Grace Tan

Grace Tan In Life, Musings, Relationships, Tips + Ideas

Everyday photos that you need to take

As a photographer, I have this innate desire and need to document my life. There are some important people, places or events that encompasses an essential part of who I am and the life I live. I believe that this process of documenting life is really important and I encourage you to think about your own life and how you can capture these moments because they become little windows into a memory that you once held dear.

1. Your house

It may seem trivial to take a photo of your house from the outside. But when you move and settle into a new home, you might find it hard to remember if there was a rose bush by the old gate or if your door was wooden or glass because those memories will fade. Just by looking at a picture of your old house on the outside can actually bring a flood of memories to mind of the times you spent pruning that rose bush and the barbeques you had on the porch.

My family home in Malacca where I spent my growing up years. This was the final goodbye as we packed the house to sell it in 2011.

2. The inside of your home

Just like the outside, you’ll want to remember the interior of the place you called home. Maybe one day your kids will want to see their old room, or the doorframe where you had their height measured every six months; and maybe even have a laugh at the type of furniture you had. They might even remember the time they spilled juice all over that carpet! They will be images that have far more sentimental value than you’d expect. This is one of the reasons I love photographing families in their own home, mess and all.

Grace Tan In Portraits, Pre-Wedding & Engagement Portraits

Pre-Wedding at MCKL: Nicolas & Cassandra

I have to admit, I haven’t really made the time to prep many of the images that the team has shot for blog posts. As the key person who handles our social media postings, I need to buck up a bit more to get things going. Most of my time has been spent on meeting potential business partners / clients, shoots, replying emails, helping coordinate other shoots, going for my BNI meetings, and then being a mother. So now that I’ve prepped and sent my kid off to school, I have time before my next meeting for a blog post!

Nicolas & Cassandra were wed recently in August, and we are planning to share their images from their wedding on our blog soon. But I wanted to first share their casual 2 hour pre-wedding session that was photographed by Jennifer. It was a really easy going session as the shoot was held at the place where they met… Methodist College KL. I love how much laughter these 2 share between the both of them. You certainly need huge amounts of laughter and fun to carry you through life as a couple!

Grace Tan In Family + Children Portraits, Portraits, Studio

Large Family Portrait in the Studio: Lai family

When 26 people get together for a large family portrait, there’s bound to be chaos! In fact, my studio looked like it was hosting a giant Chinese New Year eve family gathering. There were 3 generations in this family shoot, but interestingly, all the married grandchildren did not have children of their own yet. It would be even more challenging if babies were added to the equation!

I’ve known Timmy Lai from the good old days of when I was in DUMC, so it was nice to get to know his entire family. His brother Jacky coordinated this session for his grandmother’s 80th birthday. This is what he had to say…

“Our last family portrait was taken almost 23 years ago. Therefore, in conjunction with our grandmother’s 80th birthday, we would like to retake our family portrait once again. This is also to create a new memory for all of us, so that, someday, we will be able to look back and cherish the beautiful moments and memories that will definitely put a smile on our face.

Family unity is very important to my grandmother. Even till this day, she still worries about all her children and grandchildren. She is a typical Hakka Lady, the one that works super hard and relentlessly for her family especially during her younger days.

The family that we are today, is not really perfect, but with the countless sacrifices that she made with her blood and sweat in order to keep the family united as one! As a young mother, who was also the breadwinner of the family back in the old days, she would always make sure that there was food on the table and a roof over her children’s head. Today, I can say that she has passed down this great legacy to her children and also to us, her beloved grandchildren.

A lot of things had happened since our last photo-shot. There were plenty of ups and downs, joy and laughter, pains and regrets; but because of the strong foundation that my grandmother has built for us, we still stand united as one family. As we looked back at our previous family portrait, we noticed that our grandmother has definitely aged gracefully. Not forgetting her children, our parents, who have grown older with time too. The grandchildren will be moving on to their next stage of life where meeting each other would be rare. Therefore, seizing this opportunity while celebrating our grandmother’s birthday, it would be an amazing moment for us to cherish and look back our this coming family portrait in future.”

What a beautiful reason for a family portrait! We did something different this time for such a huge group. We tested out an idea we had of taking multiple shots of individual families and then compositing it into one large panoramic image below. What do you think of the result? The print looked really unique in my opinion!

Grace Tan In Outdoor Weddings, Weddings

Beach Wedding Tips

Getting married by the beach is such a dreamy idea.

The beautiful bride in her long, flowy dress. The groom looking dashing in his three-piece suit. The waves lapping behind the floral arch where the couple says “I do”. Flowers line the path leading the bride to her groom. Guests with wind-blown hair sitting around, thinking it couldn’t be any more perfect than it already is… except, are they really thinking of that? More likely your guests are wishing that their makeup isn’t melting into mush, or that those pesky sandflies attack someone else for a change, and maybe everyone is a little concerned about their sweat-soaked suits and dresses!

We’re not saying one shouldn’t consider a beach wedding because let’s face it, it really is dreamy. So here’s what you should look into prior to planning your destination beach wedding so it doesn’t just look beautiful, but feels comfortable for everyone too.

1. A practical dress code

Think light, thin material. Suits should be a no-no (the groom and groomsmen will thank you!). Well, if you really want to, keep it to a minimum. Allow your guests to come in more casual and practical attire. Of course, it’s ok to set some rules too as you don’t want everyone coming in t-shirts and beach shorts to your wedding! Continue Reading

Grace Tan In Portraits, Pre-Wedding & Engagement Portraits, Wedding Films & Videos

Styled Modern & Minimalist Post-Wedding Shoot: Faisal & Aggie

“Fill my heart with song, and let me sing for ever more; you are all I long for, all I worship and adore”
― Frank Sinatra

The inspiration for the shoot came from the location itself, Glamz at Genting. As a new venue with interesting dome like structures and glamping facilities surrounded by scenic mountain views, we were excited to create this styled shoot after the contest with Stories.my & The Wedding Scoop ended. Together with Pretty Little Things, we came up with the idea of a modern, simple styled shoot with a tinge of boho. We wanted to combine glamour with the outdoors. Simplicity with a touch of rawness. The flowers were beautifully designed by Bloom2u. We especially love the bouquet with the unique protea cynaroides flower decorated with eucalyptus silver dollar, eucalyptus baby blue, silver leaves, eucalyptus tetragonia, eryngium, leucospermum and foliages. Pretty Little Things worked together with Bloom2u to come up with a complete styled look for the shoot.

The elegant wedding gown was provided by That White Dress and the look was made complete with hair & make up from SuyenPang Artistry. The end result was inspiring, and made our job as photographers and videographers easy! When we contacted the winning couple, Faisal and Aggie and got to know them better, we realised that they fit the whole theme perfectly. The both of them work in the creative industry, with Faisal owning his own video production company and Aggie as a copywriter in an advertising agency. Individually, they are uniquely different – Aggie is a fitness junkie (she is a part time boxing instructor!), a meticulous planner and is a bit more cautious in making decisions. Faisal, on the other hand, is more of a risk-taker (For example, Faisal rented a motorcycle in Bali with no licence and minimal experience, something Aggie wouldn’t do), has zero interest in fitness but willingly plays the role of Instagram cameraman to Aggie.

Together, they fit like a glove, despite coming from culturally different families. They have such a chill vibe about them, brought together by their love of music, cats, travel and all things creative.

After spending 11 years together, they eventually tied the knot in August 2018. So our shoot together was a pretty relaxing one for them, since they had just returned from their honeymoon in the Maldives!