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Riyaz and Nafisa: Walima in Wrea Green and Bolton 3D centre

February 23, 2013

After a wonderful start photographing Riyaz and Nafisa’s Asian wedding in Blackpool the day before, I was really excited for the walima photography to take place at the Bolton 3D centre and being able to meet them beforehand at Wrea Green in Preston for some couples photographs.

As I arrived early afternoon I once again saw Hamida taking charge of Nafisa’s hair and makeup- they went for a striking Mughal inspired ‘Jodha Akbar’ look which looked superb and was such a contrast to the wedding day!
I showed some quick preview shots of the previous days antics on my ipad but it nearly got a bit too emotional for Nafisa so decided to show it a week later instead rather than risk ruining her wonderful makeup! haha!

When Riyaz also finished getting ready we had ample time to take some couples portraits and boy was this productive- they looked amazing together and by now also super confident in front of the camera.
We managed to get some awesome photos in a relaxed environment laughing away and I’m really happy I was able to do this for Riyaz and Nafisa.
I actually had emails from other photographers questioning if they were a real couple or models brought in for my portfolio? Pretty bizarre but if its causing confusion then we’ve done well!

We had a fantastic time once we arrived at the Bolton 3D Centre which was fantastically decorated by Stage Solutions once again.
After dinner and some great entertainment by a bollywood cover band the wedding week was over and by now I was pretty tired also- so decided to have a quick nap at the end

Such a great few days- lovely people who I can now call good friends, I cant wait to go back to Preston and indeed Lancashire for asian wedding photography again!

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Anurag - 23 Feb ’13 - 9:33 pm

Loving this a lot. More so as it’s literally round the corner from me….and that piano…

Colours fro the wedding are lush.

Riyaz and Nafisa: Asian Wedding Photography in Blackpool Winter Gardens » ShotByShahed.com - 23 Feb ’13 - 10:46 pm

[...] Here are some images from their epic Gujarati wedding with walima to follow! [...]

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Riyaz and Nafisa: Asian Wedding Photography in Blackpool Winter Gardens

February 23, 2013

So I decided last year to see some new venues further afield & perhaps it was time to plan a different marketing strategy for asian wedding photography. About 10 minutes later I get a call from Riyaz who was recommended by my university friend Anas & wanting coverage for his Gujarati Muslim wedding in Lancashire: specifically in preston, blackpool and bolton over one weekend
- seriously could this have been the best timed phonecall ever?

As I got to know Riyaz I realised he was a stand out guy- decent, honest, humble & had an appreciation of quality, so naturally I was super charged to document his & Nafisa’s special days!

What I didn’t anticipate however was how GREAT they both looked together- you will not believe the number of people who have messaged me thinking I had posed models as a bride & groom for my portfolio!!

The wedding day coverage started in their homes in Preston having breakfast & some jokes with the best men before heading to Nafisa’s, with the ceremony then taking place at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool. This place is simply AMAZING- I’m yet to go to a more luxurious venue and all the staff were very helpful on the day too! The decor and stage settings for both days were done by Stage Solutions in Bolton who did a fantastic job complimenting the look & colour scheme well!

To say their hospitality was great would be an understatement- I met some lovely people over the wedding & keep in touch with them even today and have nothing but LOVE for Riyaz & Nafisa- two very cool cats, always smiling and so chilled out!

On both days Nafisa’s hair and makeup looks were left to the very capable makeup artist Hamida Patel (Hamida Mos Beautiful) who did a fantastic job with two very contrasting transformations for both the English bridal wedding day look to the Jodha Akbar Indian look for the Walima day!

Here are some images from their epic Gujarati wedding with walima to follow!

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Jazz Virdi - 23 Feb ’13 - 4:20 pm

Lovely images Shahed, very well captured

Dirk van der Werff - 23 Feb ’13 - 4:59 pm

FAB .. LOVE the photograph of the beautiful bride shot between the two people especially ..
First class work!

Sim - 23 Feb ’13 - 5:06 pm

A very beautiful couple indeed, great work Shaed.

Adila - 23 Feb ’13 - 5:41 pm

What a stunning bride MA – Gorgeous pics as always..

Riyaz and Nafisa: Walima in Wrea Green and Bolton 3D centre » ShotByShahed.com - 23 Feb ’13 - 8:31 pm

[...] a wonderful start photographing Riyaz and Nafisa’s Asian wedding in Blackpool the day before, I was really excited for the walima photography to take place at the [...]

Khalid Bari - 23 Feb ’13 - 10:17 pm

Great set bro. Keep up the good work.

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Filza and Aatif: Muslim Wedding

January 2, 2013

Filza got in touch with me near the start of 2012 while she was living in London and preparing for her wedding in Newcastle in Autumn. Straight away I realised photographing her wedding would be a pleasure as she was more interested in documentary / candid wedding photography compared to the traditional styles up north. We decided to quickly meet up for a consultation on a weekend she was back up north in Newcastle.
On meeting her it was evident this was a confident, bubbly and funny girl!
In fact I remember having a quiet giggle when discussing her plans & requirements for the big day itinerary and wanting to arrange her couple’s shots before the reception as she was a ‘foodie’ and wanted to enjoy the dinner uninterrupted- it’s true though, whenever I come back from a wedding my friends rarely ask how the day went or about the bride and groom, it’s always the same question “what was the food like?” – trust me, it’s an asian thing!!

So the big day soon arrived and as I got to Filza’s house I was wowed by how great everyone looked- don’t get me wrong, brides usually look pretty awesome on their big day but EVERYONE looked awesome in this house, they must inherit it from their mum who looked SUPER elegant on the day (have a look below, you’ll see)!
The only way to describe Filza on her wedding day was understated beauty, she picked a beautiful traditional Lahori wedding dress which looked sophisticated whilst not distracting from her- this is actually a documentary photographers dream so 2013 brides please take note!!

Soon after the grooms side (baraat) arrived with Aatif to the Assembly Rooms in Newcastle where the Nikaah (Muslim vows) and rings were exchanged before the reception began shortly thereafter. This was the most relaxed and fun Nikaah I’ve photographed to date
- everyone was giggling, I had to hold myself back a few times- especially when there was a name mix up during her uncle’s speech! Yikes!!! Haha!

I finally got a chance to chat to Aatif after this- a very shy guy, I thought the couple’s photo’s may have been a challenge but loved what we managed in the timeframe! An absolutely charming and down to earth couple- it really was such a chilled out session!
Soon after we were treated to some heartwarming speeches by Filza’s sisters which followed the DELICIOUS dinner.

Below are a selection of images from the day.. Mubarak.
Enjoy.

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Brea - 2 Jan ’13 - 4:31 pm

What a beautiful wedding! Such amazing details, and it looks like so much fun! I chuckled a bit to myself at the hello kitty labels on the favors

Katie Jane - 2 Jan ’13 - 4:31 pm

These are so beautiful – I love the emotion you captured.

Dani - 2 Jan ’13 - 4:50 pm

Your work never ceases to amaze me. So full of emotion and just simply gorgeous!

Adam - 2 Jan ’13 - 5:00 pm

Brilliant set of images captured bro

caitlin elizabeth - 2 Jan ’13 - 9:44 pm

stunning

Rabs - 2 Jan ’13 - 10:16 pm

MashAllah beautiful couple and beautiful photoshoot.
RABS BY NAMRAH proud to see its R BRIDE COLLECTION wore by FILZA ON HER SPECIAL DAY MAY ALLAH GIVE U THE BEST IN LIFE AND HOPE TO SEE YOU AGAIN

Sameera Ahmad Pelham - 25 Jan ’13 - 8:21 am

As Filzas cousin, living and working As a teacher in hong kong I couldn’t attend the wedding, this has given me a chance to experience the day and see my beautiful cousin on her special day! You’ve got her personality down to a tee and having yet to meet aatif it’s so lovely to see them together in photos and both looking so happy!!!

A beautiful write up and gorgeous photos, it bought tears of joy to my eyes as if i was there, thank you!

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Indian fashion shoot with International model and Sony TV presenter Yuvna Kim

December 27, 2012

Yuvna Kim is one of the few asian models who is a household name and very respected in the asian fashion industry.
International model, actress, television presenter (Snapshot on Sony TV) and luxury dress maker- this is a dynamic woman of MANY artistic talents.

Naturally I was very excited to photograph her and having Newcastle based Alex Pretswell trusted with the makeup and hair on the day was a fantastic combination.
I am very pleased with the images we took on the day and no doubt we will be crossing paths in future!

Shahed

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rabs - 25 Feb ’13 - 11:57 pm

Yuvna looks amazing, love how different she looks in all the images

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Milly and Vic: Wedding Reception in Preston

December 26, 2012

The final event in Milly and Vic’s epic wedding in Preston- this time their Wedding Reception at Preston FC.
Having photographed their Civil Wedding, Pithi and Hindu wedding already I knew we’d have a fab time once again!

This was one of the most fun reception’s I’ve ever had the pleasure of documenting.
The highlights of the night included the speeches by the best man and Vic’s cousin which were absolutely hilarious (though perhaps slightly embarrassing for our groom) and had me laughing even on the long drive home that night!

Manchester based DJ VJ had EVERYONE dancing the night away with some very impressive DJing which finally led to an epic final DESI DANCE OFF with the boys versus the girls
- now I’m not specifically saying who won but well done boys! Haha!

Below is the wedding day slideshow which we played before the newlywed’s entrance followed by some images of the awesome evening!

Enjoy