Calling three different countries home during their courtship, Jane and Craig knew they wanted their wedding to be a celebration that included not only of their own Thai and Scottish traditions, but also some of the cultures they'd gotten to experience together. Hosting two gorgeous ceremonies at the stunning Siripanna Villa Resort in Jane's hometown of Chiang Mai, Thailand, Jane and Craig treated their guests with authentic Thai tailors and fabulous local food, and they even found a Scotsman in Chiang Mai to play the bagpipes. Top LA wedding photographer Caroline Tran was on-hand to document it all!

The Newlyweds: Jane and Craig

Junebug: What were your most important goals in planning your wedding?

Jane and Craig: The most important goal for us was to plan a celebration that included important aspects our two cultures, Thai and Scottish. We wanted our guests to share the experience of both our families’ traditions.

Junebug: How would you describe your personal wedding style?

Jane and Craig: We wanted our wedding style to be interactive with a lot of different activities for the guests to engage in. During the morning Thai ceremony, we hired Thai tailors to dress the guests in traditional Thai dresses and shirts. We also set up a food market for the morning reception so that guests could see how various dishes are made by local Thai chefs. For the Scottish celebration, our Scottish friends and family held an impromptu ceilidh (Scottish dancing) and we found a Scotsman in Chiang Mai to play the bagpipes.

Junebug: Where did you hold your wedding and reception, and why?

Jane and Craig: We held the wedding and the reception in Chiang Mai, Thailand at the Siripanna Villa Resort & Spa because of the beautiful scenery, rice paddy setting and traditional Thai house on the hotel grounds. The bonus was the ever helpful hotel staff and the beautiful bedrooms for the guests. Chiang Mai is where Jane’s family is from and it is a great holiday destination for our friends and families. Activities before and after the wedding included elephant riding, meals next to a waterfall and temple visits.

Junebug: What three adjectives describe your wedding best?

Jane and Craig: Traditional, multicultural and personal

Junebug: Tell us a little more about you met and how you incorporated your story into your wedding day.

Jane and Craig: Craig and I met in Mexico and we lived in three different countries together before we were married. Our guests came from a variety of countries and we wanted to share some of their culture together with our own families’ cultures. We asked our Mexican friend to sing a love song in Spanish that he wrote and we asked our American friend to sing Scottish songs during the reception. We wanted our wedding to be about the positive influence our family and friends in our lives.

Junebug: What were you looking for in a photographer?

Jane and Craig: We wanted a photographer who had a beautiful vision and could highlight the details of the wedding decorations, the events and the people. Since our wedding had so many cultural components, we wanted a photographer who could capture the sentiment of the various styles in a classic, elegant way. Caroline Tran was the perfect photographer for our wedding.

Junebug: What specifically drew you to Caroline Tran and her imagery?

Jane and Craig: Caroline Tran’s images are always timeless and beautiful. She captures the perfect moments of the day and is able to present the events in great lighting with friendly encouragement of where we should stand and how to pose. We love the photos that she has taken of other weddings and were so delighted when she agreed to photograph our wedding.

Junebug: What did you enjoy most about working with your photographer?

Jane and Craig: Caroline is always a professional and has such a warm personality. We are so lucky to have her as our photographer. She answered all of our questions and had great advice for when to plan the photograph sessions during the hectic wedding day.

The Photographer: Caroline Tran

Junebug: How did you approach this particular wedding and what did you most want to capture during shooting?

Caroline: I wanted to capture the marriage of their two cultures:  thai and scottish. They put a lot of thought into bringing Scottish elements to Thailand, from the bagpiper to the kilts, to the food. Their authentic Thai ceremony was so beautiful, and I wanted to really highlight these cultural details.

Junebug: Were there any special photographic requests from the couple that made this wedding especially exciting creatively or personally?

Caroline: No requests, but they did mention that they would be doing a lantern lighting ceremony at the end of the night and that was just stunning. Dozens of lanterns released into the sky.

Junebug: What was the most fun part of this wedding for you to photograph?

Caroline: The fact that it was a destination wedding in Thailand gave the wedding great energy. Everyone was on vacation and it just made the day so special. My favorite part to shoot was the Thai ceremony, and the traditional Thai architecture in general was just really beautiful.

Junebug: What kind of equipment did you use while shooting this wedding?

Caroline: Mostly my Contax 645, with some on my Canon eos3 and 5D Mark II.

Thank you so much Jane and Craig for sharing your gorgeous wedding and story with us, and thank you Caroline for the stunning photos!

To learn about all of the wedding professionals who contributed to this wedding day please visit Jane and Craig's page in our Real Weddings Library.