Heather Essian Portrait Arts | blog

be sure to update your bookmarks and subscribe to the new blog address www.HEATHERESSIAN.com

this blog will no longer show updates. we’re going to a blog-site only web presence. i’m excited about this because my website was being neglected and i hadn’t updated it in over two years! for me, there’s no sense in updating a blog and a website. yay for cutting down on responsibilities!

when i opened the package that cindy and peter’s album arrived in i gasped! it was just so beautiful…big and beautiful. a 16×12 canvas covered flush mount album. i was so proud flipping through the pages, seeing how lovely their images looked. the album tells the story of their love and wedding day perfectly.  it was just another reminder as to why it is so important and wonderful to invest in good photography as well as an album that will showcase your images well! they gave me full creative control and let me design it as my heart desired-i’m blessed to have such great clients that trust me to do so. it really felt like an art piece to me .

i received the magazines that cindy and peter’s wedding was featured in this week! it’s always so exciting to be published in magazines and it could not be done without the exquisite taste of those i work with. they are beautiful inside and out and their wedding was beautiful as well!

to see more of the design go here

{back of the album}

josh and penny met in the second grade, and from what i hear, have loved one another ever since…what great story! josh is a very talented musician who also sang a song he wrote during the reception to penny about their love and how “she’s had his heart since the second grade.” awwwwwwe…it was a beautiful wedding! in case you missed penny’s redonkulously gorgeous bridals, you can see them here. thank you to jenna palomino for second shooting with me!

wedding venue: Piazza in the Village

i actually built an action inspired by penny’s wedding appropriately titled “penny.”















yes, that is snow! and they were freezing.






gorgeous details!!

penny and josh, it’s been so much fun working with you two and your families! thank you for having us be a part of your special day!

this is cindy and peter’s traditional tea ceremony…the colors are just gorgeous! i really enjoyed documenting this ceremony. traditionally the grooms family comes bearing gifts and food including a roasted pig for the bride to show that they can provide for the bride. (hope i got this right cindy )

Receiving Bride at Her House

On the day of the wedding, the procession of the groom’s family is led in specific order. The first person would be the representative of the groom’s house followed by the groom’s father, the groom, then the rest of his family and close friends

In the procession, the groom, his family and friends bear elaborately decorated lacquer boxes, covered in red cloth. Inside these boxes are gifts representing the wealth that the groom’s family will bring to the bride’s family. Gifts are betel, fruit, cakes, a roast pig, fabric, and an abundance of jewelry for the bride. Usually, the number of gift boxes varies between 6 or 8, but never 7 or 9 since it is seen as bad luck. However, it depends on personal view and might be reduced to 2-3 boxes.

Upon arriving at the bride’s home, the procession lights fireworks to alert the bride’s family, who then lights its own round of firecrackers to welcome the groom’s procession. Members of the procession are introduced to the bride’s family, and the bride’s family introduces its members to the procession. The groom presents his gifts to the bride’s family, and he is given permission to greet the bride, who is finally brought out.

The permission ceremony begins in front of the bride’s ancestor altar. The bride and groom burn incense sticks, asking for permission from the ancestors to bless them. The couple turns and bows to their parents, gives thanks for raising and protecting them. The bride and groom then bow to each other.

A formal tea, candle ceremony and speeches follow. While tea has always been an essential part of Vietnamese life, Vietnamese tea culture is not as complex or ritually rigid as its counterparts in China, Japan or Korea. Nevertheless, a traditional wedding is about the only time in a Vietnamese person’s life that a formal tea ceremony is essential.

The bride and groom, in front of all their guests, will serve tea (or wine) to their parents. Each parent will then give advice about marriage and family to the couple. A candle ceremony will follow, symbolizing the joining of the bride and groom and the joining of the two families. The groom’s gift boxes filled with jewelry will be opened by the groom’s mother, who will then put each piece on the bride for good fortune.

meet cindy and peter. two incredibly kind people who share such a sweet love for each other. i had the opportunity to photograph cindy and peter’s engagement session over a year ago (before i was to be their wedding photographer) and had such a blast getting to hang with them and get to know them during that session. so when cindy contacted us asking if we would shoot her wedding, i was ecstatic! cindy’s style is like none other.  there are so many gorgeous images, i wish i could share them all! a big thank you to the wonderful kari crowe for sacrificing a few days and coming with me to houston to shoot the wedding with me! she photographed the guys getting dressed below…

Event planner (they did everything from flowers to lighting):  Tom Stringer from Darryl and Co,
Videographer:  31 Films,
Hotel: The Houstonian
Cake:  Susie’s Cakes,
Planner:  Summer Hutchens from Summer for your Memories,

Dress: Vera Wang / Shoes: Christian Louboutin

such an emotional first sight…{above}

congratulations cindy and peter! i’ve loved every minute working with you two!

****stay tuned for cindy and peter’s traditional tea ceremony photos.*****