Yet another teaser image from Nabil & Maisha’s wedding. This was taken at the Ahsan Manjil museum. More to come later!
On 31st December 2010, I was at a private condo in KL with friends, ready to usher in the new year with gusto. I don’t usually fancy going to huge street parties on nights like these because I am not really the party-going type of gal. Plus, I am a weeee bit older… ahem, past my 20s. We thought we had a great view of KLCC from the poolside deck. And when the clock struck 12, we heard the fireworks… but didn’t see anything. It was then that it struck us… we’re on the wrong side of town! There were buildings blocking our view of the fireworks!
Close, but missing the mark.
I guess it reminds me of life, and how we often wait for a spectacular moment to happen… only to realize that we were close, but just missed the mark. What is it in my life that I am seeking? In the pursuit of success, am I missing the mark on things that should be important to me, like relationships? I vaguely remember this quote (or was it a comic strip) saying something along the lines of… “If you don’t have a mark to aim for, you’ll definitely hit your target”.
Photographers: Grace & Mark
Make Up & Hair: Gene Lim
Wedding Gown Boutique: Liz Bridal
Dinner Reception: Cyberview Lodge
Dinner Entertainment: Mosaic
Wedding Cake: A Taste Boutique
Alan and Pink Kee’s wedding is filled with fun and creative details… all thanks to Alan’s sister Melissa. Since Alan and Pink Kee reside overseas, most of the wedding planning fell into the hands of Melissa. I love being surprised at a wedding, but in a good way, of course! And you’ll soon see what I mean in the images below…
When I got to Pink Kee, the first thing that struck me about her was her spunky character. She’s fun, easy to get along with and has a great sense of humour!
Besides the joy of shooting at the lovely Terasek Brickhouse, my heart skipped a beat when the groom arrived in this vintage car that belonged to his brother-in-law.
And guess what? His entire family and entourage wore the same customized t-shirt that said “Team Alan”!
Since most chee muis want a BIG ang pow… guess what was prepared?
It’s been about 1.5 years since I was here in Bangladesh covering Ali & Farhat’s incredible wedding in 2009. This time, I am here again in Bangladesh but in Dhaka city, photographing Nabil and Maisha. Our team consists of myself, Andrew, Mark and Alex… but unfortunately, Alex and I will have to fly back to Malaysia after shooting only 2 out of the 5 events since I have other weddings to shoot in Malaysia. Mark and Andrew will take over the baton then and produce beautiful images, I am sure! I was told there’ll be an elephant and horses at the wedding… wow sounds amazing!
Yesterday was Maisha’s holudh. I experienced firsthand how crazy Dhaka traffic can be. It took us 1.5 hours to travel to her home from where we were staying. When we came home after the event ended, it only took us 20 minutes!
So… here are some teaser images from yesterday’s shoot… Don’t you just love the way the venue was decorated?
And how gorgeous Maisha looks?
God is really good. Just one year ago, I was fretting away about what to call my new wedding & portrait photography brand that was due to launch in January 2010. Just one year ago, I wondered if I could really make it out there just focusing on wedding and portrait photography and choosing not to shoot any actual day wedding videos and less corporate videos. Just one year ago, I wondered who would come and fill my empty looking calendar?
But as I review the year that is almost coming to an end, I am pleasantly surprised. And completely grateful.
Three years ago, if you met me and talked to me about what I was doing with my life, I would say… “I am running a photography and videography business” – I was dabbling in all sorts of work, but deep down, I was conflicted. I knew that my love for weddings had grown over the years. Slowly but surely, the conviction that this industry is right for me grew stronger by the day. But I didn’t have the skills, nor the confidence to venture into it wholeheartedly. That was why I was conflicted.
Fast forward 3 years. Now, the bulk of my work comes from wedding and portraiture shoots, and about 20% from corporate videos and photography. And now, I am so happy doing the things I do.
In 2008, I had 10 clients who wanted wedding photography. In 2009, the number of clients who wanted me to shoot their weddings & also pre-weddings doubled to 20. These numbers do not include all the wedding videography jobs that I was also doing, and other shoots like family portraits.
This year, I counted that I have 39 different wedding clients that I have photographed – whether it is their wedding, pre-wedding or both. The family, maternity, and other types of photography work has increased too! I really thank God for the wonderful team I have, some of whom have come and gone in the past to other ventures. I must definitely give credit to Mark and Johan, our key photographers who have made a huge impact to the Stories brand by the amazing images they create. And of course, to Weiming, our Digital Artist who works hard to make sure all the clients get their images touched up quickly and delivered as soon as possible.
This blog post is not meant for me to brag, but to really show how awesome God is. I know that to some photographers, 39 weddings is the norm, but for me, it’s an achievement. I am sure these blessings could not have happened without Him having a hand in it. I truly believe if you love your work passionately and work hard at it, it will really pay off so that work becomes a pleasure, not a pain! I absolutely believe life is meant to be fun, and we should be doing things in life that we are passionate about. Why slave away for hours on end on a job you absolutely hate? (Considering how many hours we work compared to our leisure time). Sure, I have had my share of disappointments and heartaches but life is meant to be lived forwards, not backwards.
Well, having said all that, life IS unpredictable, and tomorrow, I may not be here. So, for what it is worth, cherish TODAY.
I have been meaning to showcase 2010’s pre-wedding & wedding highlights but haven’t had the time to create a slideshow yet due to my crazy schedule. Until I find the time to do it, here are some teasers from recent shoots from the past 2 weeks that have yet to be blogged about.
Eric & Mun Wai’s pre-wedding in Singapore & KL
Ben & Jun’s Singapore Art Museum wedding
Kwan Seng & Jasmine’s pre-wedding in Malacca
Have a wonderful countdown to 2011!