Derek & Minori

A Traditional Wedding in Japan.

Hayden Phoenix had the opportunity to capture Derek and Minori’s beautiful Japanese wedding. He shares the details and his stunning images below.

Having shot Derek & Minori’s UK wedding in the spectacular pavilion in Brighton I was over the moon to be asked if I wanted to head over to Japan to shoot their second wedding.

This was to be a traditional Japanese wedding in a Buddhist temple and so the day started with an incredibly detailed bridal prep for Minori.

This aspect of the day was fascinating to photograph and included traditional make up, elaborate headwear and jewellery, multilayered wedding kimono, a large wig and finally the tsuno-kakushi.

The literal translation of tsuno-kaksuhi is a ‘cover for horns’ which is said to hide the bride’s horns of jealousy’. These headdresses date back to the 14th century Muromachi period.

From there we went into the temple for the ceremony which again included many traditional elements such as the Harai-gushi which is a purification ritual and the drinking of sake by the bride and the groom which is said to ‘seal’ the marriage.

Group photo’s were followed by a ride in a traditional Japanese cart pulled by one of the temple assistants then a boat ride with a symbolic firing of an arrow by the groom.

A glorious feast of sushi and all manner of seafood was served by the Bride and Groom (as is the Japanese custom) then more rituals including the kagami-biraki ceremony in which the lid of the sake barrel is broken open by a wooden mallet and the sake served to the guests.

Next was the mochitsuki ceremony. This is the custom of pounding large amounts of mochi rice into soft, stretchy and sticky mochi! Using a giant hammer and a huge mortar, one person hammers down on the mochi while another person adds water and flips the mochi over in between pounding to stop it from sticking. It is a technique that takes a lot of coordination.

Many speeches, musical performances and more sake was followed by dancing and then finally more traditional Japanese games involving teams battling it out performing various tasks.

Prior to their wedding in Japan, Derek & Minori married in a Civil Ceremony held at the Royal Brighton Paviliion, UK. Red Carpet Video were on hand to capture all the details of their day. Watch their fun cinematic wedding trailer below.

The perfect Partners

Photographer: Hayden Phoenix  // Ceremony: Shinmeiden temple, Takamatsu City