Portraits

Grace Tan In Casual Portraits, Portraits

It’s a MadWorld out there…

Life, as they say, is unpredictable. One day, you could be traveling to work, as usual, stopping by the local bakery to buy your favourite muffin, and the next day, a tragedy like 9-11 happens. In a world where catastrophe happens on an almost daily basis, how are we to make sense of it all? Have we become numb to the things that are going on out there?

Or do I only care about where I will be having dinner tonight… sushi or Italian? Whether to buy Coach or LV? Which movies to watch, what to do after work…?

I know that it’s impossible to lead a completely self-less life, but I am constantly challenged to do things that matter in life. Whether it is volunteering to take photos at a HIV institution, cleaning people’s homes after the tsunami, or just feeding an old lady in a home… I believe that every action counts.

And so, the message in MadWorld really resonates with my soul. This amazing dance & song choreography, performed by talented individuals is the joint production between two churches – SIBKL & DUMC. The production raises this long debated question… “What indeed is the worth of our souls?”

The energy and passion that is in this production is truly inspiring. I know for a fact that the performers have sacrificed hours and hours of their time practicing for this production, debuting this 3rd of December in DUMC. The event is open to all and entrance is free.

A month ago, the performers, creative team, band members and many others gathered in an abandoned house in KL for a photo shoot. It was a challenging shoot for me, as I had to evoke the right kind of emotion through the images, which would be used for all marketing materials and brochures. Check out the poster below for the performance times, or visit the official MadWorld website.

The singers

The dancers

The four main cast – Adam, Lucas, Pearly and Sinister

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Grace Tan In Portraits, Pre-Wedding & Engagement Portraits

Jack & Sze Hwa Marries!

Photographer: Grace
Make Up & Hair: Charlie from Michelle Touche team
Wedding gown (Princess cut with sash) & Evening shoes: Pretty in White
Wedding gown (Mermaid cut) & Evening Gown: That Special Occasion
White lacy shoes: Tang’s Studio
Jack’s suit: The Lord’s Tailor
Flowers: My Bridal Florist
Location: Dusun Garden Fairies & Pullman Hotel, Putrajaya

But not yet… not till January 2011 when they vow to be true to each other in good times or in bad, in sickness and in health. The title of this post was taken from their wedding website, designed beautifully to look like the New York Times report. I love it when I see websites like these because it shows how creative the couple is and how much they care about the little details that go into their wedding day.

And so it was natural that during the pre-wedding session with Jack and Sze Hwa, there were lots of yummy details that went into the shoot. Hwa said she wanted a picnic theme… and so she brought an amazing array of props to the shoot! The picnic basket was even prepared and sewn by Jack’s mother! Talk about dedication.

Jack & Hwa have both known each other since secondary school but they were just acquaintances back then. In school, she thought he was a bit of a geek and he thought she was just another (annoying) junior in his school!

This is their story…

Well…. Years went by and we lost contact. She went to Ireland to continue her studies and he on the other hand, left for Australia. However, during one of our summer holidays back in June 2003, we bumped into each other while we were dining with our parents in Overseas Restaurant, PJ! That day changed everything! We started to keep in touch and this continued on even when she was back in Ireland and he, in Australia! We talked on the phone EVERYDAY and would wake each other every morning (possible then due to different time zones!). So this continued on for 7 years. Yes, we have been doing the much dreaded long-distance relationship for that long. This has improved tremendously since she moved to Singapore ‘coz at least we now were at the same time zone.

We guess the thing that kept us both together for so long despite the distance was that we have always been able to talk about everything and anything and our passion for travelling (here, there and everywhere!), food (you have to see our collection of food pictures) and Moleskines =) !

Grace Tan In Portraits, Pre-Wedding & Engagement Portraits

Shanghai Love: Yee Jenn & Kristin

Photographer: Grace
Make Up & Hair: Michelle Touche
Cheongsam: Emerald Brilliant
Wedding Gown: Pretty in White

Last year, I traveled to Egypt with my husband Alex, his sister, Sarah and her good friend Kristin. Though I have known Kristin for quite a few years, it was only during this trip that I got to know her a lot better. That’s when I discovered that Kristin does not really like to be outdoors, and that she must have chocolates everyday. Like EVERYDAY. We had fun during our trip, and this year, I had the pleasure of shooting her pre-wedding photos, and soon, wedding as well.

Yee Jenn loves photography and he was really excited about the shoot. I was thrilled when they came up with the idea of shooting in an old cafe with a Shanghai theme! This famous cafe, called Yut Kee Coffee Shop, belonged to Kristin’s uncle, so permission granted, we headed over to the heart of KL for a fun time. On a normal working day, you would have a hard time finding a table to sit at, but the entire shop was closed that day so we had the whole space to ourselves!

Kristin has watched many, many episodes of America’s Next Top Model, so she knew exactly what she had to do to come up with a great pose! And boy, did they pose! The both of them look so good together!

Do you know the kaya rolls here are the best? It’s just sooooo delicious! Needless to say, we ate the props after the shoot!

Grace Tan In Family + Children Portraits, Portraits

Happy 27th Anniversary, Mr & Mrs Tan!

When Vivian contacted me over email one day about her family portraits, I didn’t realize that it was for her parent’s 27th anniversary. It was only on the day of the shoot that I realized they had created all these fun boards for the shoot. Little did I know that she had a really fun family, willing to do all sorts of things for the camera!

But you would have never guessed that by looking at this image below…

Slowly but surely, their true nature starts to show…

And then we got all warmed up when we trooped to the garden for some photos…

Grace Tan In Casual Portraits, Portraits

Terry + Mei Ling

It is always true that things happen when you are studying in college / university. Everything is new, life is exciting and you get to meet cool people. People like Mei Ling, of course. Sharing the same house, it was not long after that Terry and Mei Ling became an item. And so, a graphic designer weds a doctor.

The beach wedding reception is not till next year, but this is the day Terry and Mei Ling made their marriage official. The papers are signed, the vows are made, and they are married! So here’s a quick little post to wish them congratulations!!