Prior to our first meet up, I had never met Paul Tan, the famous car blogger. I only knew about him through my husband, Alex, who one day, told me that I might get a call from Paul asking about wedding photography. And one day, I did receive an sms from Paul. Since he was traveling, and Jenny was in Sibu, it was really challenging to arrange for a meet up. Eventually, everything was discussed over email and sms, and shortly after, the Stories team was booked to photograph their wedding.

Ok I do admit that I sometimes google up or ‘check out’ my clients on Facebook, just to get a feel of who they are. Especially so when I have never met them in person. So I went to Paul’s Facebook page, and one of the first few things I saw was this photo of his wife posted on his wall… it said “Biniku gangster”. (translated, it means, my wife’s a gangster). Uh, she did look a little formidable in that photo, and I wasn’t sure what I was in for.

Fast forward to our first meet up (which was a few days before the wedding!), and I thought, Jenny has got to be the worst gangster ever! She was actually the sweetest thing, and really friendly too. I found out that she is a doctor working in Sibu, Sarawak. Being physically away made it a lot harder to plan their wedding, but eventually, they got around to it and everything came together.

I also discovered that Paul’s a man of few words (in person at least!), and my first impression of him was that he seems to be a really serious person. I found out that they met while schooling at Victoria Institution, and one of their favourite hobbies is eating together (that is soooo Malaysian!).

Well, enough said, here are some of the photos from their wedding day, including the same day slideshow that was shown during dinner. Congratulations, Paul and Jenny!

And if you’re keen on watching the same day slideshow, please click here.

Credits:

Photographers: Grace, Johan & Weiming
Wedding Gown: Red Bliss
Shoes: Christian Louboutin
Make Up: Wedding Isle
Dinner Entertainment: Mosaic Music
Dinner Reception: KL Hilton

A couple of days before the wedding, I dropped by Theng’s family home to meet up with everyone and to get to know Jeremy and Theng better. I was glad to find out that the dinner was going to be an intimate affair of 200 people. That’s really small for a typical Asian wedding, since most dinner receptions would have at least 300-400 people!

On their wedding day, we spent quite a bit of time doing some portraits around Intercontinental Hotel. I recently popped by Intercontinental for another shoot, and to my dismay, found out that part of the lobby is under renovation. So yeah, this staircase has been boarded up. I wonder what everything will look like once it’s done!

“We got engaged in February 2011 and started planning the wedding quite soon after.   As we both live in the UK, we decided to hold a small reception in London for our immediate family and close friends, as well as dinner receptions in KL and Hong Kong.  Planning a wedding from abroad was exciting but definitely challenging!  We had to rely on wedding blogs and personal recommendations to source for potential vendors.  With the help of our parents, multiple emails over the months and some last-minute planning a week before our reception in KL, we eventually managed to pull it off!  We had a great time and were very grateful that most of our friends from all over the world were able to attend.”

Jeremy & Theng 

I love Theng’s gorgeous gown! The detail on the top reminds me of her wedding cake! Just like petals, and totally romantic!

Some quick portraits in the family garden. Helps to have nice white picket fences in your lawn!

Johan discovers the joy of creating flares in photos! :)

The cake’s gorgeous, right!?

Before the walk in, I told Jeremy and Theng to walk slowly, enjoy the moment and look around at everyone. They took my advice literally, and walked really really slowly to the main table! Hahaha… but it gave us plenty of opportunities to walk around the couple and take shots like these!

By the way, I personally am not a big fan of the dried ice effect. I think it tends to make the image murky, especially if there’s too much of it. But it works pretty ok if the dried ice is only released AFTER the couple walks through. Then it won’t block their faces… in this case, we were pretty lucky because the strong back light from the spotlight created this cool effect!

More dried ice and flares! :) Congratulations Jeremy and Theng!

Credits:

Photographers: Grace & Johan
Location: Intercontinental Hotel, Kuala Lumpur 
Hair & Make Up: Angie Ng

We love the pink and white theme that was so apparent through out the wedding. Everything looked visually perfect. These cute cuff links were a nice touch too!

Joe has known his friend Michael Marder (best man) since he was 4 years old, and Michael knew Oanh through his then girlfriend. It was Michael who had the great idea that Joe would be a great match for Oanh and decided to set the two of them up. Soon, a ‘date’ was set, and they got along great. When Joe first met Oanh, he was awestruck by her lovely eyes and nice, long black hair! Oanh was smitten by Joe’s mature, yet laid back nature. She laughed at his jokes, and conversation flowed easily between the both of them. A month or two later, a trip was organized for just the 4 of them to go on a driving trip around the UK for the long Easter weekend and the rest is history!

Sun block is definitely a must for every beach wedding in Malaysia!

Everyone received personalized wedding favours with their portraits stuck onto a coaster. Brilliant idea!

Congratulations Joe & Oanh! There’s more of their wedding to be featured on this blog… from the day-after portraits to the wedding video highlight which will be posted later. In the meantime, guests can view their photo slideshow here.

Credits:

Photographers: Grace & Weiming
Videographers: Nigel & Alex
Wedding Gown: La Runa
Make Up: Bride’s sister, Mai
Decorations, stationery, cake, flowers & wedding planning: The Andaman
Dinner Entertainment: Dan & 9 Lives

1. I expect him to travel with me on life’s adventures, always.
2. I expect him to be the spiritual leader for the family.
3. He must be financially wise.
4. He must love my family too.
5. He should take good care of his health and physical appearance too.
6. I expect him to be loving, even when I am 80…

The list went on and on. I don’t think I am being unrealistic, but practical.

We shared our list. I am amused that one of his requirements is for me to have better memory. Like remembering to trip the meter after I pump petrol (one little thing that irks him a lot!).

Years ago, before we got married, we created a similar list. Except, I am pretty sure this new one is shorter. I guess you learn to adapt to one another as time goes by. You learn to compromise on some expectations and other times, to reflect on how you can change yourself as a person.

Someone told me once, men always go into marriage expecting their wives to never change. Women go into marriage, expecting their husbands to change.

I guess a lot of arguments stem from mismatched and unfulfilled expectations from both parties. Most times, we think the problem is with the other person, never with us (gasp, how could you suggest that!). 

Six years down the road, and we’re still learning to adapt to one another. Yes, there’s friction, but I think I can safely say, I’m darn happy. 

Photo credit: Anna-Rina

Dear Diane, Mark & Johan,

I meant to send this earlier, but I didn’t expect the week post-wedding to be equally as hectic as pre-wedding. I actually just wanted to drop a quick e-mail to let you know how awesome it was having you guys as my photographers.

I thoroughly enjoyed the times on-camera as well as off-camera. (Chewah, mcm celebrity, liddat!) Seriously, though, I’m so glad & grateful for how (unexpectedly) easy it was to get along with you, right from the start -  tbh, I didn’t expect that having photographers around would be such a pleasant experience. I was surprised at how comfortable I was with you & how much fun I had just hanging out with you guys during those brief moments after the ceremony/during the luncheon/dinner.

It was a genuine pleasure for me to have you around, so much so I felt as though you were actual guests at my wedding. Having said that, I can understand how you might not share the same viewpoint, seeing as the cameras would’ve been a weighty reminder of the work at hand. All the same, thank you for being such great company.

Thank you, Diane, for all the chats & e-mails, and for all those gentle reminders – yep, I know we’re due to think of that extra song :) It was great to finally meet you in person – I’m so happy you came to photograph my wedding! :D :D – & you are just as nice as you sound over Gtalk. True story. I bet most brides say this, but we really should hang out sometime. Any friend of Switchfoot is a friend of mine & Aaron’s :) (Btw, I’ve got Vice Verses on repeat in my car – that’s probably going to run until I get the new David Crowder album.)

Mark, thank you for enduring my numerous rants regarding the breakdown of my precious system & my “Y U NO [insert appropriate bridezilla expectation here]?!?” Despite how the photo-session went up in flames – in FLAMES, Mark – I was actually present in each moment of my day & enjoyed it, from the chilled-out make-up session, to the ceremony (thank you SO much for giving me no cause for concern during the Mass – I personally thought you did a brilliant job of being unobstrusive & yet the pictures still turned out fabulous ;) to the dinner.

Btw, one of my overseas guests was particularly impressed with the slideshow you put together, esp. considering the limited amount of time you had. As was I: Thank you so much for highlighting what, or rather, Who was & is at the centre of Aaron’s & my union, and I noticed that the pictures came together beautifully at the chorus, so well done :)

Johan, we saw those great shots you’d taken from the balcony. My mother-in-law also made special mention of how you’d subtly (hehe) grouped the guests during the toasting & the different angles you used. Thank you for the efforts you took to to get those quirky & candid shots that I was hoping for, esp. at the main table. (LOL-ing at how you had to recall me from the meet-and-greet for the slideshow during the dinner!) It was a real pleasure encountering you & your sense of humour, and I know my sister was happy to put a face to the gentleman who was so impressed with her Gantt chart, haha!

All in all, I thank God the actual day went the way it did, and that He made our paths cross the way He did. Thank you for being a part of our wedding & I hope you enjoyed yourselves in our company as much as we did in yours. Looking forward ’til we next meet again. In the meantime, take care & God bless!

Yours sincerely,

Sheena

Shooting Aaron & Sheena’s wedding was fun, I have never seen such a cute couple together and boy the wedding day was equally exciting. Interesting things such as the wedding dinner plan laid out in a gantt chart (project managers would probably know what I am talking about) as well as the bride who travels so far away for work because she was posted out of town. In a strict sense, it was beautiful because of two things, it followed the traditions of a Catholic wedding and the wedding itself was held at such a beautiful church. Despite what people might say, I guess deep down I am a traditionalist at heart. Traditions and cultures are some of the few things I see getting lost in this extremely fast paced world.

Surprisingly I found out that I knew Aaron’s brother who was my university mate all the way back in the UK. It really was such a small small world. I consider it a double blessing especially if I find out that I know the couple or one of the couple’s family members.

Congratulations again to Aaron and Sheena. May this new journey in life be a fantastic and fruitful one!

- Mark -

Credits:
Photographers: Mark, Johan & Diane
Location: Church of St Thomas More, USJ & Summer Palace Restaurant, PJ
Wedding Gown: Eva Enchanted
Shoes: Alvin Tay Couture
Make up & hair: YenTan Bridal Make up & Hair Do Service
Stationery: Friend of the bride & groom, Crisabel Clare
Cake: Friend of the bride & groom, Denis Ngu
Flowers: Sprinkled with Style
Videography: Beezworks Productions

–

Death is inevitable. Death at 24-years of age, is unimaginable.

Ryan Smith, an average American bloke, met Bethany Schmidt at the age of 17 in 2005 and like most young adults, fell passionately in love. They were inseparable and did everything they could think of together.

Six years later, tragedy struck. Ryan learnt he had a rare type of cancer. Time stood still. Plans for the future were abruptly interrupted for the lovers.

Knowing his days were limited, he concocted a plan to propose and still get married to the one person he loved most in life.

With a mere three days of planning, a beautiful wedding was staged for 32 guests.

“Till death do us part” takes on a new meaning, especially when it is imminent.

Have a read of this story as chronicled in Today Weddings, on msnbc.com. If you’d like to read what Bethany herself has to say, click here.

All these stunning photos are by Clare & Kevin Kubota.

In light of that, I would like to show you a quick way to make a simple photo album. They are great as little gifts for your loved ones or simply for keeps. For this simple tutorial, I will be making a pocket-sized photo album, featuring some of my favourite Instagram photos.

Oh, by the way, did you know that Instagram is now available on Android phones as well? :)

You will need:

- A4 sized craft paper. Any colour you might like!
*Tip: If you are going to use cardboard, please note that it is slightly more challenging to fold as they are thick.

- 6 of your favourite photos.

- A blade, cutting board and a ruler.

- Double-sided tape for the insides. (optional)

Step 1:  Go through your photos and identify 6 of your favourites. Digitally resize them to 6cm x 6cm and print them out on photo paper in that size.

Step 2. Fold your art paper in half horizontally, like this.

And then fold it in half again.

And again.

Press the folds and that will create a crease. Unfold your paper.

Step 3:  Identify the middle line between the second and forth frame (see picture below), like this:

You need to cut a line between these 2 parts. You may use a pencil to lightly draw a line to ensure you do not cut beyond what is needed. Use the cutter and carefully create the slit on the paper.

Step 4: Fold the paper into half according to the folded line and open the slit. It should open up like a diamond shape, like this:

Step 5: Close the diamond hole in the opposite direction, so it closes into an “X”.

Then fold the creases together to make it into a book, like this:

Step 6: Cut small diagonal slits into the four edges where your photo is going to rest. Slip your photo in.

Step 7: Design the cover! You can also use your pretty Sharpie pens and draw on them. It’s entirely up to your creativity.

And there you have it- your little instant photo album is ready! You may also make bigger albums by using a larger art paper and larger photo prints.

Enjoy! :)

Diane

For those who have been reading this blog for sometime, you might know that I started out my career in the local film and television line. For many years, I edited TV programs, dramas, films, documentaries… and also directed some episodes of various television programs. Then in 2007, I began to explore the world of weddings through my camera lens. You can read more about my history here.

So how is this relevant to what I am about to say?

Well, basically, we will be involved in a new project involving an international travel channel that broadcasts to 120 countries worldwide. No, this doesn’t mean that we are no longer photographing weddings. Every now and then, I believe in doing new things that will help fuel creativity, and though it’s been a while since I directed a TV program, this is something I’m excited to do.

So… this is where you come in.

We are looking to feature weddings in Malaysia, Indonesia (Bali), Taiwan, Thailand, Philippines and Singapore. For each episode, we will feature one local couple and one couple who are traveling to that destination for their wedding. If you are getting married in these locations within the months of May-August 2012 and would love to have your wedding featured internationally on television, do contact us!

Please email grace.tan [at] stories.my with these details:

1. Your name & your fiance’s name

2. The location and date of your wedding

3. Why you think your wedding should be featured (or perhaps some unique details about your wedding plans)

4. Include a photo of the both of you

And that’s it! This is not a contest. We will select the couple based on the best story that fits our requirements. We are excited to hear from you, so do email us soon!

Men in kilts?

A couple who are head over heels in love?

What a glorious combination! Stephen and Sarah’s wedding was filled with laughter, silliness, and lots of great memories. It didn’t matter that it rained on their wedding day. Everything came together beautifully.

I still remember the first time I met Stephen and Sarah at a Starbucks in Petaling Jaya, a couple of months ago. Sarah told me that though they wanted a beach wedding, she didn’t actually like sand getting between her toes. It made sense then that the Float at the Westin, Langkawi would make the perfect location for their beach wedding.

The day before the wedding, Alex and I arrived in Langkawi to meet the family and friends of the couple. I was really stoked that Stephen and Sarah were generous enough to put us up at the Westin… that was a really lovely birthday treat for me! That night, after a delicious dinner with Alex, we came back to our room to discover a surprise… a birthday cake from Stephen and Sarah! Thank you so much for being so thoughtful!

Ok, back to the wedding…

Stephen & Sarah’s Story

We first met at a friend’s birthday party back in 2008 where we got into a heated debate about the labour laws in Thailand.  We argued for at least an hour despite the fact that I was agreeing with Sarah the whole time.  This kind of set the tone for the rest of the relationship :p

We were both in relationships at that time and we saw each other every now and then but we were just friends.  Things stayed the same until two years later when we moved into buildings next door to each other in the same apartment complex in Dubai.

We saw a lot more of each other and went on a couple of ‘fake holidays’ at the beach bar at the Hilton on Jumeirah Beach and I really started falling for her.

I thought things were going well when Sarah invited me to her pre-Christmas “Dubai Orphans” dinner at her house.  We talked all night and I even stayed to do the washing up (a first for me, sadly this is now my main duty in the relationship) and that night we shared a good night kiss.

I invited Sarah out for dinner the next day and she turned me down!

However all that changed in a few months over a series of three music concerts.  We went to see James Morrison at the Dubai Jazz Festival and ended up dancing the night away afterwards and that was the first time I realized that Sarah might be falling for me too.  Two weeks later we went to see Sting, the night before Sarah had tricked me into a date by arranging for me to meet her in the bar next to her work.  I thought it was a normal night out with everyone and was shocked to see it was only Sarah when I arrived.  We had a great night talking, laughing, Sarah playing songs on the jukebox and we even made a bet that would end up in ‘platinum’ ;) The night ended with Sarah’s famous scrambled eggs.

The next day we were at the Sting concert together and after leaving we were deserted by our friends and ended up sharing a taxi home together.  In the back of the taxi I asked Sarah if we were more than just friends and for the first time she agreed.

Unfortunately I had to go to the UK on business the very next day but we spent the week texting each other constantly (the phone bill was huge) and we even managed to squeeze in a Youtube date, which I nearly got fired for missing a company dinner to meet Sarah online.

Finally at the end of a long week away I got home just in time to go on our first date to the Paolo Nutini concert in Dubai.  We spent the day together with duty free champagne and marmalade on toast and then went out for the greatest first date in the history of first dates.

After that we spent the whole week together and we have pretty much spent every day together ever since.  It’s been the best two years of my life.

Sarah, you glowed.

Love the teddy cufflinks. Very macho.

Time to get married!

It was a super windy day!

Dinner was held at The Tide, Westin.

Stephen and Sarah, thank you for choosing us and for allowing us to be part of this beautiful day. Alex and I had so much fun. I hope these images will remind you of the love you share, forty years down the road when you are old and wrinkly.

You also summed up my thoughts precisely when I read what you wrote about your wedding planning process. You could not have said it any better.

We planned the wedding ourselves, over masses of lists and cut out pages from magazines, on the dining room table, with gin and tonics in hand and music on in the background, colour coded spreadsheets and a “contentious decisions” list. Anything we couldn’t agree on at that time was put on the contentious decisions list and was worked out later. Our parents were great sounding boards as well, reminding us constantly that although the details of it all were important, that the most important thing was that we were getting married to each other. And at the end of the day, that is the most important thing.

Credits:

Photographers: Grace & Alex
Location: The Westin, Langkawi
Wedding Gown: Boyle from “After You Say Yes”, Intercontinental Hotel, Bangkok, Thailand
Groom’s Attire: Heritage Scotland, Edinburgh, Scotland
Shoes: Jimmy Chia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Flowers & Decorations: Darling Florist, Langkawi, Malaysia
Stationery:  Wedding Paper Divas
Cake: The Westin, Langkawi