Portraits

Grace Tan In Casual Portraits, International, Portraits

Krabi Honeymoon Shoot (of sorts!)

Candace said, “Grace, I’d like you to come with us to Krabi on our honeymoon as our photographer.”

Are you kidding? Of course I would!

Well, the trip wasn’t really a honeymoon trip, but a holiday with some of Ashley & Candace‘s closest friends. It was more of a pre-honeymoon trip, because after we left, Ash & Candace left Krabi for Phuket for the real honeymoon.

And so I traveled to Krabi with Alex to meet Ash & Candace and 6 of their friends there. It was a really fun trip, and since it was my first time to Krabi, I thought we might as well extend our trip. Isn’t Krabi amazing?

Blue skies, nice sandy beaches… ah….

When Alex and I visited Railey beach, we were like the minority. Seriously there were more Westerners there than Asians. And of course, being the typical Asian that we are, we sat on the beach, under the shade, when everyone was out there on the beach in the HOT sun. And it WAS hot!!!

Every morning, the sun would be blazing down on our backs, and then in the afternoon, it would rain. When Ash & Candace arrived in Krabi with their friends, it was pouring! This was taken after the rain subsided.

One of their purchases in Krabi. Ash & Candace, are you sure you want to wear this t-shirt on your honeymoon?

The next day, the 10 of us went on a organized tour around Krabi. The troop, getting ready for the day.

First stop: The famous James Bond island.

Saw this opportunity for a shot, and managed to convince Alex to scramble to the edge of the rock!

Next stop is a kayaking trip around one of the islands near Krabi.

Thanks to Clarence & Yen Mei, Alex and I got a photo of ourselves in action!

We did other things like visit caves…

And ride elephants.

I definitely enjoyed myself on the trip and getting to know everyone. Thanks, Ash & Candace for your hospitality, and for the opportunity to be a travel photographer on this trip!

Grace Tan In Portraits, Pre-Wedding & Engagement Portraits

Portraits: Eric & Debbie in Pangkor, Day2

Day 2 started at 4am in the morning for Debbie & Angie, our make up artist. While I was catching some much needed sleep, they had to get ready for the photo shoot. I admire such dedication from my couples! At 5am, I woke up, had some coffee and by 6am, we were off to catch the sunrise at the fishing village.

It was totally worth it, waking up so early in the morning for this view!!

If Angie wasn’t there, it would have been harder to achieve this shot – because I can’t hold a flash on a monopod with one hand, the camera in the other hand, and direct the couple to kiss at the same time. As Louis Pang says, “voice activated lightstand” :) Thanks Angie!

This fishing village is so quaint. And this jetty incredibly busy!! Every 5-10 minutes or so, we had to stop to make way for a passing motorbike. The ‘pak cik’s or uncles were really friendly! They were just so pleased to see a bride using their jetty for photos.

One of the things I am glad Debbie did was to ‘brave’ herself and climb down the jetty onto this boat! Eric said that it was only because I coaxed her!

And later, Eric ‘braved’ himself to climb this Dutch fort on Pangkor Island. Uh, is this even allowed? :)

That evening…

And to end our shoot…

Definitely a fun photo shoot. I’ve added Pangkor to my list of favourite places to shoot. :)

Grace Tan In Portraits, Pre-Wedding & Engagement Portraits

Portraits: Eric & Debbie in Pangkor Island Day1

It’s always so exciting when a couple decides to go out of the way to get beautiful images. Malaysia has lots of wonderful beaches. If you are thinking of white sand everywhere the eye can see, well you have to visit places like Four Seasons Resort in Langkawi for that (that’s coming up in another blog post!). Pangkor is not really known for white sandy beaches, but it definitely has a charm of its own!

We stayed at the Pangkor Island Resort, and these pre-wedding photos were taken around the resort itself. Debbie’s brief to me was… “I want sunset shots by the beach, and something different!”. Oh, we definitely had lots of fun those 2 days.

Stumbled upon this cool truck on the beach…

Day 2 started at 5am, and we ended up in a fishing village and also a Dutch fort! Coming soon…

Grace Tan In International, Portraits, Pre-Wedding & Engagement Portraits, Weddings

Highlights for 2009

I have much to be grateful for in 2009. Through the brand Wedding Story, the team has traveled to many different locations and countries for wedding shoots. It’s been an exciting journey for me, as I’ve grown in my photography career and as a business owner. I’ve lost weight, felt the size of my eye bags growing, but it’s all worth it. The joy that I experience from doing something I am truly passionate about is overwhelming.

Working out of passion instead of the call of ‘duty’ creates meaning in my life. It’s because I truly believe that in every wedding I photograph, I am creating a legacy of images for the couple. That when they look at these images, and remember the joy they felt on that day, it is all worth it. There is a purpose to it, greater than just taking ‘pretty images’.

I appreciate Kee Sitt, Sharon and my husband Alex for all their advice and for journeying together the past few years. Life is exciting, and I am sure that 2010 has more surprises in store for us around the corner!

Here are 2 highlights that I’d like to share with you. They are compilations of various weddings & portraits photographed in 2009.

[flv:http://www.stories.my/wp-content/uploads/2010/slideshows/Stories_WeddingDay.flv http://www.stories.my/wp-content/uploads/2010/slideshows/wedding-highlights.jpg 700 394] [flv:http://www.stories.my/wp-content/uploads/2010/slideshows/Stories_Portraits.flv http://www.stories.my/wp-content/uploads/2010/slideshows/portrait-highlights.jpg 700 394]

Grace Tan In Maternity, Portraits

Tammy & Katherine’s Maternity Portraits

Two friends, two pregnant mothers-to-be.

I thought it’d be a great idea to do a combined photo shoot with Tammy & Katherine. How often do you get two friends who are pregnant about the same time, going through similar experiences? I’m glad we did this shoot, because one week after the shoot, Katherine gave birth to lovely Aaron! This is Katherine & Ben.

And this is Tammy & Jordan. Photographed their wedding in 2008.

Funky mothers.

Ben & Kat were still undecided on a name one week before their baby was born.

A little conversation going on here…

I think it’s really wonderful to make time for maternity portraits, especially if this is your firstborn. We should celebrate human life and the wonder of birth. Nine months, and so quickly it changes. I think when I get pregnant, I’d like to document my little baby’s life through images. And appreciating every stage of life as it comes.