The evening prior to their wedding had the skies filled with rain and thunder, so on this beautiful sunny day in St. Catherines, amidst changing cloud patterns in the sky, the day went off well with the outdoor ceremony, which can be a gamble anytime ceremonies are planned outdoors. Indoors, their venue had an amazing modern-rustic vibe combined with many personal touches woven into their day. Out on the lawn of this amazing winery, Dave and Seetha were married while following a mix of both their cultures from Guyana and Sri Lanka with many traditions such as a traditional Christian reading and elements of the Poruwa ceremony, a traditional Sri Lankan Sinhalese ceremony.

Some of the traditions include the bride and groom stepping up to the poruwa (a beautiful, decorated wooden platform) with their right feet, on which their ceremony is performed. The poruwa represents the house the couple will share and is symbolic of their marriage and the start of a new life. While on the poruwa the bride and groom are given betel leaves by the Shilpadhipathi (the person performing the ceremony) and they return them to him as a symbolic offering to the gods. The couple also performs a sequence of exchanging and dropping the leaves to the ground, this is said to dispel any negative energies. In addition to common features of any ceremony, this ceremony includes the tying of pinky fingers, done by a maternal uncle, after which water is poured over their fingers with holy water and chanting by their mothers and aunts that represents a blessing for their life as one. Another feature of this ceremony is that a family member breaks a coconut into two parts and this is meant to cast away misfortune and bring blessings to the new couple.

Start to finish this was a tight-knit group! The day was filled with moments unique to Dave and Seetha that made their visual story uniquely their own. From the matching tuxedo for Charlie (he is the little furry one) to stunning images inside the winery to hilarious moments pitting the bridal party ladies against the guys, we documented this day in a way that is sure to bring a smile for many years to come each time this couple look back on their visual story. Okay, but seriously, at one point the girls thought they were outdoing the boys during the post-ceremony portrait session that the boys quickly came up with a way to outshine the lovely ladies. So, what did they do? Scroll down a bit and you will see the boys caught with their pants down! Now, that’s commitment. Let us call it a draw, as everyone was simply stunning on this day.

As with any wedding we went throughout this day using a photojournalistic approach which allows us to simply capture the day in its authentic setting without changing or altering the mood from which the couple has set out (of course, set aside from the portrait section of the day). Without further delay, here is their visual diary. We wish all the best to our couple Dave and Seetha!

 

Location & Catering              –             Hernder Estate Wines

DJ                                          –             DJ Kushmin

Videographer                        –             Jake Rajsky

Cake & Desserts                   –             Shehara Vanniasinkam

Bridal Dress                          –             Scala Bridal Collection

Groom Attire                         –             Medocino, Wedding Attire

Bridal Rings                          –             Peoples Jewellerys & Blue Nile Wedding Bands

Groom Ring                          –             Northwood Rings

Limo                                      –             Conventry Connections

Flowers                                 –             Clippings Niagara

Table Decor                          –             Ali Express