After having to move the date of their engagement ceremony, Sayali & Pulkit got to officially celebrate their engagement among all our family and friends at the Reston Lakehouse on Memorial Day! I got there bright and early to snag some cute portraits of them before their guests came in to join the fun. I got to meet Pulkit’s sister along with his parents that have been visiting from India. And it was amazing watching them being welcomed into our extended family because family friends isn’t a term that quite covers how close our community has become after 15+ years of celebrating milestones and enduring and supporting each other through hardships.

Their toast given by Sayali’s dad was so reflective as this, he held the microphone in one hand, his glass of champagne in the other and turning his head from left to right, he could see all the families that not only Sayali grew up with but even him and his wife grew up with. These were the people that helped bring up Sayali as a kid, that helped shape and mold so much of who she is today. These were the people that hundreds of dinners and every weekend had been shared with, the ones where every Holi and Ganapati celebration was with, these were the people that truly  made Virginia feel like home. And now here he was welcoming a son into the family that has meant so much, inviting everyone around him as well to welcome Pulkit as one of the kids, as a son!

Sayali and Pulkit I’m so glad you had me capture your big event, I love the attention you guys put in to all the little details and how they were true to you both and your story with your roses being the same that Pulkit proposed with, the engagement sign being made again by Sachi, and the champagne being the same kind you toasted right after your proposal!! I can’t wait for Pulkit to experience and become a part of all the shenanigans that go down when all the families get together and know that no matter what comes your way, you always have this family to fall back on. I know you guys will have the most incredible wedding in India and I can’t wait to see the pictures from it!!!

Was so happy to be able to take some portraits of these two before all the guests arrived! 😀

Just mildly obsessed with these rings!!

 

And of course some family portraits as well 🙂

LOVED all the thought that went into the detail for their toast! They had the same kind of champagne that they celebrated with after their proposal just a couple of months ago, how sweet is that 🙂

Leave it up to Shirish Uncle to crack everyone up 😀

The photo above doesn’t do this cute moment justice, Pulkit kept playing with Sayali and she had to force him to be gentle with the mini cupcakes which were to DIE for!! Thank you guys for letting me photograph the day!!

If you liked this post check out these posts as well 🙂

Sayali & Pulkit’s Engagement Session – Capitol Hill, D.C.

Sayali & Pulkit’s Proposal Story

Lakshmi & Nakul’s Vibrant Harbour View Engagement Ceremony

Ahhh with a great first week comes a major setback in week 2 of the New Year! I was kinda bummed about this obstacle, but it definitely drove me to work even harder in terms of my photography so I guess that’s a silver lining in disguise. Going to stick to the highlights for this week!

– Nothing like trivia to lift up your mood! I got to go to trivia with friends I haven’t seen in MONTHS and we had so much fun 🙂 It’s become our tradition to do trivia at Crafthouse (formerly known as World of Beer) and apparently we always look so clueless that people OFFER their help to us…..also can I say that I’m a big fan of their bacon tots?

– I also got to go to Ted’s Bulletin to catch up with former co-workers! I love that even after 2+ years we’ve stayed close and get together when everyone is back in town 🙂 Highly recommend their chicken biscuits!!! Me and Naveen are known for having an obsession with biscuits and this meal definitely satisfied the recent craving. If you sense a general theme of loving food with the first two bullet points, you are not at all wrong!

– I loved kicking off a new blog series about tips for brides on their wedding day! You can read the first post here about tips for the getting ready portion of the day. In the upcoming colder months since I won’t have as many shoots, I’ve decided to take some time to write out a bunch of longer-form educational blog posts for brides chockfull of useful tips for their wedding days. I hope that someday these will help them have a super smooth and relaxing wedding day! There’s the stereotype that all wedding days are crazy, something goes wrong and the timeline gets thrown out the window but I’ve never witnessed this in person. All of the photographers I’ve had the pleasure of working with have gone the extra mile beforehand to educate their clients about how long each part of the day realistically takes. So this is my attempt to do just that!

– Anyone else enjoy the unseasonably warm past couple of days as much as I did? I mean I know they’re not stellar for the climate, but I just have really been missing warmer days! I’m convinced I need to eventually move out to California….

– And speaking of California, I actually have a wedding consultation with clients who live in San Francisco tomorrow and I’m super excited to meet them virtually! They have a vintage travel themed wedding in the works which sounds amazing, such a unique theme!!

– I’ve had a ton of inquiries lately for portrait sessions within the upcoming Spring, so if you’ve had getting pictures taken on your mind, definitely reach out within the next couple of weeks because my dates are filling up super quickly!