Weddings

Johan Sopiee In Malay Weddings, Weddings

Ishnnal & Nurraihan’s Wedding Banquet, Concorde Hotel

“When did you both meet? How did you fall in love with each other?” I asked. And very demurely, Ishnnal says “We met at a friend’s house-warming party… A year later I contacted Raihan via Facebook and we started chatting and decided to meet up for our first date at Ben’s KLCC. And the rest is history.”

Not satisfied with my sleuthing skills, I asked them to describe each other. And again, in a very matter of fact manner, they describe him as “loving and romantic” and her as “bubbly and fun loving”. Ok. They seem like a very simple and straightforward couple. It should be a very straightforward wedding shoot. I was dead wrong.

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Nothing could prepare us for their colourful wedding reception, his crooning and their loving moments with each other throughout the night. I simply loved the theme of the wedding hall and the atmosphere of the night. Weiming did a great job at capturing so many lovely detail shots and candid moments while I was upstairs photographing the delectable couple in their regal and elegant outfits.

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Grace Tan In Indian + Punjabi Weddings, Weddings

Sonia and Reyhan’s Sikh Wedding

It has been a while since I last photographed a Sikh wedding. I love the wonderful details that colour cultural weddings like these. It makes me really happy. :) Sonia and I used to be colleagues years ago. She was a really good project manager and is a really detailed person. It really showed in her wedding, because she had wrapped and labelled all her items needed for the wedding… placed in bags for when she needed them. Row upon row, she detailed everything in her excel sheet. She also had an emergency kit for the day which included an umbrella, drinks, food, toiletries, and even a Rubik’s cube! (I think the Rubik’s cube was for the driver in case he was bored! haha).

Reyhan completes Sonia by being her solid rock. He’s patient and kind, one of the traits that attracted Sonia to him in the first place. What amazed me was that he used to drive all the way from his home to hers to send her to work even though it was an hour off his route to work! That’s dedication and love!

Reyhan and Sonia’s wedding was really memorable because they are really sporting and fun people. So many different expressions, lots of laughter, silly faces, and amazing dancing! No Punjabi wedding will be complete without dancing! We had heaps of fun photographing their Sikh temple wedding and then a church wedding the day after.

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Sonia and Reyhan says:

We’ve known for a few years now that we would love for you to photograph our wedding day. We’re grateful that we were able to book your time on the 13th and 14th of December! Thank you for all your hard work over those two days in taking all those lovely photos for us and preparing them for the slideshow at dinner.

We appreciate that you guys woke up at insanely early hours to come over to our homes to take photos of us getting dressed. Grace, I was yawning away during my makeup and hair session on the 13th so it was awesome when you arrived and helped wake me up with your chirpiness.

Thank you for your creative input throughout the events. We have had at least 15 guests tell us that your slideshow at dinner was amazing. And we agree wholeheartedly! Some of the feedback we received was from people whose photography styles we ourselves look up to, so it was really very exciting for us to hear from them. One person said that you took unique photos and expressions that they have never seen before and another told us that it was so beautiful, they nearly cried.

Thank you for your patience with us when we ate into your portrait time as we kept getting caught by guests! And thank you also for your patience with some guests who got in your way while you were working.

Diane, thank you for all the preparation work and for your prompt communications in the months prior to our wedding. Of all the vendors at our wedding, Stories gave us the best experience from asking the right questions to being patient with us when we had delays in responding to you.

All in all it has been a wonderful experience working with you.

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Grace Tan In Chinese Weddings, Weddings

Love Birds: The Wedding of Tim and Brenda

If I could sum it all in one word, it would be “Expressions”. There were so many funny and candid expressions that we caught on camera during this wedding. It kept us laughing, and we were perpetually entertained through out the wedding. I still remember my Skype conversation with Tim and Brenda before they hired us for the wedding. What struck me most was how open and willing they were to share the story of their lives with a stranger like me. I knew at that point that this connection would carry on through to the wedding.

Brenda’s the kind of girl that wears her heart on her sleeve. She’s chirpy, laughs a lot and loves a lot too. A hopeless romantic and fiercely loyal. Tim is her anchor…he’s the steadfast kind of guy that is also really fun to be with. Together, they are like fireworks, exciting with lots of interesting moments!

It did take them a while to get a relationship going though, and in Brenda’s words, it was a rough start. Both of them had their stubborn nature but it was Tim’s perseverance that convinced Brenda to keep on trying to make things work. She says that it was mainly 70% hard work and 30% luck.

Brenda says, “There were heaps of frustrations but also a lot a lot of moments when we could say it was worth it. For any relationship to work, be it as boyfriend/girlfriend or husband/wife, it takes many factors; trust, communication and love but above it all, its the commitment in wanting things to work out.”

Which makes me think about most marriages. I really think hard work is the key to make marriages last. After all the excitement wanes off, you have this deep sense of security, but eventually, little things start to surface and you begin to annoy each other. What keeps it all together… the vows you have made and the hard work that goes into keeping passion alive. Tim and Brenda, may the vows that you have made be the glue to hold you together through the good and hard times. Lotsa hugs.

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What Motivates Us

If I could sum up everything in one word, it would be LEGACY. What connects us and brings us together as visual storytellers? It is the idea that we are creating something that will far outlast ourselves. The love that you share as a couple, the memories of your parents, your child as she takes her first step… we want to record these precious moments and build a family legacy that you can look back on, years from now… and remember.

I hope this video will give you a glimpse into our thoughts and motivations and why we keep on doing what we do.

Lots of love,
The Stories Team

Credits:
Filmed by: The Stories Team, Edited by Felicia.

Grace Tan In For Photographers, Musings, Portraits, Pre-Wedding & Engagement Portraits, Wedding Films & Videos, Weddings

Behind the Scenes: Boon Hui & Alice’s Pre-wedding

Amongst the clouds and the cool greenery surrounding Awan Mulan, Boon Hui and Alice had fun. Lots of FUN. And so did we. Before we show you the photos from this pre-wedding session, here’s a little sneak peek of what happened at the shoot itself.

Credits:

Filmed and edited by Felicia.
Photography by Grace & Weiming.