Looking for pre-wedding photoshoot in Odisha? Here’s all you need to know…

Bhubaneswar: These days, social media remains flooded with pictures of happily married and about-to-be-hitched couples. Candid shots of the family and relatives, cool selfies of the bride and her girl squad, quirky groupies of the groom with his buddies and poignant snapshots of the wedding rituals are not only grabbing envious eyeballs, but also giving major couple goals to everyone.

In the to-do wedding list, a pre-wedding shoot is beginning to trend among prospective couples in Odisha. From shooting in the rains to those at specially-picked destinations, all care is taken to freeze romantic moments of the brides and grooms-to-be.

Odisha Sun Times spoke to a few shutterbugs and newlyweds, to find what’s trending in Odisha wedding season!

The idea

While some couples want to portray the journeys of love stories, others want to announce the date through these photo-ops. “We wanted to reveal the date of wedding to our friends and relatives.  A creative video or a nicely shot picture is a unique way of expressing our excitement and happiness about the most important day of our life,” says Sushree Patra Prusty, who posed for a romantic video with her to-be on Marine Drive, prior to her wedding in May last year.

These photoshoots are not only fun to do, but also give couples a break to reminisce moments such as their first date or first meeting. Besides, one can also steal time to be with their partners before getting tied up in the wedding preparations.

“Though it may seem tedious at first, but couples are sure to cherish the moments later in time when these photos will remind them how it all began,” says Bhargav Mishra of Shutter Souls.

Themes

Portraits photography and destination shoots are favourites among couples in Odisha. Exotic locations, shoots involving favourite cuisines, sports and even pets are some themes that are currently trending in Odisha.

Couples are also given the opportunity to shoot in two different looks—western and ethnic. Many a time, the photographer dons the hat of a director. Clients also pick ideas from social media platforms and cinema. Overhead drone shots and props such as cut-outs and cold fire smoke add to the ‘wow’ factor of the pictures.

Locations

“Puri-Konark Marine Drive, resorts and beach stretches along Puri, Konark, Chandrabhaga, Gopalpur, besides Deomali and Similipal are some stunning locations where we have clicked pictures,” said Manas Ranjan Kar, a wedding photographer. Generally, clients are encouraged to seek prior permission from authorities for shooting in hotels, added Udayan Sarathi of UD Studios.

Odisha has natural landscapes, amazing architectural places and of course, not to forget a lot of temples, adds Bhargav.

Botanical Garden, Jaydev Vatika, Mukteswar temple, Rajarani temple, Dhauligiri, Khandagiri, Udaygiri are some of the scenic spots in the Odisha capital that are chosen for photo sessions. Similarly, Naraj and even Barang railway station have been the backdrops of some stunning photo-ops.

“A lot of Odia couples or Odia people with partners from other states are based outside Odisha, like Hyderabad, Mumbai, Kolkata, etc. and prefer doing their shoots there. I did a project in New Delhi, where there’s a location set up exclusively for these kinds of shoots,” said ace wedding photographer Boon Patnaik, who has shot couples right in the middle of showers in the rainy season!

The candidness

Though the pictures look candid and effortless, it takes a lot of effort on the part of the photographer and the couple posing to get the emotions right. “In the beginning, it seems very awkward to pose, hold hands and do all the gooey mushy stuff in front of the camera, but after a few clicks, you kind of get used to it,” said Sushree.

A few photographers remark that it is not a cakewalk to shoot with couples who are having an arranged marriage, because their chemistry is not very evident. “In these cases, the photographer has to play cupid and make them comfortable with each other to get the desired shots. I took classes from international photographers Jesh de Rox and Jerry Ghionis to help me grasp the nuances of understanding and capturing the loving gestures, glances, expressions and emotions,” explained Boon.

The duration

While shooting in nearby locations takes a day, outstation shooting can stretch up to 2-3 days. “Normally we start early in the day and continue till late evening with breaks in between. We don’t have a specific time limit and keep on working if the couple is comfortable and good pictures are being clicked. However, if anything goes wrong, we call off the shoot and rearrange everything,” said Sujit Jena of Creative Graphers.

After the shoot, editing and post-production takes anywhere between 7 and 15 days. From adjusting contrast to adding filters, this is where the magic happens. Most couples also request for a short video as a curtain raiser to the entire wedding. According to Bhargav, it takes more than an hour to edit a single picture!

Packages

Pre-wedding photoshoots are complimentary with the wedding photography and videography package. However, depending upon the requirement and the number of days of shoot, one can select different combination of lensmen for different events pertaining to the wedding. “Such kind of a shoot would cost about Rs. 12,000 for a minimum of 12 and maximum of 25 pictures and in case, of a video shoot, the cost may go up to Rs. 25,000,” estimated Udayan. The travel cost of the photographer, in case of a destination shoot is also borne by the client, he added.

Similarly, post-wedding photoshoots are also not unheard of. “Our pre-wedding photoshoot could not be conducted due to weather playing spoilsport. So we opted for one after the ceremony, just before honeymoon,” said Abhinita Mishra, who got hitched a few months ago.