[CMW] Pink N' Pampered for Kids

Hester arrived on Samui in December 2012 and couldn't have come at a better time, although I had already handed in my resignation to the hotel, we instantly got along and became great friends. We've now known each other for 1.5 years and I'm so happy to call her a friend, not only is she a great hotel manager, but an AWESOME Aussie as well.  

And living in Thailand, speaking Thai most days... well lets just say another persons Aussie humour is welcomed with open arms. ;) 

One day she asked me if I'd like to take part in a charity auction she was planning at her hotel, the Centara Grand Beach Resort Samui. I said yes, as I love doing anything that's going for a good cause.

The auction will be held this Saturday 2nd August, from 6 until 8.30PM. All proceeds will go towards the Samui Learning Centre for Special Needs.

So please, if you're on Samui as a tourist or you're a local and have lived here for ages, please come along for a great night of PINK! The dress code is Pretty in Pink, ladies! 

Tickets are 1,700 THB per person and it includes a 45minute spa session at Spa Cenvaree. 

Pink N' Pampered for Kids, Koh Samui Charity event held at Centara Grand Beach Resort Samui, Charities in Thailand, upcoming Charity evening on Koh Samui

Items up for auction will be from: 


The auction item I will be offering is a one hour Love Story Photography session, which also comes with hair and makeup at the Centara Salon! 

Charity Auction item, up for auction, Love Story Photography, Koh Samui Charity Auction event, Charity event on Koh Samui, Cherry May Ward Photography and Centara Grand Beach Resort Samui, all proceeds go to Special Needs School of Samui


I can't wait to see you there!

Happy Wednesday! xoxo




..............................




[travel] Upcoming trip to Australia!!!

I've been holding onto this VERY EXCITING news (who know how!?) and keeping as quiet as I could since last December now, fearing the worst... that somehow, something might go wrong and my biggest dream for the year might not come true.

BUT now? Well, I'm soooo happy to say that it's come true! Nek actually got his visa granted, so we've booked the flights and we will be off to AUSTRALIA!!!!

travel to Australia, holiday in Australia, trip to Australia, photographer in Australia, photographer travelling to Australia, Australian photographer

I can't begin to tell you all, or even try to put into words how STOKED I am about this trip. For one, I'm dying to see my family again (as most of my friends and clients know) all of my close family and I made trips here and there within just a few months of each other, meaning we all saw each other around the same time and haven't since. So it worked out that it's been nearly two years since we all saw each other in person (I mean, I'm sure my brother will look completely different than when I last saw him - I'm talking different coloured hair and new piercings/tattoos, people!) and all I can say is... I love the internet. Thank god for Viber. and Skype. And Whats App. Oh, and snapchat, which is apparently the only social media/application cool enough for my brother to use, so I have the app to communicate solely with him! haha ;)

For another, well, I get to show Nek around the AU-land! I just know he's going to LOVE it!! When we first met, Australia was the country he most wanted to go to, and we are finally getting the chance to go together! I'm sure there will be surfing. And shark catching (by mistake, as my dad did yesterday morning). And Great Ocean Road.. road trips.

Back to the awesome dealeo/announcement thing we've got going on...

I just wanted to say, if you or any one you know and love would be interested in having Cherry May Ward photograph you while we are there... please feel free to get in touch. You can email me at hello@cherrymayward.com, I can't wait to hear what you have in mind!! :)

We will be spreading our time between 3 cities, because I have family ALL over the place haha ;)

**EDITED:

First up is Gold Coast (for one night) the we are off to Cairns. We will arrive 15th October 2014 for one night& day in the beautiful Gold Coast, then we will fly to Cairns the next day on the 16th October and stay approximately 2.5 weeks then head to Sydney for 1.5 weeks, then Melbourne for, you guessed it, two weeks! Then we fly back to Thailand just in time for the busy season here in December.

Australian travel itinerary, photographer travelling though Australia, travel to Cairns, Sydney and Melbourne,

AUSTRALIA TRAVEL ITINERARY 2014:

Gold Coast, Queensland
15th October 2014 - 16th October 2014 (A full day & a half!) 

Cairns, Queensland
16th October - (approximately) 30th October

Sydney, New South Whales
(approximately) 30th October - 14th November

Melbourne, Victoria
(approximately) 14th November - 29th November


I am hoping to get lots of family and friends time in of course, but would also like to devote some time to photography while there, as I'd LOVE to get to go back more often, and there's nothing I love more that travelling and working at the same time...  :D

The dates above are approximate at the moment (although they won't be much different, just depends on the cheapest domestic flights at the end of the day), the two certain dates are the arrival and departure dates (and that's how we like to travel haha, not too much planning!) .

I really am open to anything, I'm a couples & wedding photographer, so I LOVE photographing love... think engagement photography, proposing, elopements, a lifestyle shoot with a couple who loves to SURF, any kind of styled/conceptual shoot with a model or couple, I'd love to hear from you!

Ohhh and it's my dream to shoot a couple on top of the cliffs down south along the Great Ocean Road, I just want to put the idea out there, because I know it's do-able, and would be so amazingly beautiful!!!

Also, if you are a photographer... I'd love to meet up! I love meeting new photographers and making friends!!!

A very HAPPY WEDNESDAY, from an oh-so-excited Cherry!

xoxox


..............................




[wedding] Pam & Matt, Villa Tassana Pra, Choeng Mon, Koh Samui

When Pam started telling me about the finer details of her day, I got so excited, knowing that I was her photographer... I mean, THIS VILLA!! And then there's the stunning dress she had tailored, the DIY details, everything.

They flew all the way from Seattle, USA to have this beautiful destination wedding on Koh Samui, and I think it was definitely worth it! Their day was so special with just a few close friends attending and making a week-long holiday out of their trip. :)

Pam actually organised this whole wedding by herself, she contacted all the vendors and decorated the villa, it really was such a lovely day to be a part of and felt so personal to them! I'd been lucky enough to come up to the villa a few days before the special day to have dinner with them, and felt so welcomed! Now I'm sad it's all over already, but I'm so excited for Pam and Matt's travel-honeymoon, which they are currently on... Vietnam, India and then Italy!

As soon as I met them in person, I could tell why they are meant to be together. Sitting at the dinner table surrounded by their friends, and Pam's Mum, Betty... he explained intricate details of travel locations, cultures, food while although everyone else was beginning to get tired from their long flight, she just bubbled over with excitement at the thought of marrying him in a few days time.  :)

The villa they decided to get married in - after searching high and low - was Villa Tassana Pra, a beautiful Thai style villa pitched on top of a hill in Choeng Mon with views from the Big Buddha in Bang Rak, all the way to Chaweng Beach.  For those of you not familiar with the island just yet... that means sunset AND sunrise views!!! Can you imagine?!?

wedding at Villa Tassana Pra, Koh Samui, Private Villa wedding in Thailand, Thai style villa with sunset views, beautiful villa for a wedding in Thailand, Cherry May Ward Photography

tailor made wedding dress, short wedding dress with long detachable skirt, wedding dress with detachable skirt, Koh Samui Villa wedding, beautiful wedding in a Thai Villa on the hills

Pam had this beautiful dress tailor made after buying all the fabrics herself, she knew exactly the look she wanted and I think the results are amazing!! It's one of the coolest wedding dresses I've seen yet! 

It's a knee length dress with red silk underneath a layer of white lace, and she also had this beautiful detachable chiffon skirt with a red silk belt with beaded details on it.... SO PRETTY!

red silk and white lace wedding dress with detachable chiffon skirt, taylor made wedding dress,  beautiful wedding dress, stunning white and red wedding dress, Thailand private villa wedding, Koh Samui Tassana Pra villa wedding

Pam's mum, Betty helped a lot with the planning process and they loved spending the time together, choosing out details for her dress :)

wedding dress details, red silk with white lace, white chiffon skirt with red silk belt with beaded details, Koh Samui villa wedding, Mother of bride on wedding day, Thailand wedding

The villa is furnished with some of the most beautiful Thai style decor, and the WHOLE place is built from this gorgeous dark polished wood and has a really timeless, classic Thai feel to it... (wait 'til you see the gardens though, they are AMAZING too!)

beautiful Thai style furniture, peacock mirror, beautiful colours, polished dark wooden villa in Thailand, Koh Samui classic Thai villa perfect for intimate weddings

Pam had these amazing views over Bang Rak beach while doing her makeup, so pretty!

room with a view, Koh Samui classic Thai style villa on a hill, beautiful views of Bang Rak Beach, Thai ornaments, Thai decorations, Beautiful Thai Villa on a hill, Koh Samui, Thailand, villas perfect for wedding in Koh Samui

She also did an amazing job at finding the best people to work with on the island all by herself (or maybe I'm just biased, haha!), she had organised for Sally who is a freelance Hair and Make-Up artist on the island (and a talented one at that) to do her hair!

hair and make up artist ooh samui, freelance wedding hair and makeup on Koh Samui, Thailand, Cherry May Ward Photography

K. Jew of OK Flower Samui to make her some beautiful flower arrangements out of peonies, roses, lilies and orchids :)

Beautiful floristry, beautiful flower arrangements on Koh Samui, Thailand, Samui Vendors, Koh Samui wedding vendors, Ok Flower Samui, Cherry May Ward Photography

The villa is looked after by the most kind and lovely Thai people, who I met during my first visit for dinner... They really took great care of Pam and Matt and everyone who stayed at the villa, helped with information about Thailand, the Thai culture and encouraged everyone to try lots of delicious Thai food (which they cooked themselves for us!). There were even bowls of local seasonal Thai fruits including my personal favourite, the mangosteen! I'd definitely recommend trying as many foods and fruits as possible during your visit to Thailand, you might just find something you LOVE! :)

bowl of seasonal Thai fruit, mangoes, mango, mangosteen, rambutan, the most delicious Thai fruit

Since Pam and Matt decided to have such an intimate wedding, Pam had planned to do everything herself, so their friends all pitched in on the day and helped in little parts from decorating the villa, to making the cocktails... it was such a fun and friendly day to be a part of :)

Thai villa on the mountain, villa with sunrise and sunset views, Koh Samui classic Thai villa, DIY decorations for a wedding, colourful DIY wedding decorations, fun decorations, colourful decorations, wedding decor, wedding decorations, do it yourself, DIY wedding in Thailand, Cherry May Ward Photography

Koh Samui Villa wedding decorations, Thailand villa wedding decorations, colourful villa wedding decorations, DIY decorations, ribbons on chairs, flower petals in banana leaf cones

maid of honour bouquet, colourful bouquet with peonies, roses and orchids, Thailand villa wedding decorations, colourful villa wedding decorations, DIY decorations, ribbons on chairs, flower petals in banana leaf cones

K. Jew did a beautiful job at creating this beautiful flower arch for their wedding ceremony, the colours worked together perfectly and made for a bright, fun aisle to go along with all of Pam's other details perfectly. 

Koh Samui villa wedding ceremony, colourful wedding ceremony decorations, aisle decorations , wedding on a hill, Thailand wedding with a view, Koh samui wedding on a hill with a view, wedding ceremony with a view

wedding ceremony next to pool, intimate villa wedding ceremony by the pool, Koh Samui wedding ceremony with a view, Cherry May Ward Photography, cone with flowers and petals to throw

Beautiful Koh Samui wedding ceremony set up, wedding ceremony with a beautiful view, married on a hill, married as the sun sets, Koh Samui villa wedding, Thailand wedding ceremony on a hill with a beautiful view

The gardens and surrounding grounds at this villa are simply STUNNING and made for the perfect background to such a relaxed intimate wedding party. :)

Koh Samui wedding at private villa, Villa with beautiful grounds, beautiful gardens, Thai Villa with beautiful gardens, Thai Villa with surrounding gardens on a hill, bride getting ready, bride's reflection in mirror

I LOVED the one side hairstyle Sally came up with... as I said - TALENTED woman!

 bride's hair and makeup Koh Samui, Koh Samui hair stylist, freelance wedding hair stylist, Thailand villa wedding, Koh Samui villa wedding vendors, bride getting ready, bride getting into dress

Then it was time for Pam to get into her dress and get a few quick photos before the wedding ceremony... :)

bride getting into wedding dress, mother of bride and maid of honour helping bride get into dress, happy moment, Thailand wedding, happy Thailand bride, destination wedding planning, Koh Samui destination wedding, Happy bride getting married on Koh Samui

bride and groom portraits before wedding ceremony, happy couple, cute bride and groom, married in Thailand, happy couple married on Koh Samui, Getting married on a Thail island, DIY wedding in Thailand

Julie was Pam's maid of honour and helped Pam with so many details on the day and leading up to her wedding! I loved that her dress matched the aisle decor as well, very pretty!

maid of honour at the aisle, Koh Samui wedding with colourful details, Thailand wedding colourful DIY decorations, destination wedding in Thailand, Cherry May Ward Photography

Ohhh, this is ALWAYS, hands down one of my favourite moments!!! When Matt first saw Pam in her dress, I mean what a happy looking man!

bride and groom first see each other, bride walking towards the groom, bride walking down the aisle, Koh Samui villa wedding, emotional groom watching the bride, Thailand wedding, intimate destination wedding

And then a kiss on the cheek, aww!

Koh Samui intimate wedding ceremony, bride and groom kiss on the cheek, Thailand wedding ceremony, small wedding in Thailand, wedding with a view, beautiful destination wedding with a view

Destination wedding in Thailand, Intimate villa wedding on a hill, Koh Samui intimate wedding ceremony, Thailand wedding ceremony, small wedding in Thailand, wedding with a view, destination wedding with a view

bride putting the ring on Groom's finger, happy bride and groom, happy intimate destination wedding, Koh Samui villa wedding, put a ring on it

THIS was hilarious! When their friends threw the flower petals up as Pam and Matt walked back up the aisle, Matt got hit in the head with a cone... haha, someone threw the whole one at them! Ooops! 

just married, throwing flower petals over the bride and groom, walking back up the aisle, happy, intimate destination wedding in Thailand, Cherry May Ward Photography

happy bride and groom, walking back up the aisle, happy intimate wedding, beautiful bride and groom

wedding dress blowing in the wind, unique wedding dress, destination wedding dress, beach wedding dress, hand tailored wedding dress, stunning chiffon wedding dress,  unique white and red wedding dress, Beautiful bride and groom,

Here's a lovely photo of EVERYONE... as you can see, it's such a lovely intimate wedding! 


Pam and the girls...

 FUN wedding party in Thailand, Fun wedding, Fun bride! happy bride, married on Koh Samui at Sunset,

Matt's friend made these delicious looking Piña Coladas in coconuts!!! I just LOVE the vibrant colours of everyone's outfits against the grass and coconuts!

Piña coladas in coconuts, Thai coconuts, cocktails in coconuts, colourful wedding party, colourful destination wedding

mother of the bride's boutonniere, peony buttonhole, pink peony boutonnaire, bridal bouquet, beautiful bouquet for the bride, destination wedding flowers

bride with her mother, groom with his best friend, destination wedding in Thailand

Matt and the boys... hilarious!

 groom with his friends, fun wedding photos, bridal party photos, posing men, wedding party poses, Destination weddings in thailand

groom's buttonhole, buttonhole for the groom, white orchid buttonhole, orchid boutonniere, grooms drink, wedding details, summer destination wedding, summer colours, white, colourful wedding, summer wedding

villa wedding on the mountain with sunset views, beautiful views from private villa wedding, Thailand villa wedding, views of Bang Rak and Bophut beach, Koh Samui private Thai villa

Sigh... I CANNOT get over this view, stunning!

Thailand villa wedding with the most beautiful view, view over the water, sunset view from private villa, wedding on to of a hill with sunset view on Koh Samui

Thailand villa wedding with the most beautiful view, view over the water, view with pool over the sea, infinity pool, wedding in Thailand, sunset view from private villa, wedding on to of a hill with sunset view on Koh Samui

There was even this cute swing in the garden where we had to go and get some photos!

view over the pool, bride and groom across from an infinity pool, bride and groom with a view, grid and groom sitting on a swing, Private villa wedding with a view

I LOVE these photos!!!

bride and groom sitting on a swing, kissing on a swing at sunset, beautiful sunset, bride kissing as the sun sets, beautiful photos of bride and groom kissing

bride and groom portraits in Thai villa gardens, fish in pond in gardens, beautiful bride and groom portraits in Thai gardens, destination wedding, classic Thai style villa

beautiful Thai gardens, flowers floating in water, statues in the ponds, classic Thai villa, beautiful gardens

lotus in pond with bride and groom in front of Thai villa, beautiful Thai villa on top of a hill

fun bride and groom, bride and groom walking in thai gardens, water ponds in Thai garden, beautiful bride and groom photos, Koh Samui villa wedding

The gardens at this villa are so stunning, we especially loved the little pavilion right on the pond's edge. These little oven air sitting areas are common in Thailand and are called Sala(s). Their purpose is traditionally for the communities to use as resting spots or a meeting place, somewhere where the local people can come to be together... sometimes you'll see them on the side of main highways in Thailand in rural areas, or just in a central area of a community spot. 

beautiful photos of bride and groom sitting in pavilion, bride and groom sitting in Thai Sala in the garden

bride and groom sitting in Thai Sala or Pavilion, beautiful thai gardens, air grass, beautiful gardens, Private Thai villa

Uhhh, how CUTE are these two?!?!

happy bride and groom photos, fun bride and groom photos, beautiful and cute bride and groom, happy couple, bride and groom in love in Thailand, beautiful destination wedding portraits, destination wedding in Thailand, Cherry May Ward photography

Then we were able to sneak off to the beach for some gorgeous photos just as the sun was setting. Pam's chiffon skirt blew in the wind while they looked into each others' eyes :)

billowing wedding dress, wedding dress flowing in the wind, beautiful bride and groom portraits, bride and groom photos on the beach at sunset, Koh Samui bride

bride and groom kissing on the beach, destination wedding on Koh Samui Thailand, beautiful wedding photos, wedding dress blowing in the wind,

 beautiful photos of newly wed couple on the beach, photos at Big Buddha beach, Koh Samui, destination bride, destination wedding on the beach in Thailand, Cherry May Ward Photography

Matt wanted to carry Pam along the beach and I'm SO happy he did, I absolutely love these moment we captured!!! So special!

groom carrying bride along the beach, beautiful photos, intimate wedding portraits on Koh Samui, wedding photos on the beach after sunset,  bride and groom having fun on the beach, bride and groom being themselves, just married couple walking on the beach, groom carrying the bride, Cherry May Ward Photography

I think these two photos are the perfect end to a gorgeous wedding and truly sum up Pam and Matt as a couple, they love travelling and are very much a team, such a beautiful couple.

black and white wedding portraits, wedding portraits of bride and groom in the water, on the beach, beautiful photo of bride and groom standing on a rock in the sea at sunset, just married, newly weds on Koh Samui, destination wedding in Thailand, Cherry May Ward Photography

beautiful photo of bride and groom standing on a rock in the water, bride's dress blowing in the wind, Koh Samui wedding destination wedding, passionate wedding photos, Cherry May Ward Photography


I hope you enjoyed this post and seeing the photos from Pam and Matt's gorgeous wedding and reading a bit about their story! 

Happy Saturday! xoxo


..............................

[holiday] Valentina & Roman, Chaweng Beach, Koh Samui

Tina contacted me before their holiday to ask about couples photography, and to my surprise, said she is a model! They wanted some lovely blue skies in their photos, which is exactly what we had planned, and in the end it worked out perfectly!

I met Tina and Roman at their hotel to get to know them a bit more, and over their two weeks stay in Thailand I we met up 3 times!! They came to see us at Mini Bar too!  It was so lovely to get to know them as a couple. These two are SOO cute together, you're in for a treat!

We decided to spend our session getting some photos along Chaweng Beach, where the water is a nice clear blue this time of year so was the sky, what a perfect day!


couples holiday photography on Koh Samui, blue skies, couple photos with blue sky, beautiful blue sky

Tina and Roman are from Slovenia, and it was their first time to Thailand, so they enjoyed it here on Koh Samui so much!  My first question to Roman was "Are you a model too?", later when I introducing Nek to them both, he asked the same thing, haha!



Thailand couples photography, blue skies, clear water, tropical island holiday photos, Koh Samui beautiful Thail island

At first Tina tried to pull some 'work' poses on us but we soon got her out of that! She was saying Roman was calmer than she was for their session because they've never had their photos taken together before!


Couple walking on the sand bed, couple with reflection in the water, blue skies, blue sky, Koh Samui, Thai island, tropical island photos,


AWWW, I love these two photos!!!


happy couple walking on the beach, hot day, hot weather, beautiful day with blue skies, happy couple, couple in love walking on the beach, Thailand photos, Koh Samui photos,

Tina got into some more comfortable clothes and we got a few more fun photos! 

beach holiday in thailand, beach holiday, photos, Koh Samui, tropical island, Thai island, palm trees, palm tree shadows, clear blue water, hot, heat, hot weather,

Pretty palm tree shadows!


Koh Samui blue skies, palm trees, Thailand

Couple walking on the beach, Koh Samui, Thailand, Chaweng Beach, Professional Photographer


beautiful photos, Koh Samui, Clear water, blue skies, blue sky, couples photography, Thailand wedding photographer,

Perfect CLEAR water :) 


We were actually so lucky to have a breeze as well that day, because it was SO HOT to photograph (and be photographed in!), poor Tina had to take her makeup off because it was melting after 5 minuted in the sun!

Koh Samui photos on the beach, Clear water, Best beach with clear water on Koh Samui, Thailand, Chaweng beach, popular beach on Samui

Koh Samui, Samui couples photos, windy day, beautiful day, blue sky, clear water, sunny day, tropical island photography, Thailand tropical island photos,



For the last part, we wanted to get some photos in their swimmers, after all they are on the beach on a hot day, so why not? I love for my photography to be more of an experience, for my couples to have great memories of spending that time together, so that the photos reflect their happiness and emotions they were feeling at the time!  

To me, photos always mean more when you memories are attached to the feeling in that moment, so when you look at the images, you remember the feelings you felt. <3 

Thailand beaches, Thailand beach photos, Koh Samui beach photos, Couple at the beach, Couple on Chaweng beach, sunny day, Thailand perfect weather, perfect Thailand holiday, Koh Samui professional photographer

Samui, Love heart, heart in the sand, couple in love, beach photos, beach photography, Thailand beaches, Koh Samui, Chaweng Beach


HAHA, Roman didn't tell her or me that he was going to splash her!! He just did! What a priceless reaction though ;)

Couple splashing each other, Thailand, Beach photos, Koh Samui, hot day, happy couple, fun couples photographer in thailand.

Uhhh, like I said, SOOO cute!

Couple talking on the beach, lying on the sand, cute couple at the beach, Koh Samui beach photography, Koh Samui Beach photographer, Couple in love,


couple drawing love heart in the sand,  heart in the sand picture, Koh Samui, Thailand couples photos, professional photographer in Thailand


happy couple on the beach, Thailand beaches, hot day on Chaweng beach, Chaweng beach, Koh Samui, Samui, island, thailand tropical islands

What a beautiful moment, when I look at this photo, I feel like I'm intruding on a private moment! Sigh...

beautiful photos of couple at the beach in thailand, Beach photos, Koh Samui, Samui couples photographer, Hot day, beautiful day, Professional photographer Koh Samui, Thailand tropical island,


And to end, I think this photo is perfect! We were all so happy with the photos and awesome memories we had created and desperately needed a COLD drink, so that's just what we headed off to do. 

happy couple on the beach, beautiful couple, happy couple on the beach in Thailand, Koh Samui


Hope you all have a LOVELY Monday!



..............................