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Grace Tan
In Chinese Weddings, Weddings

The Wedding of Paul Tan & Jenny Phang

Prior to our first meet up, I had never met Paul Tan, the famous car blogger. I only knew about him through my husband, Alex, who one day, told me that I might get a call from Paul asking about wedding photography. And one day, I did receive an sms from Paul. Since he was traveling, and Jenny was in Sibu, it was really challenging to arrange for a meet up. Eventually, everything was discussed over email and sms, and shortly after, the Stories team was booked to photograph their wedding.

Ok I do admit that I sometimes google up or ‘check out’ my clients on Facebook, just to get a feel of who they are. Especially so when I have never met them in person. So I went to Paul’s Facebook page, and one of the first few things I saw was this photo of his wife posted on his wall… it said “Biniku gangster”. (translated, it means, my wife’s a gangster). Uh, she did look a little formidable in that photo, and I wasn’t sure what I was in for.

Fast forward to our first meet up (which was a few days before the wedding!), and I thought, Jenny has got to be the worst gangster ever! She was actually the sweetest thing, and really friendly too. I found out that she is a doctor working in Sibu, Sarawak. Being physically away made it a lot harder to plan their wedding, but eventually, they got around to it and everything came together.

I also discovered that Paul’s a man of few words (in person at least!), and my first impression of him was that he seems to be a really serious person. I found out that they met while schooling at Victoria Institution, and one of their favourite hobbies is eating together (that is soooo Malaysian!).

Well, enough said, here are some of the photos from their wedding day, including the same day slideshow that was shown during dinner. Congratulations, Paul and Jenny!

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Grace Tan
In Chinese Weddings, Weddings

Romance at Intercontinental Hotel: Jeremy & Theng

I distinctly remember chatting on the phone with Theng’s mum, a couple of months before the wedding day. Since Theng and Jeremy live in the UK, Theng’s mum helped to organize many aspects of the wedding, including hiring a photographer! After a few phone calls, some emails, then a confirmation came, and the funds were banked in. And just like that (without ever speaking to Jeremy & Theng), we were booked for their wedding day.

A couple of days before the wedding, I dropped by Theng’s family home to meet up with everyone and to get to know Jeremy and Theng better. I was glad to find out that the dinner was going to be an intimate affair of 200 people. That’s really small for a typical Asian wedding, since most dinner receptions would have at least 300-400 people!

On their wedding day, we spent quite a bit of time doing some portraits around Intercontinental Hotel. I recently popped by Intercontinental for another shoot, and to my dismay, found out that part of the lobby is under renovation. So yeah, this staircase has been boarded up. I wonder what everything will look like once it’s done!

“We got engaged in February 2011 and started planning the wedding quite soon after.   As we both live in the UK, we decided to hold a small reception in London for our immediate family and close friends, as well as dinner receptions in KL and Hong Kong.  Planning a wedding from abroad was exciting but definitely challenging!  We had to rely on wedding blogs and personal recommendations to source for potential vendors.  With the help of our parents, multiple emails over the months and some last-minute planning a week before our reception in KL, we eventually managed to pull it off!  We had a great time and were very grateful that most of our friends from all over the world were able to attend.”

Jeremy & Theng 

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Grace Tan
In Portraits,

Portraits in Langkawi: Joe & Oanh

The day after their gorgeous beach ceremony at the Andaman, Langkawi, Joe and Oanh took some time off to just relax by the beach and enjoy each other’s company. Day after portraits are really relaxing, as the stress of the whole wedding planning is over! The only downside is waking up early after partying hard the night before! But Joe and Oanh made it look so easy, they were there the next morning at 8.30am for our photo session!

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Grace Tan
In Outdoor Weddings, Weddings

Wedding in Andaman, Langkawi: Joe & Oanh

It was another beautiful day in Langkawi, and the sun glowed through the clouds, as if beaming its approval for that day’s wedding. It couldn’t have been more perfect. For Joe and Oanh, who had traveled many hours from London to Langkawi, the day started off beautifully. At about 4pm, flowers were strewn across the sand, oriental umbrellas were arranged and icy cold water was prepared for the guests. Most of the guests had flown in from various continents across the world just to be there to witness this wonderful occasion.

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Grace Tan
In Life, Musings, Relationships

Expectations and changes in life

We sat quietly for 10 minutes, penning our thoughts on a piece of 4R sized paper. It felt strange doing this exercise, yet at the same time, we knew that it would benefit the both of us.

1. I expect him to travel with me on life’s adventures, always.
2. I expect him to be the spiritual leader for the family.
3. He must be financially wise.
4. He must love my family too.
5. He should take good care of his health and physical appearance too.
6. I expect him to be loving, even when I am 80…

The list went on and on. I don’t think I am being unrealistic, but practical.

We shared our list. I am amused that one of his requirements is for me to have better memory. Like remembering to trip the meter after I pump petrol (one little thing that irks him a lot!).

Years ago, before we got married, we created a similar list. Except, I am pretty sure this new one is shorter. I guess you learn to adapt to one another as time goes by. You learn to compromise on some expectations and other times, to reflect on how you can change yourself as a person.

Someone told me once, men always go into marriage expecting their wives to never change. Women go into marriage, expecting their husbands to change.

I guess a lot of arguments stem from mismatched and unfulfilled expectations from both parties. Most times, we think the problem is with the other person, never with us (gasp, how could you suggest that!). 

Six years down the road, and we’re still learning to adapt to one another. Yes, there’s friction, but I think I can safely say, I’m darn happy. 

Photo credit: Anna-Rina

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