A Dubai beach wedding @ Anantara The Palm by Bernard Richardson Photography

Morning Lovelies,
So happy to post today’s blog. It’s another gorgeous wedding photographed by Bernard Richardson and his lovely wife Bindi. I like to refer to them as Mr & Mrs B. Today’s wedding blurb is written by Bernard himself, I think it makes a nice change to have a different perspective on how the bride and groom got ready for their big day. 🙂 So before I ramble on too much I’m passing this over to Mr B…

We were contacted by Emmanuel (the groom) just after summer to discuss their upcoming Dubai wedding. I was immediately struck by how relaxed Emmanuel was, despite the wedding being only 8 weeks away! In fact Emmanuel and his lovely bride Shifaa were probably the most unstressed couple we have had the pleasure of working with. A perfect match for our style of shooting!
Emmanuel and Shifaa chose the Anantara The Palm as their perfect wedding venue, http://dubai-palm.anantara.com/ This is a wonderful location for a beach wedding and is without a doubt one of our favorite Dubai venues. The Events Manager Naomi, with Susan and the rest of the team really go the extra mile for Weddings and we love working with them. (Insider tip; Mekong Restaurant has great food and stunning ambiance)
The big day was October the 10th, and as is usual we started the day by shooting some shots of the venue. Bindi and I were accompanied on video, by the lovely Lucy from http://www.love-lucy.com/ . After shooting the hotel we moved on to shoot the set up at the reception venue. This was called The Beach House and as the name suggests is right on the beach front. In fact, this was also the location for the wedding ceremony itself. The Anantara had set up the beach area beautifully, with covered chairs, flowers and a bridal gazebo with a stunning water and Palm background. Amazing!

Next stop for our team was to meet with Shifaa, her Bridesmaid Sehar, and Emmanuels sister Abike in their hotel room. It really is an honor to be there for these special, intimate moments. There is a real trust that the bride shares with the photographer, and it always humbles me.
So keeping in the background as much as possible we shot the dress, shoes, rings, makeup and hair. We also had time for some lovely bridal portraits of Shifaa and Sehar before moving off for the ceremony. I have never seen a bride more relaxed and happy!
Our beautiful bride was then transported by buggy the short distance to the ceremony, and a rather nervous groom! Guests had traveled from all over the world to witness this moment, and the depth of feeling for this couple was really obvious in everyone face. The ceremony was officiated by the lovely Helen Schrader and was held with the incredible backdrop of the sun setting over the Arabian Gulf. These are some of my favorite images from the wedding !

After the ceremony, we stole the Bridal party away for a short photoshoot on the beach and in the grounds of the Anantara. We love this time with the Bride and Groom. All of the stress ( very little in this case !) for the couple is gone and the joy and happiness is really tangible. Add to this a dramatic background and rich light, and we have a perfect recipe for some truly memorable images.
Bindi and I are not the sort of photographers to stiffly pose couples. Our style is to place the couple in a lovely setting and capture them genuinely interacting. Well Emmanuel and Shifaa were the masters at this! Never once did we even suggest a way to stand or look. Instead their love and playfulness made it incredibly easy to capture genuine emotion and feeling. So much so, in fact, that our photography team spent the whole time laughing ourselves.
With the bridal party returned on time and intact, it was time for a very moving reception. It was incredibly clear that this this couple are dearly loved. The speeches and MC, had guests roaring with laughter and tearing with emotion. It was also impressive to witness Emmanuel’s face as Shifaa handled the large sword used to cut the cake, I think it was the first time he was genuinely worried all day! ”  
Lovely Vendors…
Photography: Bernard Richardson Photography
Videography: Love Lucy
Venue: Anantara Dubai The Palm Resort & Spa
Wedding Celebrant: Helen Schrader