December, for many, is the best month of the year. With dazzling festive decorations draped across the city and plans of reunions and parties penciled into diaries, it is indeed the most wonderful time of the year. Lorraine and Brian, however, had one more trick up their sleeves. They were getting married! A joyous occasion to top off the Christmas and New Year’s festivities. 

On a crisp December day, the groom and his groomsmen congregated outside The Mira Hotel, Hong Kong, framed with bright Christmas decorations. Brian was picking up Lorraine in her elegant white dress to Chinese Rhenish Church, Kowloon, where the wedding ceremony would  be held. Walking through The Mira with her arm around Brian’s, you could tell that Lorraine and her husband-to-be had a great sense of comfort within each other’s company as they smiled and chatted to each other. 

Outside the large wooden doors of the Chinese Rhenish Church, Lorraine’s father helped his daughter arrange her veil, a gesture of care and love. As the ceremony began, the bridesmaid and the groomsmen were led down the aisle adorned with flowers, by a dapper young boy and an adorable flower girl with a bouquet in her hands. Soon after came Lorraine and her father, as Brian stood on the altar with a proud grin on his face. Below the large, warmly lit cross, the couple said their vows to one another and were married. As Brian prepared to walk out with his newly wedded wife, Lorraine was so touched by the love she felt in becoming Brian’s wife that she reduced to tears. The soft winter sun shone through the clouds as if to celebrate Brian and Lorriane’s new marriage, which made the glowing garden behind the church a beautiful backdrop for photos. 

In the evening, the couple and their family and friends gathered at The Mira’s splendid banquet hall for their wedding reception. Brian and Lorraine ventured through the room full of round tables to the front, where their impressive, 5-tiered wedding cake waited for them on the blue stage. The couple shared a glass of champagne and made a toast to their supportive and loving guests. The rest of the evening was full of wedding cheer, love and laughter. Each raised glass for Brian and Lorraine was a celebration, for the couple’s new era of life together as husband and wife.

Photography: Patrick Photography / Venue: The Mira Hong Kong / Church: Chinese Rhenish Church Kowloon (中華基督教禮賢會九龍堂)

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  • February 23, 2023 - 2:29 pm

    Amy Lai - Nice Article !! Thanks for providing such valuable information about the Beautiful Wedding Hotels in Hong Kong.

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Nine months deep into 2020, it’s no surprise that COVID-19 has affected people’s lives in profound ways. The pandemic’s presence has permeated conversations, daily lives and future plans- often left tentative. Yet, for those who wish to keep things ticking along, many have had to make certain sacrifices and get a little creative (with full consideration of health and safety, of course.) 

For Yangie and Fouad, they decided to go ahead with their wedding. Adjustments were made to remedy the fact that Fouad’s family and friends in Lebanon and around the globe could not physically attend the ceremony. Using an iPad, the couple did a Zoom livestream with all of Fouad’s family and friends, allowing them to be virtually present on their big day.

The wedding ceremony was held at the exclusive and chic China Club in Central. Upon entering the club, I was met with a long flight of stairs with its walls covered in large majestic portraits and paintings. At the top floor, I reached a library with large wooden shelves filled to the brim with books, where the ceremony was to be held. The room’s vibrant mustard walls complemented the red tones of the wooden shelves and chairs, making the room particularly homey. There, I met Fouad, chatting to his family with his iPad sat on the spacious window sill whilst Yangie had her makeup and hair done in the room across the hall. 

Yangie’s close family and friends stood quietly, with smiles from ear-to-ear as Yangie walked down the aisle in her gorgeous wedding dress alongside her father. The wedding was charming and intimate. One of the most heartwarming moments was when Fouad’s mother made a speech after the wedding. Despite being across oceans, his mother’s expressed pride and love for her son brought Fouad to tears. Her blessings for the young couple were strongly felt, even through a screen. 

As they moved on to the Chinese tea ceremony, Yangie’s beautiful kwan kua suitably matched the stylish aesthetic of the room. The newlyweds poured tea for their seniors and received great blessings; even Fouad’s parents had their own tea ready and partook in the tradition! It was truly a delightful and endearing sight to see culture shared from afar. 

Photographing Yangie and Fouad’s wedding was a thoroughly enjoyable and enlightening experience. It is inspiring to see that people can be incredibly adaptable in times of hardship finding creative solutions to bring joy into their lives. Congratulations, Yangie and Fouad!

Photography: Patrick Photography / Venue: The China Club Hong Kong

 

 

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As a wedding photographer, I’ve had the honour of witnessing people from different cultures and nationalities come together as one through love. Jonathan and Florence are one of those couples. Florence, a local Hong Konger met Jonathan from Korea at a work event. Since then, their growing love for each other has stretched across three major cities- Seoul, Hong Kong and Shanghai.

The couple decided to host the wedding in Hong Kong, with a traditional Chinese tea ceremony followed by a classic church wedding at Kowloon Union Church. The bride and groom got ready at the Kerry Hotel as Florence’s mum lovingly helped dress her daughter in the elaborately detailed kwan kua. From the way her mother’s smile beamed, you could tell that she had a heart full of joy and love for Florence’s new beginning with Jonathan. Across the hall, Jonathan and his groomsmen suited up to prepare for their journey to the tea ceremony. 

A Chinese tea ceremony is typically a show of respect for the couple’s seniors, to receive their blessings and honour family bonds. As Jonathan and Florence poured tea for their respective parents and relatives, they were given a pair of striking gold dragon and phoenix bangles. The duo signifies an ideal partnership, and is said to bring beauty, prosperity, unity, harmony and balance for the lovers’ new journey together as husband and wife. A remarkable and wonderful blessing for Jonathan and Florence.

At the Kowloon Union Church later that day, Florence, in her long white veil, walked down the aisle beside her mother to meet Jonathan at the altar. For them, it was in God’s plan to bring them together, for their love to transcend borders, in anticipation for this big day in which their worlds will combine into one. As Jonathan lifted Florence’s veil and leaned in to kiss her, Florence gently wiped away her tears of joy as her and her husband truly began a new chapter in their lives together.

Surrounded by delightful friends and family, the newly weds greeted each table at their wedding reception with glowing smiles. Jonathan’s mum wore a beautiful hanbok, a traditional korean dress, in celebration of her son’s wedding and his new life with his wife.

It was a wonderful experience documenting Jonathan and Florence’s big day and hearing about their serendipitous meeting. It is incredibly endearing to see love flourish between people from all walks of life.

Photography: Patrick Photography / Venue: Kerry Hotel Hong Kong / Kowloon Union Church / Makeup Artist: SAYSO

 

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Deriving from its colonial history, Hong Kong is a unique meeting point of Chinese and Western culture, nostalgia and modernity. These qualities seep into every aspect of the city, from the architecture to its people. Dressed in both traditional Chinese and Western wedding attire, Janet and Grant’s pre-wedding shoot took them to the oldest Anglican Church in the Far East – St. John’s Cathedral, the Edwardian-style Hong Kong Museum of Medical Sciences, the modern Hong Kong city centre and Po Hing Fong, an area in Sheung Wan surrounded by old Hong Kong infrastructure. Janet and Grant’s pre-wedding shoot was not only a record of the couple’s love for one another but also a quintessential expression of Hong Kong’s essence.

In her flowing white wedding gown and his black suit and tie, Janet and Grant strolled hand-in-hand through the garden nearby, with St. John’s cathedral towering behind them. The scene looked like something out of an old English town. The greenery and the old monument made for a tranquil backdrop as the lovers glowed under the soft beams of sunlight. As if we were travelling in a time machine, I followed Janet and Grant into the city, reaching the realm of gridded, pristine, glassy buildings. Here, under the stacks of windows, Janet and Grant had left the old English town and were now a modern couple in an international city.

Now dressed in their mandarin collars, the couple ventured to Po Hing Fong, sprinkled with gems of old Hong Kong buildings and streets. We had seemingly transported back to the 1960s, as Janet’s vibrant, red qipao-esque dress and pearl necklace matched perfectly with the nostalgic aesthetic of the old tiled doorways and rustic gates. The many long stone staircases also served as interesting photo opportunities for Janet and Grant to showcase their affection as well as their pride in Chinese culture.

In an ever changing city made up of intertwining cultures, histories, the past and present, Janet and Grant’s love is an evolving constant amongst it all. Their love is genuine and honest but made richer too, by the couple’s own ties to Hong Kong’s fascinating qualities.

I really love photographing and studying elements of Hong Kong’s rich colonial history and thoroughly enjoyed helping Janet and Grant with their pre-wedding shoot. If you and your partner are curious about great locations for pre-wedding shoots, please don’t hesitate to drop me a message.

Location: St. John’s Cathedral / Hong Kong Museum of Medical Sciences

 

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In times of crisis, there is nothing that we need more than our friends and family, the sense of community and connection. To put simply, love is what we need to get through hard times. If COVID-19 has brought anything good, it is this particular reminder to never take your loved ones for granted.

But inevitably, the pandemic has been packaged with a platitude of challenges. Lion and Paul’s wedding plans were put in a precarious position by the virus. But after much debate, they decided to go ahead with the big event, with adjustments and full precautions, of course.

At this point in time, the government had not rolled out strict health and safety measures yet. Nevertheless, guests were told to wear masks and hand sanitizers were provided at the event, even though sourcing these supplies had been a struggle at one point.

Initially, the wedding was to be held at a church. However, the couple decided to switch to a lovely garden venue at House 1881 to ensure proper ventilation. This change was a blessing. House 1881 was truly a special venue to host an extraordinarily memorable day. The building had formerly been a Marine Police Headquarters and is now a refurbished and sophisticated monument that is open to the public as a hotel with restaurants and beautiful event spaces.

Much like House 1881, Lion and Paul’s wedding day was the perfect opportunity to reinvigorate the old – celebrating with friends and family, a rare occurrence in the age of the pandemic, as well as bringing a new chapter to the familiar love the couple had for one another. Both Lion and Paul had wonderful bands of bridesmaids and groomsmen supporting them as they prepared for their delightful wedding. The spacious grounds of House 1881 provided a soft and calming backdrop for the couple and their friends to enjoy each other’s company before the ceremony began. 

Imbued with the sweet and comforting feelings of nostalgia, Lion and Paul became husband and wife under a ring of delicate, pastel roses. Against all odds, the newly weds brought their crowd of friends and family to witness a truly heartwarming moment. Their union represents the resilience of true love, taking the best bits of the past and turning it into something greater and better.

Thank you Bride and Breakfast HK for featuring: Couple Shares How They Pulled Off an Intimate Wedding Amidst the COVID-19 Outbreak

Photography: Patrick Photography / Venue: House 1881 / Bride’s Gowns: Miss Bride Wedding Shop(wedding gown), 1.618 Couture and Bridal (red gown) / Makeup Artist and Hair Stylist: JUST an image / Floral Arch: Romance Wedding / Floral Design: Moment Florist

 

 

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