00:01Some moments can't be rehearsed. They happen once and if you miss them, they are gone.
00:06That's where Ghanaian photographer Kwee Si Asante, Japan feels most at home.
00:10Weddings are very, very chaotic. They are full of emotions.
00:14So we have to try and position ourselves in a way where when those emotions happen.
00:18For instance, when the bride is getting ready and her mom walks in and then shares the first,
00:23oh wow, you're looking so good.
00:25It's supposed to be a happy, smiling moment, but you realize that the bride starts tearing up
00:28and you have to be ready to capture all of those things because those things happen
00:32and you might not get the same reaction again.
00:34So you have to be ready for moments like that.
00:37And have you ever attended a marriage ceremony where culture was present
00:41but you didn't truly understand it?
00:45Today, weddings are bigger, louder, more global.
00:50But beneath the aesthetics, some traditions still carry weight,
00:54even if not everyone fully understands them.
00:56I'm trying to use my love for photography, my love for weddings, my love for love to tell beautiful stories
01:03as I'm also enjoying my marriage and enjoying beautiful moments in my marriage.
01:07Most often, our style is natural light mixed with continuous light.
01:11So for a Chrissy and Bettina's traditional, the bride requested that we should bring a canvas backdrop for her look.
01:17And usually for something like that, I'll ask you what you're wearing.
01:19I'd like to see the colors in the kente so that can help me decide on the kind of backdrop
01:24that I will bring.
01:24And her kente had some pinks in there, so we brought a canvas backdrop that had some pink and blues,
01:29which I think honestly worked well for the look.
01:35In a time where weddings are becoming more resting, what does it mean to have a truly Ghanaian traditional marriage?
01:43A lot of things happen at the wedding day.
01:44Brides' dresses getting torn, the rain getting missing.
01:48A lot of things happen that people don't get to see.
01:50But we try at the end of the day to make sure that the bride and groom are happy, but
01:55I don't feel nervous.
01:55I just hope and pray that everything goes well and the bride and groom at the end of the day
01:59are husband and wife.
02:00Before the dress, the pictures, the party, there's a moment families take very seriously.
02:07Miss it and nothing else matter.
02:09Tradition is a very beautiful thing.
02:11And I decided to go with a traditional wedding because that speaks more about our culture.
02:17And I just like how the diary is taken and it's a beautiful thing to witness.
02:22It's just so beautiful.
02:23And I can't wait to meet my husband there and observe such a beautiful ceremony.
02:27Well, nice to be in Kente.
02:29So, yeah, we're going all out on the tradition.
02:33And I just want to have a good day.
02:38The marriage ceremony begins with knocking, a respectful request from the groom's family, not for permission, but for honor.
02:46And this is led by an emcee, well vested in customs and tradition.
02:54The dowry, which is presented to the bride's family, consists of drinks and wrapped gift items.
02:59But what has actually been exchanged?
03:01Yeah, I would say things presented to the bride's family.
03:05I would say Bible is number one.
03:08Then drinks, accessories for the bride.
03:11Then money for the in-law.
03:13Let me emphasize on this, the money issue.
03:16The money doesn't mean we are selling the woman to the groom, Debbie.
03:22What we normally use the money just, you know, to seal the marriage.
03:26In our family, we normally request for whiskey or other castle bridge.
03:30So, when somebody comes, you can use that drink to show the person, I know, as soon as he has
03:36been taken off from the market.
03:38Then comes the moment Chrissy never looks away from.
03:41Eyes searching, hands hesitating.
03:44A second that tells the truth.
03:46Some bride and grooms are very playful.
03:49They are very fun already.
03:50They have a certain kind of vibe.
03:52So, but couples like that, we don't do much.
03:54We just tell them to be in the moment.
03:55And as a professional photographer, you have to be in a space where you have to allow the moments to
04:01happen naturally and not coach.
04:03Sometimes you have to tell them to probably turn this way.
04:06Or maybe there are moments when you have a bride and groom who, when they book us, they say,
04:09Oh, please, we've seen your pictures, we've seen your videos, we know how you're able to pose.
04:13So, please, we are no good.
04:13We don't know how to pose.
04:14So, please pose us every step of the way.
04:16And so, we have couples who give us that autonomy to do that and the couples too who know what
04:23to do.
04:23Today's wedding, the bride was very, very fluent.
04:26She was very poised.
04:27She knew what to do.
04:28You just have to tweak it a little bit.
04:29So, when you get a couple like that, you just sit back and allow them to do their thing and
04:34just capture the moment.
04:35In Ghanaian culture, marriage is never just between two people.
04:40So, to those witnessing it all, how does it feel to be part of it?
04:44Today is extremely special to me.
04:46Because it's not just my sister's wedding, but it's also my best friend's wedding.
04:52To see her this happy, to see her this colourful.
04:55I mean, if you see how beautiful she looks, it means everything to us.
04:59So, seeing my sister getting married to the love of her life today makes everything about today so special to
05:05me.
05:06It's a very colourful day.
05:07We are so happy to be here.
05:10What makes a Ghanaian marriage truly Ghanaian is not what you see first.
05:15It's what you understand later.
05:17And through Kwe S's lens, these are not just memories being kept.
05:21They are meanings being protected.
05:23What is that?
05:25You, you, you...
05:33Ya.
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