Sunny Lau
With more than a decade of design experience, creative director Sunny Lau has set up Pop Art Wedding, a wedding photography company that offers an unusual twist on traditional nuptial snaps. He talks to Lisa Lee about the importance of staying playful, and how a simple image can tell the story of a couple.
HK Magazine: How did Pop Art Wedding start?
Sunny Lau: Around a few years ago when I saw a friend’s wedding photos. Both of them grew up in Tuen Mun, but they took their photos outside Murray House [in Stanley]. Why were they running on the beach when neither of them knew how to swim? They were projecting entirely different people. Plus, my friends would often ask me to take their wedding photos. They liked seeing themselves looking like a CD cover or an advert. Using your own talents to create something is the best gift to give to someone.
HK: Did you think that Pop Art Wedding would become successful this quickly?
SL: We weren’t expecting to turn it into a business—we thought that no one would be interested—but the current market trends say differently. It’s important to be certain that a concept is viable. I work closely with my designers because they know what I want. If we can cater to just one or two percent of the 20,000 couples who get married each year, even if we were the public’s second choice for wedding photography, our business would still successfully thrive.
HK: Why use pop art style?
SL: I’ve always quite liked pop art. I’m a disorganized person leading a chaotic life, but I know everything that’s going on. Pop art has similar traits—on the surface it looks chaotic, creating these contrasting elements, but it’s still playful—like the yellow Marilyn Monroe—and it works. We may use the pop art style, but the contents are based on the couple’s experiences together.
HK: What is the creative process like between you and your clients?
SL: I don’t suggest ideas. I try to find out more about the couple through talking to them, then modifying my questions later in order to get more specific answers from them. I ask things like, what was the first film they watched together? Then I ask, “Which cinema?” and “What season was it?” which all help to create the visuals. My clients don’t need a made-up love story to box themselves in. We’ve had a couple where one was a firefighter and the other worked in immigration. They played golf in their spare time and loved to drink Coca Cola. These details helped to create a cute personal portrait of them. One of our more particular clients actually ran a rather large wedding business but they still wanted us to take their photos.
HK: Do you feel Hong Kong weddings are too theatrical?
SL: When I was growing up in England, marrying couples would turn up on the big day wearing just one outfit. But there’s this trend in Hong Kong where the couple needs four costume changes. Who sets these rules? Hongkongers are afraid to express themselves. They’re always ready to oppose others’ ideas, but if you ask, “What are your thoughts?” they can’t offer any.