Courtesy of Limon Photography

Limon Photography
(919) 599-8109

sahid@limonphotography.com

Where are you based out of?

Sahid: I am currently based in Raleigh NC, however, I can travel for work to just about anywhere.

When and How did you get started in the South Asian wedding industry?

Sahid: Photography was one of my hobbies growing up.  My uncle was a professional photojournalist for a newspaper in Bangladesh.  I started doing some minor work in high school, and portraits in college, but didn’t pursue it professionally.  I had multiple friends complain to me that they were not happy with their wedding photographers, and what they had received after their wedding. I am South Asian myself, and I noticed that the local South Asian photographers were only about one things–money.  They had very little to no interest in the couple, and their work ethics and service were horrendous.  Though I had never covered a wedding, I knew that I could do a better job than them simply because I cared more for the photos.  One of my friends gave me the first opportunity and asked me to cover his walima. After covering my first wedding-related event, people were not only impressed with the work, but they were quite happy with the final product as well.  I took some time to really understand how weddings worked, and what aspects were important to the couple and the family.  After that walima, I fell in love with wedding photography…and never looked back.

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Why did you choose to pursue photography?

Sahid: Growing up, my parents wanted me to be the stereotypical Doctor, Engineer, or Lawyer that every South Asian parents want for their child.  After all, these fields often lead to very successful careers and a nice life.  However, I am sort of a nonconformist at heart, and I always believed that our generation can break the stereotypes that has been placed over the last few decades.  I believe that we can become successful in whatever field that we have our hearts set on, as long as we have a passion and drive for it.  Growing up, I studied the sciences, and pursued medicine.  I graduated with a BS in Biology, I took the MCAT, I even applied to medical schools and was awaiting various interviews.  However, as much as I like medicine; I absolutely loved photography and I knew that this was what I really wanted to do.  It’s not only my passion, but it’s my calling.  Choosing photography as my career was an easy decision for me, though I can’t say the same about my parents.  Not only do I love learning about photography and all its aspects, I absolutely love going to work and doing what I want to do.  However, at the end of the day, the thing that I love the most about wedding photography  is the expression of the client’s face when they see their images for the first time.  Just the pure excitement and joy they experience is enough for me to do what I do for the rest of my life.

Do you work exclusively on South Asian weddings?

Sahid: I shoot all types of weddings.  However, since I am South Asian, most South Asian couples feel comfortable with me and decide to hire me.  I understand the culture, the rituals, and the ceremonies.  As of now, 75% of the weddings I book are South Asian.

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Describe some of your inspirations.

Sahid: People will often say that their inspirations is some famous person that they’ve never met, and what they once did had an influence on their life.  This is not the case for me.  My inspiration is quite simple… it’s my mother.  I’ve known her my whole life, and she has influenced me more than anyone else in the world.  She taught me the value of hard work and dedication, as well as how a person deserves respect and should be treated.  Saying my mother is my inspiration may sound like a cliché, but the values she taught me is more important in a business than any course you can take in undergrad.  Treat people how you would want to be treated, and they will thank you for it.  Treat a wedding like if it was your own wedding, and the images will turn out great.  These fundamentals are often missing in the real world today, and is the reason why so many businesses are only about making a profit.

In terms of my photography, my inspiration comes from movies and magazines.  I am a big movie buff, so I often try to make my shoots almost have a cinematic feel to it.  I also like the glamor of the magazines, so I often try to incorporate a magazine type look into many of my photographs.  I am not a fan of old school traditional photographs, so I am always trying to push myself to come up with something a bit more edgy, and creative.

What are some mistakes you see most South Asian brides (and families) make?

Sahid: The #1 mistake that most South Asian brides and families will make is not understanding the importance of a good wedding photographer.  Let’s face it, us South Asians love a bargain, and we are always looking for the best deal.  However, the mistake that most brides (and especially their parents) will make is trying to hire a photographer based on their price tag.  A wedding is a very lavish event and will happen only once (hopefully).  It is also the most important day for the bride and groom.  Most parents and families will spend the majority of their budget making the wedding look spectacular, and then hire a cheap photographer to take snapshots that their own relatives could do.  If you are going to invest thousands of dollars on the ring, the dress, the venue, the flowers, the cake, and the food… you really need to invest just as much (if not more) to have a good photographer there to capture all of your investment.  After everything is done, the cake will be cut, the food will be eaten, the dress will go back in the special bag, and the flowers will wilt… but your photographs will be with you for the rest of your life. This is why I always recommend brides and their families to never cut back on a good photographer, since his/her work will always be with you.

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Do you only cater to certain budgets only?

Sahid: I tend to cater to brides who want quality photographs, and are not looking for budget photographers.  I have set prices and packages as well as an A’la carte system.  Usually, I tend to sit down with the bride, and we customize something specifically for her and her wedding.  Every client is unique, therefore every client should have a chance to get exactly what they are looking for.

What is your strongest area in photography?

Sahid: My strongest area is capturing the connection between each couple.  Whether we do an E-session, a couples session, shadi, walima, etc… I try my best to capture what makes each couple who they are.  In terms of photography, I personally think that my strongest area are Engagement sessions, followed by photo journalistic-type shots at the weddings.

What is your weakest area?

Sahid: My weakest area is getting distracted when I’m editing images.  Since I go through every single image individually, it takes me while to get an entire image done.  Any of my clients will tell you, that the time they wait is worth it in the end, since they love their images.  However, I also have the internet when I’m working… and youtube is such a distraction sometimes

How would you describe your working style?

Sahid: I like to describe my working style as almost Militant.  I approach every wedding very strictly and timely, almost like a soldier.  For me, everything has to be precise and perfect.  When I’m covering a wedding, I like to plan everything weeks in advance.  Most weddings, I start planning for it the day the couple sign the contract.  I try to get every detail possible about the wedding as well as the schedule of what will happen when.  I often visit a venue more than once before the wedding, just to see the conditions of light, and what I would have to do.  Everything is planned precisely, and there are backup plans to everything planned.  My goal is to have the bride stress free, so she looks her absolute best in the pictures.

Describe a particularly memorable wedding you’ve worked on.

Sahid: A memorable wedding I’ve worked on recently was a lavish Bengali wedding in New York.  You can read more about it, as well as see some of the images, here: http://jpgmag.com/stories/12187.

What’s your number one wedding tip?

Sahid: Never stop smiling on your wedding day… and a good photographer is well worth the money you invest in them.

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