CHARLENE AND VALENTINO / VOW RENEWAL
A couple of emails from Singapore to Switzerland and back and two Facetime calls— that was all it took for Charlene, Valentino, my assistant and I to find ourselves in this charming alpine village called Grindelwald. Nested in the heart of the Alps, at the foot of the Eiger, amongst lush green pastures as far as the eye can see, this peaceful setting let us ease into the shooting. A pale sun highlighted our first photos with its soft, warming rays.
The adventure could only be complete with a trip to one of the surrounding majestic mountain peaks. We hopped into a cable car to conquer the 2’600 elevation meters to the top and walked a short distance in the slippery spring snow. The latter was especially tricky under Valentino’s elegant shoes, while Charlene was making her way with her huge dress preventing her from seeing where she was setting foot. Both of them managed without slipping or falling, which we were very impressed about.
We quickly forgot about the difficulties of the terrain, as a vast area of glittering snow was opening before us, leading straight to the blue and white structure of the Eiger, the Mönch and the Jungfrau as our backdrop.
After a lunch break and a change of outfits, we set out for the second part of the shooting in a different area behind the mountain restaurant. This time we were greeted with wandering clouds and rising fog, which we welcomed as it gifted us with a different atmosphere for the photos. We sighed in relief and could hardly believe our luck as the first raindrops hit the cable car’s window. Having just escaped the incoming rain, we were already on our way back down.
As we ended our day we dropped Charlene and Valentino at their Airbnb and drove back to Zurich with a complimentary noodle soup to-go that they gave us on the way. The perfect snack to process all our impressions from this beautiful day.
