist spot in the city or even go to Puri beach for pre-wedding photography depending on the budget of the clients. Some couples even go to locales in New Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Bangalore for the purpose.” Generally, pre-wedding photography is planed much in advance – often three to four months of the wedding, he added.
Another pre-wedding photographer in the capital city, Lipu Raj of Lens Rebel Photography, said, “In pre-wedding photography we try to capture different moods and emotions of the couples such as their cheerfulness, intimacy, funny side etc. The couples come to use with various expectations and we al- ways try to fulfill their expectation be- cause these moments will never come in their life again. Besides, these are moments that they will cherish throughout their life,” Lipu said.
According to Subham Mishra of Mishra Photography, which also spe- cialises in pre-wedding video shoots, “The world is changing. Even the new- age couples seem to be more excited about their pre-wedding photography than their wedding photographs.” Subham said couples must take an appointment two months in advance for their pre-wedding photo shoot. “We shoot the photos only after detailed discussions with the clients and deciding on the locale for the shoot. This takes a lot of time.”
Suman Rout, who will soon tie the knot, has gone for pre-wedding photo shoots. According to her, pre-wed- ding photo shoots are relatively new, as earlier people thought it to be unnecessary and even against the Indian culture. However, now families are more sup- portive and allow couples to do what make them happy. Tapaswani Ray Patnaik too has done pre-wedding with her beau. She said that she decided to go for pre- wedding photography after watching a viral video of a Mumbai girl, who had done pre-wedding songs based on the popular number ‘Shape of You’. “I had an arranged marriage and we both wanted to capture our moments of to- getherness before marriage via pre-wed- ding photography,” she said.
