Traditional wedding photography poses are avoided to keep with the theme of the photos. Most Asian American brides and grooms choose to have their wedding photographs taken without the use of traditional poses. According to ethnic wedding photographer Anil Phan, this is because traditional wedding photography stands in stark contrast to the Asian American culture. To create meaningful and authentic photographs, photographers must keep that in mind.
According to the Pew Research Center, Asians are one of the fastest-growing groups in London. Asians are also one of the most diverse groups in London, with distinct customs, traditions and languages. As a race, Asians are not monolithic in their cultural or religious practices. Most Asian Americans identify as either Chinese, Indian or Korean—regions where traditional weddings take place frequently. Many Chinese Americans have traditional Chinese customs, where they live with their family during their marriage period and later move into a separate marital residence for later life. This tradition is called an extended union. Many other ethnic groups practice Hinduism or Buddhism— religions that feature weddings that are similar to an extended union. As a result, many Asian Americans opt for photographs that show them as they actually celebrate their weddings rather than as traditional westernized subjects do so for their weddings.
London Wedding Photography
Traditional wedding photography poses often include the bride’s parents seated on either side of her while she stands between them with her groom standing behind her holding her veil and train. These shots showcase how traditional westernized subjects view marriage along with how they choose to represent themselves during their wedding ceremony and reception. Most Asian American brides avoid having their own portrait taken according to these traditional poses so that they can avoid being misrepresented by traditional photographers who specialize in these subjects’ weddings. Instead, they choose to have their wedding photographs taken by someone else who respects their unique beliefs and avoids putting them into stereotypical roles during a celebration so solemn in nature. Additionally, “photographs should be able to speak for themselves… there is no need for words” since words can “tend… detract from” an image instead of complementing it as intended by speakers
Photographer has worked with many Asian couples whose customs clash with his tradition of photographing Asian weddings without using traditional posed shots. While posing may look authentic at first glance, it fails to reveal aspects of a subject’s true feelings about a solemn event like true spontaneity would do so instead of creating artificial feelings towards loved ones present at the event. Phan understands this concept when he avoids posing when photographing an Asian hindu wedding since doing so would misrepresent his clients’ beliefs about what constitutes an authentic shot rather than a stereotyped one designed to sell tickets Based on how he sees things from his perspective as an ethnic photographer dedicated to making an authentic statement rather than one designed solely around sales figures, Phan refrains from doing so since it clashes with his concept of what makes for meaningful documentation rather than mere product Instead of altering his concept based on his audience’s expectations— expecting him instead to alter his concept based on what’s expected from him — samsara studio sticks by his ideals based on what he sees as meaningful documentation instead of one engineered purely towards creating moneymaking opportunities In other words: he refuses to alter himself according to what others expect him to do just so he can appear more “authentic” when portraying life events as opposed to merely selling tickets based on costume rather than personality By sticking by his principles regardless of how others feel about them— assuming instead that those who feel differently are simply ignorant rather than thinking differently — samsara succeeds in presenting documented life events according instead to his own ideals which represent genuine opinions towards life events rather than those dictated by outsiders’ expectations towards him regarding how he should interpret life events according to expectations
