Jon and Doms tell us their beautiful love story by bringing us back in time to when things were slower and life was easier. Because they are so passionate about the Filipino culture and about making past traditions relevant today, it was easy for the couple to pour their hearts out when making their engagement theme work–and we are so glad they did! Everything was so tastefully and mindfully done. They presented their story in chapters: pagtatagpo, pagliligawan, and pagsasama, representing each through simple gestures of love that were relevant to the storyline. All the details were consistent and true to the theme. They even chose Casa de Segunda, the house of Rizal’s first love, as their shoot location so they could really experience and showcase what it was like to fall in love during that time. From the farmlands to the antique Spanish-Filipino houses, the Filipino traditions were highlighted in a way that is fresh, new, and lovable. Scroll through this set from Atlas Studios and get to know the couple more through their answers below!
The concept of your engagement shoot is so on point! How did you come up with the theme?
“We’re really passionate about choosing Modern Filipino as our overall wedding theme because we love the culture and traditions that come with Filipino weddings. We realized that it’s not such a common theme and we loved having the opportunity to showcase how our past traditions can still be relevant to the modern bride and groom.”
What was your experience like during the shoot? What was your favorite part about it?
“We had so much fun working with Angelo and Karen of Atlas Studio because of how friendly, fun, and great they were at directing us since we’re both not that comfortable in front of the camera. Our favorite part of the shoot, aside from staying strong and taking pictures under the rain, was discovering our locations. We shot in Casa de Segunda, the house of Segunda Katigbak (Rizal’s first love), which gave us a sense of history and actually helped us emulate a love story of that time. Atlas also helped us find a random corn field (via Google Maps) off the side of the road that really helped us complete the beginning of the story we were trying to tell. Everything fell into place and we loved that sense of discovery.”
How did you choose your suppliers and how important is it to the success of your engagement shoot?
“We chose suppliers based on relationships. My sister is good friends with Atlas, and when we met them we felt there was an instant connection and flow. We also liked how they really focused on emotion and authenticity, which gave us confidence that our photos would have a different feel.”
“My sister is also friends with the stylist, Ada Laud, who worked closely with her to come up with clothes that represented different parts of a story.”
“For accessories, I personally wanted to wear earrings from Amami because of their advocacy to showcase and promote heritage jewelry and Filipino craftsmanship. For my shoes, I wore Muni Muni – a local shoe brand that is committed to ethical practices and providing opportunities to local artisan communities in the Philippines.”
“Choosing the right suppliers really gave us freedom to be creative with our vision and collaborate constantly with them.”
Can you tell us briefly about your love story?
“A joke we say is that we copied my parents love story. Like my parents, Jon & I both met in law school. Jon is from Cagayan de Oro while I’m from Manila (similar to my Mom and Dad). Just like them, we were blockmates (even seatmates) and after six years, we’re finally getting married. For Jon, I would like to say that it was love at first sight. And for me, I was drawn to his intelligence and humor.”
Are you going to have the same Filipiniana theme for your wedding?
“Yes, we are. We really wanted everything to be cohesive, from the prenup shoot to the actual event. Our wedding title is “Ang Kwento ni Jon at Doms” which is funny because it’s a little meta. We plan on really bringing this theme to life in our wedding (from styling to program).”
