I've heard this several times over the past week as I describe to others the event I shot Saturday. I Googled it and didn't really get anywhere. Not because there are no mentions online of Lovefeests or feests themselves, but because every site I found was written in Dutch. My Dutch being a little fuzzy, I was unable to translate. So I'll do my best to describe a Lovefeest from my perspective because I can honestly say I have attended one.
A beautiful free-spirited lady fell in love with a Dutch man on her world travels and they decided to spend the rest of their days celebrating their love for each other. To kick off that chapter of their lives they threw a grand shindig in the back yard of her New Braunfels home. There were skits performed by loved ones, songs, readings of poems and stories, flower petal throwing and a grand circle of love hand shake exchange. I had never seen anything like it, but then I don't spend much time in Holland. There was nifty cheese in the shape of wooden Dutch shoes, though. And anytime you involve cheese, I'm all over it. What really tapped the evening off for me however, was the arrival of the Mariachi band.
So I guess a Lovefeest, or at least the one I attended, is a mixture of Dutch culture, with earthy love, Texas heat and a little sprinkling of Tejano.
This event was a challenge for me to shoot because of the darkness of the night. The only lighting was a string of lights around the yard and some tiki torches. As a result I had to shoot at a very high ISO, which introduced quite a bit of noise. I did learn a few things about noise reduction while processing these images and I had a great time playing with my starlight filter. The couple's romantic dance was to Van Morrison's Moondance, which I found very appropriate so I had the music playing on my computer as I processed these images. It helped set the mood.
Thanks for including me in your Lovefeest Arlayne and Martin. You guys really know how to throw a party. And thanks for the cheese!
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