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Grace Tan In International, Musings, Outdoor Weddings, Portraits, Pre-Wedding & Engagement Portraits, Running a Business, Weddings

Updates, thoughts on business and time

One of my clients recently asked me, how do I find the time to blog, especially when my days are filled with meeting potential clients, going for shoots, sorting photos, checking through album layouts and responding to enquiries? (and on top of that, move house, move office and actually have a social life?)

My response is simple… I make time for it.

When I think back about it, I am amazed as well. Of course, there are days when I am overwhelmed with the workload. Since I started running my own business 3-4 years ago, I discovered that time is such an important asset. Everyday is a rush to complete the backlog of work that somehow manages to miraculously pile itself on my desk. Before I know it, a day has gone by, a week, a month, a year… where did the time go?

I am still learning the art of prioritizing my time. There are certain things I know I need to do, and those things are high on my priority list. Blogging is one of them. I feel it’s so important to have fresh content on the Stories blog, that no matter how busy I am, I must make time to blog. In my mind, blogging = marketing the Stories brand. How can I neglect something as important as marketing?

So yeah… I make time for it.

Here’s a simple update to what’s been happening the past one week:

Noel & Hui Yi’s pre-wedding shoot in Putrajaya

I love Pullman hotel for pre-wedding photography. The ambience is beautiful!

Kevin & Katherine’s pre-wedding shoot in Nikoi Island, off Bintan, Indonesia

With an amazing beach like this, you can’t help but feel soooo blessed at having a job that brings you places.

Grace Tan In Testimonials

Testimonial: David + Risa, Wedding at Andaman Langkawi

Some time back, I photographed David and Risa’s beautiful wedding at the Andaman resort in Langkawi. David and Risa were kind enough to write a testimonial for Stories…Thank you, David & Risa for being such wonderful clients too!

Grace and Mark shot our wedding on Langkawi Island in Jan 2011. We found Grace and on the Internet and after seeing some of her work, we knew that we wanted her to shoot our wedding.

Grace was professional from the beginning and even though we were only able to correspond by email, communication was always very clear and we were always on the same page. No hidden costs or unpleasant surprises.

It was Grace’s pro-active approach that really convinced us that we’d made the right decision. I (the groom) had no idea what I was going to ask Grace to shoot when she got here. I had no real ‘vision’ or anything and the bride was flat out in preparation, as brides often are on their wedding day. Grace, however, knew exactly what was doing and basically took off and started shooting, assessing the situation and deciding the best way to do things on the fly. This was really great and I can’t say how relieved I was.

Grace is very dedicated and is not too shy to take control when she needs to in order to get the best shots. This was very much appreciated as we are extremely happy with the results. She and her assistant, Mark, shot non-stop from start to finish. They maintained a high level of energy throughout and clearly enjoy what they do. This is important as it rubs off on everyone present and adds to the occasion.

In short, I have no hesitations in recommending Grace and her company. They are dedicated professionals and really very, very reasonably priced. We live in Japan, and seriously, what you get for 3 or 4 times the price here is very much inferior to what Grace did for us. Very happy.

David and Risa Lee.

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

Beach to Garden Pre-Wedding: Eric & Mun Wai

Photographer: Grace
Location: Singapore and Dusun Garden Fairies, Malaysia

It was in a little restaurant in Suntec city that I met Eric and Mun Wai for the first time. We chatted, had tea, and laughed over various travel stories. I found out that these two are an adventurous couple. They are full of life and love to laugh! In Dec, I came back to Singapore for part 1 of their pre-wedding shoot. We ended up on a somewhat secluded beach near Changi (it wasn’t completely secluded, I just cropped the rest of the people out!). Would like to thank Eulyn too, who came to assist me on the shoot in Singapore.

Yes every now and then we would see a plane flying overhead us.

Grace Tan In Chinese Weddings, Weddings

Hun Young & Ju Yee’s wedding

Photographers: Grace & Mark
Wedding Highlight Videography: Alex
Hair & Make Up: Remy Ngon
Wedding Gown Boutique: Neoromantic
Cheongsam: Jason Yek
Guy’s Suit: Lord’s Tailor
Wedding Planner: James Kon
Dinner Reception: Crowne Plaza Mutiara Hotel, KL
Decoration: Favors Essence

Since they were teenagers, Hun Young had his eyes on Ju Yee. She’s that pretty girl in school whose smile and laughter captivated him. In that school hall, as Ju Yee played table tennis with her friends, Hun Young could not stop thinking about how she stood out in that crowd. She thought he was cute, but as with all teenagers, the definition of cute is rather ugly but adorable.

Luckily for Hun Young, Ju Yee’s perception of him changed over time and soon, they started going out. His first impression of her as a tomboy was quickly crushed…and now, many years later… they are married!

In my eyes, Ju Yee looks gorgeous. I cannot imagine her in short hair and behaving like a tomboy! I had the privilege of shooting their pre-wedding photos as well in Dusun Garden Fairies, so if you’d like to have a look at the photos, click here.

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!