This was the 4th day of consecutive shooting and I was not a tad bit tired. In fact, I was more excited about our trip to Pangkor Laut as I have never been there before.

Before I start writing about this amazing wedding, I’d like to say a big ‘THANK YOU’ to Jocelyn who recommended us to Jeff, the General Manager of Pangkor Laut, and to Jeff for his warm hospitality and giving us the opportunity to cover such an extraordinary event!

Our journey began at 6am. Mr Marge picked Steve, Shahnaz (makeup artist) and I up at my apartment and we headed to Lumut. We hopped onto a speed boat and reached the breathtaking island of Pangkor Laut within 20 minutes. Jeff briefed us on the agenda for the next three days and we were introduced to two videographers, Aaron & Eugene (both of them from Penang!) afterwhich we recced the place of Sofia’s arrival – the helipad!

Sofia arrived with some friends and family on two YTL executive helicopters. Her arrival was like no other. Just imagine a scene from a Hollywood movie – strong winds blew as the rotor blades propelled and shook up all the debris on the ground. it was loud too and we could hardly keep our eyes open with all that debris in the air. I hid behind my camera and continued to snap away nervously. The experience was surreal!

Our next task was even more exciting! The crew, us and the videographers were to go up on the helicopter and take aerial snapshots of the island! I have been on a helicopter before when I visited Niagara Falls but this was a completely different experience! We went around the island twice and it was a spectacular view from above but even more amazing was our experience on board the USD15 mil executive twin engine helicopter!

Eugene & Steve enjoying the ride…

Special thanks to Aaron for taking the next few shots. (Aaron was seated in the front seat with the Captain and he had a small window to shoot out off)

Aerial view of Pangkor Laut…

That’s YTL Princess…

Thanks Ravi for helping us take this shot!

The rest of the Sunday was spent chilling and tanning by the pool (sorry no photos of that!) followed by a sumptuous buffet dinner at the Feast Village before we went back to our luxurious Garden Villas and rested for the next day. (Yes, each one of us had our own garden villas!)

Sofia & Islam are from Khazakstan and they currently live and work in Dubai. Their wedding was on Mon and it was an intimate occasion with a total of 24 guests who arrived in Pangkor for the celebration. The day started off early in the morning with the registration and signing of marriage in Lumut. Steve covered this while I worked on my tan with Shahnaz by the pool. By noon, the majority of their friends and family arrived in a yacht so we covered that bit before heading out for a quick lunch. The couple started getting ready at about 4pm and then proceeded to an outdoor location for the intimate Akad Nikah.

Her hot Valentino shoes!

The Nikah was followed by a romantic sunset cruise on the luxurious YTL Princess yacht where everyone enjoyed some canapes and champagne.

We arrived back on the island and headed to Emerald Bay (voted top 50 beaches in the world!) where the party was held. The venue was tastefully decorated with red roses, crystals and white paper lanterns that dangled across the area. The evening was followed by speeches from both sides of the parents and dancing at intervals. The live band played during the first half of the evening and later on, the DJ played techno remixes which everyone LOVED to dance to! Sofia’s two boys were doing somersaults and shuffling to the lively beats!

And their reaction to durians…

Not surprisingly, noone at the party except for Sofia’s dad liked it.

As opposed to our FIFOTO saying that it never rains on our outdoor shoots, it actually started to drizzle midway through the dinner. However, that didn’t stop anyone of us from shooting or them from dancing!

Jeff organized a 9-island adventure cruise for the entourage the following day. We sailed on the YTL Princess to Pulau Lalang and had a BBQ lunch. A group of them went fishing off a coast nearby while the others remained on the island to enjoy the sun, sand and sea.

And one last shot of the crew…

Steve and I left the island at 3pm on a speedboat and headed back to Pangkor Laut to change and get ready for our departure. (We had to leave on Tuesday itself as Steve had a flight to catch the next day to Melbourne) I managed to slip in more tanning time by the pool before we left for KL.

On our journey back, I thought of when we’d be back to the lovely island again for another assignment! Or perhaps, a holiday?

Once again, thank you Jeff, for having us!

Congratulations to Sofia & Islam!

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