Sara Gray Photography Portland, Oregon

Our last few days in India, we visited some really cool sites. One of our favorites was Humayun’s Tomb in New Delhi. They say it’s like a small version of the Taj Mahal, which we weren’t able to see on this trip because of the way our travel schedule worked. But this was a pretty close second.

This guy was one of three elephants I saw while we were in India, all from a distance. We saw loads of animals, though: goats, cows, water buffalo, monkeys, pigs and so many dogs I could hardly believe it.

This was one of the most colorful and interesting places I’ve ever been. I love the beauty that’s there, even though a lot of it comes with sadness. Here’s a final note for my final day of photos from India: A little video taken on the street in Ranchi to give you a little taste of what it’s like in real time.

Happy New Year! I’m excited to share some more travel photos from India this week. While we were there, we spent a few days in New Delhi kicking around town and trying to get our bearings — it is such a big city! It’s actually second in the world in population, just behind Shanghai. I love how you can see Eric in the right-hand rearview mirror in this auto-rickshaw.

Above, a memorial to Gandhi.

One part I loved about my trip was the opportunity to participate in things with actual local people. As part of the wedding, I got to partake in the Mendhi ceremony and I came home with my very own (hot pink!) saree.

I’ll be back on Thursday with a handful more of my India travel photos!

Whenever I reflect at the end of the year, I’m always so grateful for the experiences I’ve had. It’s crazy how amazing this year has been. I’m so fortunate to have had the experiences I’ve had! Here’s a quick recap (I’ll try not to wax poetic too much…)

First, the bread and butter: The weddings! I photographed 19 amazing weddings in 2011 and enjoyed every one of them. My favorite part about my clients is that they always bring a piece of themselves into their wedding planning, which means every celebration is unique. Thanks to each of you for allowing me to be such a big part of your weddings!

Revisit the 2011 weddings: Lucy & Darren | Brooke & Galen’s Elopement | Joe & Naomi | Allison & Matt | Patricia & Vincent | Stephanie & Peter | Sarah & Trevor | Morgan & Robert | Lesley & Trevor | Didi & Kevin | Brooke & Galen’s Happily Ever After Party | Jaclyn & Toshio | Angela & Luke | Emily & Jeff | Rosa & Chris | Kirsten & Cody | Denise & Zach | Jasmine & Chris | Denise & Greg | Jocelyn & Praket (Note: A couple of these weddings will be blogged in January — stay tuned!)

In addition to the amazing weddings I’ve photographed this year, I have some other projects that came to fruition in the last year. In January, I launched I Live Here:PDX with my dear friend Erin McGovney (we’re celebrating our anniversary in two weeks — come to our party if you’re in Portland!)

In March, with my friends and business partners Amy Trang and Allison Doty Schexnayder, I launched MarryThis! — then we relaunched it in November. It’s going strong — have you downloaded a free guide yet?

I moved into a new office space in March, then another (same building!) in November — stay tuned in the New Year for more photos of the new space and perhaps a little gathering!

I also got to travel the world this year, for work (two destination weddings!) and for pleasure. I went to New York City, Washington D.C., Chicago, Boise (three times!), Maui, India, Amsterdam, Spokane & Coeur d’Alene. Phew! I need a vacation from my vacations.

All in all, it’s been a really amazing year personally and professionally. I turned 28, I celebrated four years of marriage with my boo Eric, and I’m in such a good place. This next year is going to be the biggest yet for Sara Gray Photography, so if you want me to be a part of your wedding this coming year, let me know soon!

Happy New Year to everyone, and may you all have a happy and healthy 2012.

Hi all! This weekend I’m in Spokane with my in-laws having a blast and celebrating Christmas. Nearing the end of the year makes me a little nostalgic for the year that’s wrapping up, and I just wanted to say thank you all for your business and your support of me as Sara Gray Photography gets another year older. This next year is shaping up to be the biggest wedding year yet, and I feel incredibly grateful to all of you for being with me on this crazy trip.

I hope you’re all getting a chance to relax with your families and celebrating the holidays.

The night of Jocelyn and Praket’s wedding was so intense. It was intense for a few reasons: First, it was the first Hindu wedding I’d done, so I was unfamiliar with the traditions. Secondly, there are about 750 guests present at the celebration and it was an absolute hotbed of activity. Third? Well, check out all this color. Talk about sensory overload.

In the Indian tradition, things go in a different order than we normally do them here. First is the reception, where all the guests can come in and wish the bride and groom well, giving them gifts and saying hello. It’s like a giant receiving line that just goes on and on.

After the reception and after many guests had something to eat (trust me, there was LOADS of food at this party!) the bride and groom and their family went upstairs to begin the ceremony, which is a pretty long ceremony filled with many small acts along the way. The ceremony’s rites are in Sanskrit, and a priest leads the gathering.

This wedding was so incredible, but also one of the most difficult weddings I’ve photographed. One of the reasons? Check out all these other guys I was competing with for a good spot, good light etc. Many of the videographers had old-school bright video lights mounted to the front of their cameras, which made for some pretty wonky light. It was hard work!

What an honor, though, to be able to be this close to two really wonderful people as they were married. They went through this experience with us nearby, and I feel it was such a privilege to be there for them and with them.

Eric really had the chance to be there with them: Below, you can see him in the top right corner. He was asked to step in as Jocelyn’s “brother” to help with a few of the traditions. Here’s he’s refilling her bowl so that she can sprinkle it on the ground as they walk around the fire together.

I think Jocelyn was so beautiful in her wedding saree and veil — she told me during the trip that this was the last thing she thought her wedding would be when she was a little girl, but I think that’s how life works. It’s always surprising, isn’t it?

Saying thank you in a blog post seems so trite and little compared with the gratitude I have for these two for trusting me to travel across the world with them to capture their wedding. But I’ll say it anyway: THANK YOU, Jocelyn and Praket. You two are amazing and this was one of the most incredible experiences I’ve had. Here’s to many years of happy marriage that started with one crazy wedding.

I hope you guys are ready for more photos this week from my trip to India, because I’ve got loads to share and this is the part in the story where everything gets really colorful. Let’s pick up where we left off: The next night after the Mendhi ceremony was complete, there was an event with lots of singing and dancing. Mostly family members attend this event, so it’s smaller but it was held at the wedding venue too. We ate and danced, and family members old and young prepared songs to sing or dances to perform in honor of Jocelyn & Praket’s marriage.

Jocelyn got ready for the event in the first of two sarees she would wear throughout the week’s festivities. I love the way the Mendhi looks on her hands.

The colors of all the sarees and fabrics in the room was pretty incredible that night. Above, some aunts and cousins sing a song together.

At one point, a little dance party broke out with Jocelyn’s friends from home and Praket’s cousin (below). Jocelyn and Praket even performed a dance together that they’d been learning most of the week. All in all, it was a really fun event and chance for Jocelyn to get to know some of Praket’s family better.

The next morning, Jocelyn had to get ready for the big night: the actual wedding. It was the last night of celebrating, and about 750 guests were invited.

Below, Jocelyn’s anklets, which were passed down from Praket’s grandmother (and their wedding rings). On the right, the necklace that Jocelyn would wear for the wedding.

A whole team of women worked hard to get her hair and makeup done, and then to get her dressed in her saree.

She looked so beautiful in all her regalia — and this was even before her veil went on! The level of detail was so amazing and gave me so much to photograph. But for the rest, you’ll have to wait until Thursday — then I’ll be sharing the last of the wedding photos and you can see how it all came together!

In the days leading up to Jocelyn and Praket’s wedding, there were lots of traditions and preparation to go through. On the day Eric and I arrived from New Delhi, Jocelyn and Praket were working with a dance instructor to learn a choreographed dance that they’d perform, and the Mendhi process began for many of the women. Family was also arriving every day and there were lots of meals served by cooks hired by Praket’s family.

I really enjoyed being part of the Mendhi ritual. It’s almost like a shower, with many of the women crowded around, hanging out, chatting and laughing while the henna is drawn on and then you wait for it to dry. Two henna artists worked two straight long days to finish all the art. It’s such a process!

First, the ladies draw on the designs by hand. They’re really amazing and intricate, and the speed at which they can do it is pretty amazing. Thirty minutes later, they dab a mixture of lemon oil and sugar on it, which helps it set, and then about 30 minutes later they dab it again with mustard oil. You have to sit still and let it dry for about another hour and then you scrape all the henna off. The first day, the markings are a bright orange color and when you wake up the next morning, it’s darker. They say that the darker your henna markings are, the more your husband loves you. Because my skin’s so fair, my henna was pretty dark and Eric got congratulated quite a few times.

Below, the ladies hanging out during the Mendhi ritual (and some of the guys too). Tuki, Praket’s sister, is having hers done.

Soon it was Jocelyn’s turn. Below, the artists work on her arms and then they moved to her feet, which is an extra step only for the bride.

Jocelyn’s family arrived the next day and they had their first meeting with Praket’s parents over some snacks. It was so fun to be in the room as they got to know each other a little.

Below, Tuki and Sandy (Praket’s sister and Jocelyn’s sister) share a hug.

Next week I’ll be back on the blog sharing loads more photos from Jocelyn and Praket’s wedding!

I’m so excited to start sharing photos from my trip to India and Jocelyn and Praket’s wedding. Our two-week trip was amazing, and I took an absolutely ludicrous number of photos. Because of that, I’m breaking my sharing of the photos up into some chunks. This week, I’ll be sharing some travel photos from Ranchi, the city where the wedding was, and some wedding prep photos. Next week, we’ll get into the thick of it with lots of photos from the wedding and wedding festivities. Then I’ll take a little break, and later on I’ll share some travel photos from New Delhi and from Amsterdam, where we stopped on our way back. Here are some of my favorites from Ranchi. It’s a smaller city in the east of India and it’s very naturally beautiful. I love all the color and texture that we found there.

I love this blue bicycle below. In fact, I loved all the bicycles we saw in India. Most of them are very old and have a really cool style, and people would be riding them with bare feet or carrying baskets of stuff with them on their way.

We saw a lot of street food, but couldn’t eat it. It looked so amazing, though.

One morning, Eric and I were up at about 6 a.m. because of jetlag and we went out on a bit of a photo expedition as the sun rose. Because the streets are normally so crowded, it was a fun time to see some of the details without the chaos of trying to watch out for cars and bikes and motorcycles.

Whenever kids would see us, they would run over and say hello or want to take their pictures with us. These kids let me take their photo one morning.

I’m so lucky that I got to take this trip and see this part of the world! I’ll be back on Thursday to share some prep photos from Jocelyn and Praket’s wedding.

I think most of you know that I like to have projects to work on and keep things interesting. Well, over the past few months I took some time to develop a fun idea into a super-helpful product. After photographing more than 100 weddings, I’ve seen firsthand the things that brides forget or need in a pinch. So I developed this cute little kit that you can take along on your wedding day and be totally covered. Best of all, it’s tiny at 6×6 inches and will easily tuck into your bag for wedding emergencies.

Each “For the Bride” kit contains: Band-aids, white chalk (for masking stains on white cloth), a mini lint-roller, breath mints, fashion tape, bobby pins, needles and thread, tissues, blister bandages, safety pins, pain reliever, stain remover, clear nail polish, scissors, chocolate (the good kind — I promise!) and emery boards.

They sell for a cool $30, including shipping. I think you probably need one. So go pick one up!

Of course, these little guys would make a really fantastic gift for the bride-to-be in your life. For Christmas, for her shower, just because.

It’s been a little while, but if you’ve been following along, you’ll remember when my friend Erin of Foosie Design and I teamed up and held a contest to give away a free engagement session and a set of save-the-dates! The couples who entered were so cute that we had to pick two winners. Holly and Andrew took their photos awhile back, but Erin and Simon waited awhile — and boy, was it worth the wait. These two were amazing! Just check out these balloon-inspired photos taken all over Portland!

I love the dynamic that Erin and Simon have together. They were such a blast to photograph!

Erin’s laugh was totally infectious. What a gorgeous bride she’s going to be!

Erin and Simon: You guys are amazing. I had so much fun doing this session with you guys and I can’t wait to see your save-the-dates!