Rabbi keen

On Tuesday, I had the chance to go to a Ger Hassidim wedding in central Jerusalem with AFP photographer Menahem Kahana.

Living in North London, I’m used to the sight of members of the Hassidic Jewish faith and their particular style of Spodik hats and long black coats but to find myself in among hundreds of men and boys as they celebrated a wedding within their community was really something special.

With males and females directed in opposite directions on arrival at the venue, the chaps all filed into a large outdoor yard next to a religious centre where a huge PA system pumped out a looped segment from a traditional wedding song. Although it soon became tiring to listen to, it beat Celine Dion for wedding music any day.

At first, it has to be said that it’s quite a daunting experience as there certainly weren’t many happy reactions to me when they saw my regular clothes and cameras but hopefully the kippah loaned to me by Menahem gave me some credit points.

Wandering round the area, we stumbled across five brothers who were deep in discussion but seemed happy to be photographed as they talked and as we both took pictures, I could see that this was breaking the ice a little among the other men. After this, my confidence had increased and everyone else relaxed a little so I could start actually taking pictures!

As some of the group held hands and danced in large circles, others queued to access the building for a chance to meet the Rabbi. This seemed to be quite a popular idea as towards the end of the day, the orderly queue became a little more frantic with old guys clambering over railings to jump the line. This was the only part that I was asked not to shoot and, thanks to them allowing me to shoot the rest of the event, I respected their wishes (although it was amusing to watch..)

As the afternoon drew on and the guests filed out from the building, thirsty kids queued for soft drinks from a long table near the exit as the men gathered up their belongings. The Police arrived and again closed the roads as the tide of black hats made it’s way back home.