baby

Grace Tan In Family + Children Portraits, Portraits

A mother’s unending love

In May and June, I ran a competition to give away a free portrait shoot. One of the two winners is Selina, whose story is written beautifully by her husband Robert. Here is his write up that won her a free portrait shoot:

Last year July, my wife was pregnant. We were very happy waiting for the arrival of this second child.

However, in the 3rd month of the pregnancy, my wife experienced the membrane ruptured where there was very little amniotic fluid inside the water bag. When she was in the 5th month, the fluid never increased. Doctor advised us to terminate this pregnancy as the complications would cause abnormalities in the baby, and infections to my wife which may lead to death.

My wife, who had been happily waiting for the second baby, refused to terminate. She went to see several famous gynaes in the Klang Valley and all she got was the disappointing news.

She was still very persistent and flew to Singapore on her own without me knowing to seek the final opinion.

The Singapore gynae said she should continue the pregnancy. She should give the little life a chance to choose his life.

Throughout the remaining of the pregnancy, my wife encountered bleeding, fluid leaking every night when she was sleeping, she had mood swing, she was exhausted, and been refrained from many of the daily activities that she likes to do. She was not allowed to go swimming, yoga, shopping, driving, going up stairs, walking, and this was a torture for an active person like her.

The day had come and she was in the labour room with 7-8 doctors surrounding her. They were expecting that this baby was not going to make it. Baby is finally born at 7th month. I am proud to say that my wife and baby are both healthy. The doctors said this is a miracle! We have created a miracle baby!! Our son is now 3months old and he is growing like a full term baby!!

I am thankful for my wife for her persistence. She has gone through the pain throughout the pregnancy and I really want her to be deserved for this photo shoot, together with our miracle baby.

This is a family that really stuck through thick and thin. I had the pleasure of meeting their 2 wonderful children Jovie & Jovan, the miracle baby. Here are some shots from our portrait session!

This is Jovan, the miracle baby. He was a little sleepy during our photo session.

Seeing Jovan here and hearing their story reminds me of how good God is.

A little sisterly love going on here…

Some father-daughter time.

And finally, some photos of Robert & Selina together. Robert, you have an amazing wife, who has such a strong spirit and energy! And two beautiful children, whom I’m sure bring tremendous amounts of joy to the both of you. You guys definitely deserve this shoot.

Grace Tan In Maternity, Portraits

Maternity Portraits: Danial & Najihah

Gorgeous Najihah meets cool Danial. They look so good together, it was a breeze photographing them. Najihah sheepishly says that she likes being in front of the camera, and Danial says, “And I like her!”. Well, it’s no surprise that Najihah was a natural in front of the camera because she has appeared in a number of local television commercials.

Carcosa Seri Negara is a beautiful place to be photographed in. I am so glad that Pitter Patter managed to organize this shoot at this location. I love the decor and the style of the house. Unfortunately it rained heavily with thunder and lightning that day so we weren’t able to take shots outdoors. We were warned that the equation of Carcosa + outdoors + lightning = not a good combination.

Luckily there’s lots of open shade around the building.

The stairs and lights at Carcosa are amazing!

Mark, who was with me at Carcosa, saw the shot a little differently. The bottom photo on the right was taken by Mark.

It’s crucial to discuss baby fashion before the child is born… :)

Danial is a really happy guy. You can tell. :)

Thanks for being such a sport! I am sure your child will look as equally stunning as the both of you!

Grace Tan In Maternity, Portraits

Maternity Portraits: Rupert & Min Yee

Some time back, I wrote the first blog post about our partnership with Pitter Patter, an online pregnancy guide for mothers. Rupert and Min Yee is one of the five lucky couples who have been given a sponsored photo shoot by Pitter Patter.

Min Yee warned me that Rupert is not too fond of our humid Malaysian weather, having lived overseas for many years. I think we only spent about 5 minutes outside, and the rest of the time indoors! I love windows and growing vines like these!

Rupert and Min Yee are really cute! Min Yee said that she always feels awkward in front of the camera, but the next few shots doesn’t display any of that shyness at all!

Cute little shoes that her mother-in-law gave to Min Yee.

Doesn’t she look gorgeous? Moms, you can look hot when pregnant too!

Rupert & Min Yee, thank you for being so willing to do whatever I suggested that day at the shoot! Especially after I suggested making a few wardrobe changes. :) Looking forward to seeing newborn photos soon within the next few months!

Grace Tan In Family + Children Portraits, Portraits

Family Portraits: Tan & Catherine

Marissa is Tan & Catherine’s first child. Somehow, I think firstborns are always photographed more than the second or third child. Parents are usually more diligent in capturing every little moment of their child’s progress, and the slightest smile makes the new parent all soft and mushy inside. I know that Tan & Catherine really dote over Marissa.

Some friends tell me that the pain of childbirth is easily forgotten after you hold your child in your hands. Perhaps not the first 3-6 months (every parent can tell you tales of sleepless nights)… but when she grows a little older, I am sure that child will steal your heart.

Grace Tan In Maternity, Portraits

Maternity Portraits: Fiena & Amal

Recently, I was approached by Sylvia, the Marketing & Sales Manager of PitterPatter.com.my, an online guide for pregnant mothers. Two dynamic doctors, Dr Helena Lim & Dr Natasha are the women behind this venture. It is their passion to help pregnant women, especially when it comes to giving good, sound advice for a healthy pregnancy. These women wrote all the information that you can find on the website.

One of the things they wanted to do was to make pregnancy look ‘hip’. Moms are to be celebrated! And so, in collaboration with Pitter Patter, Stories will be photographing 5 beautiful pregnant women within the next few months. This “Make Up Mom Day” is sponsored by Pitter Patter. The first to be featured in our series is Wan Effina, or better known as Fiena. She and her husband Amal were really easy to get along with.

Here are some photos from the shoot, and don’t forget to recommend Pitter Patter to all your pregnant friends!