Dim Sum & Dominoes: A Cross-Cultural Engagement Session in Boston’s Chinatown with Sheila & Ricky
Sheila and Ricky came to me with one goal in mind: to capture their love in a way that brought their shared love of food to the forefront while celebrating both of their Chinese and Dominican backgrounds.
After a few phone calls and plenty of planning, we had some ideas we wanted to bring to life in and around Boston's Chinatown. As a Boston engagement photographer, I love when a session can be built around the things that actually make a couple who they are, rather than simply choosing a pretty location and posing in front of it. For Sheila and Ricky, that meant food, culture, color, and a little bit of fun.
We started at one of my favorite spots: an unassuming red door tucked into Chinatown. Red felt like the perfect place to begin, as in Chinese culture, red is one of the most auspicious colors for weddings and celebrations, symbolizing joy, love, and luck.
To bring Sheila's Dominican culture into the setting, she wore a classic off-the-shoulder Dominican dress. Against the colors of Chinatown, the combination felt unexpected in the best way. Rather than separating their cultures into different parts of the session, we wanted them to exist together. It gave their Boston engagement photos a visual contrast that felt personal to them while still feeling completely at home in Chinatown.
From there, we walked toward the colorful corner underneath the China Pearl sign, where Sheila and Ricky took a well-deserved break for a beer. One El Presidente for Sheila, one Tsingtao for Ricky. It was a fun moment that captured exactly what we were trying to create: two cultures, side by side, sharing the same space.
And naturally, food had to be part of the story.
We made our way to a Hong Kong takeout spot, but there was one thing we weren't going to find there: Dominican empanadas. So Sheila brought her own. We stopped outside with the empanadas in hand, creating another little meeting point between their two cultures. The sun met us there, too, giving us some beautiful light as they shared a snack and took in the moment.
Next came a cheeky stop inside a classic Chinese grocery store. We played around with the aisles, the colors, and everything else around us, creating some of the sillier photos of the day. It was a fun way to bring another everyday piece of Chinatown into their engagement session without making it feel overly planned.
That's what made Chinatown such a fun setting for their Boston engagement photography. There was always something around the next corner: colorful signs, textured storefronts, interesting light, and little details that gave us something new to play with. Instead of keeping the session confined to one location, we could walk, explore, and let the neighborhood become part of their story.
Then we brought their cultures head-to-head with a little friendly competition: mahjong versus dominoes.
It was a pretty perfect visual for the session. Two games, two cultural traditions, and Sheila and Ricky right in the middle of both. We had fun playing with the contrast and letting the photos capture a little bit of their personalities along the way.
We ended the evening in Boston Common, trading games for dancing and bringing a little Dominican energy into the final part of the session with some bachata.
It was colorful, playful, a little unexpected, and completely true to Sheila and Ricky. Their Chinese and Dominican backgrounds weren't separate parts of the session. They were woven naturally into the places they chose, the food they shared, and the way they celebrated being together.
