July 20, 2020
At this point, everything "normal" for a 2020 wedding is out the window. Hniangtha called me the week before her wedding to find out if she could change the date since the state of Michigan was not allowing weddings above the amount of 10 people to be held inside, which unfortunately applied to her reception venue. She was still able to have her wedding ceremony at the Bay Pointe Woods, but had to move her reception to th Pavilion at Bay Pointe Inn across the street on the lake, and that wasn't possible on her original date. Luckily, despite having to move her wedding to a Monday, the whole day was a beautiful success.
Zalal and Hniangtha's wedding was a Chin Burmese wedding, which was a bit different from what I am used to. According to Hniangtha, this wasn't completely traditional (as usually a Chin Burmese wedding has a MUCH larger turnout or 400 to 500 guests - not possible in 2020's COVID reality - as well as featuring more traditional dances for the reception), but was still held in the Burmese Hakha Chin dialogue. That made for a different experience for me and Jess, my second shooter, having an entire wedding in a different language. But "go with the flow" is our motto for 2020 so... we made it work just fine!
On their big day, Hniangtha and Zalal were accompanied by a few close friends and TON of flower girls! Most of the kids in the family joined the wedding party and it was adorable. The nieces also helped by coordinating the last-minute backup group dance at the reception. Good work, girls! During the reception, their were tons of musical numbers by family members, and the adults of the bridal party and I were able to take a ride on Gun Lake in a pontoon for a few more fun experiences and photos. Overall, everything really was a blast!
Even though plans were changing up until the last minute, everything worked out wonderfully in the end. I have to give special props to my second, Jess Furrow, for coming in and saving the day during some uncertainty that came up last minute. She's a great person and a life-saver! Similarly, Hniangtha's friend ended up having to MC a lot of the very reception at the last second. Thank God for good friends!
In the bride's own words, "Overall because of COVID, we had to make a lot of changes but, somehow, our wedding turned out even better than my original plan. It was perfect!" I couldn't agree more!
Ceremony: Bay Pointe Woods, Shelbyville
Makeup: Erick Makeup by Erick Gerson, Grand Rapids
Hair: Bombshell Styles by Sydney, Middleville
Dress shop: Becker's Bridal, Fowler
Dress designer: L'amour by Calla Blanche
Tuxes: Geno’s
Flowers: Andylous Floral Design, Plainwell
Pastor: Cung Lian Hup
Reception: Bay Pointe Inn, Shelbyville
Cake/cupcakes: Nothing Bundt Cakes, Grand Rapids
DJ/Videographer: Amazing Grace Sound and Lighting
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| ^There are a couple changes, but we made it work! |
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| ^Thanks to Jess for the getting ready shots! |
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^These guys were fun!
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| ^Very debonair. |
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| ^Adorable!!! |
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^Hniangtha is stunning!
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| ^I can't help but love a first look! |
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^That gown though!!!
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^See if you can see all the HUGE smiles on Zalal's face. There are so many! He was thrilled!
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^Ice cream station!
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^AND a s'mores station?!? :D
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^When I was ready to get in the water ;)
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^Time for an eventful pontoon ride!
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