Photography

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 For Photographers, Musings, Running a Business

The start of WPPI 2010 Vegas!

What a whirlwind the past week has been! I haven’t really been able to blog as often as I would have liked to. I still have so many things to write from my coastal trip from San Fran to LA! Unfortunately that will have to wait.

This past one week, I was in Las Vegas, attending the largest wedding & portrait photography conference in the world – WPPI 2010! This year, 14,000 people came from all over the world to hear from the world’s best – photographers like Marcus Bell, Jerry Ghionis, Yervant, Jasmine Star, Kevin Kubota, Dane Sanders, amongst many others.

I was thrilled that I could make the trip this year, together with fellow photographers influential in the Malaysian industry – Louis Pang, Zung, Patrick Low & Jenny Sun. I’ve made so many new friends this week and have been so inspired by the lives of the people that I’ve encountered.

In a nutshell, he’s an overview of what happened the past one week.

The first 2 days of the conference was really awesome because I attended Cliff Mautner’s Plus class. This is an intimate class of 25 people only. Cliff not only taught us his signature style of getting beautiful back rim lighting like these shots…

…but he also shared with us his life, experiences, and his thoughts on the business of wedding photography. I’ll share more in another post. [updated: read the post here]

While I was in Cliff Mautner’s class, Alex was attending Ken Sklute’s Plus class, where he learnt a lot about lighting. The Plus classes are worth it. If any photographer out there is thinking of attending WPPI, this is something not to miss.

After the 2 days of Plus classes, we had events like Master classes going on. Master classes are only 2 hours long, but the class size is up to 50 people. Unlike the main Platform classes, some of which seat up to 1000 people, you can understand why people pay more just to have a more personal time with the trainer.

I attended only one Master class (you have the option to attend up to 3, with a fee of course!). I chose Dave and Quin Cheong’s class, or better known as DQ. Some photographers might be familiar with DQ QuiKeys, a hardware workflow solution for post processing your images. Dave and Quin are the photographers who developed this product.

Doesn’t Quin look hot? And the best thing is, she’s from Malaysia! But living in Canada now.

They too shared their perspective on business. One of the things that they said which makes so much sense is their idea on albums. They believe that photographers should always shoot for albums.

“If a story is worth sharing…” they said, “…present it properly. Whose children will pop a DVD and sort through a thousand images years from now?”

The main thing about selling to your clients is ensuring that you gain their confidence and trust. Getting your potential clients to trust that you will understand their needs and cater to it. You are making photographs for your clients, after all, not just to satisfy ‘your personal artistic vision’.

While Master classes are ongoing in various rooms, the print competition judging is held over 2 days. This is a really informative session for me. In various rooms, judges are presented prints from the latest 16 x 20 print competition. These prints come from all over the world, including Malaysia and Russia! As they comment on what they think makes or break that particular image, I learnt a lot about how to view a print critically.

A few things I noted:

1. The best photo size for the 16 x 20 print competition is not more than 12 x 15 inches. Leave the rest for the matte board.

2. Matte photos look better under the hot spotlight.

3. Photos that are post processed in moody, darker tones seem to interest the judges more than bright coloured images.

4. Your eyes are drawn to the brightest part of the image first, then the darker areas. This is a post processing rule as well – so make sure that when you post process your images, you dodge and burn until the audience sees ‘your vision’.

5. It’s not just technical things that the judges are looking out for. They pay attention to the bride and groom’s body language in the photo. Does the pose look believable? What do the expressions on their faces convey?

On the 7^th of March, the WPPI 2010 conference was officially launched. It was also my birthday. What a celebration it has been, to be inspired by so many people through WPPI! Prior to WPPI, I also joined a competition, and I won a photography session with Dawn McCarthy, a renowned photographer in Jacksonville, Florida. We did the photo shoot on my birthday, so that was special! Looking forward to seeing the images.

I can’t possibly summarize what I experienced in WPPI 2010 through one blog post. So, part 2 coming up soon! [updated: view part 2 here]

View the Trash the Dress Vegas photos here.

Grace Tan In Boudoir, Casual Portraits, Portraits

Boudoir Photography

Boudoir photography is really popular in the US, UK and Australia, but something relatively new in Malaysia. Boudoir is a french word, derived from the meaning, ‘to pout’, or bedroom. These women, portrayed in a glamourous, sensual way, use the photos as gifts for their husbands or boyfriends. What a wonderful way to celebrate the human form!

I have been fascinated with this form of photography, but never had the opportunity to shoot one till recently. I think I have an edge as a female photographer – my client felt comfortable in front of me. I am really excited to share with you a few shots from this recent boudoir shoot. I have lots of ideas for this style of photography, so if any of you are interested… drop me a line and we can talk about it!

Of course, sexy lingerie and make up is a must for this shoot! Accessories are cool too.

And if you have lovely looking heels like this one – it’s a plus point!

Most women feel that they don’t really have it in them to pose for these type of shots. We tend to feel self conscious of our body and how it is portrayed. “Tummy too flabby, arms too fat, etc”. But at the end of the day, getting great images is really a collaborative effort with your photographer. You don’t have to worry about the poses, because you will be directed on what to do. We will know how to focus on the areas that you like and hide the parts that you are uncomfortable about. The final result will surprise your husband, and I am sure it is worth it!

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 Musings, Running a Business

Joe McNally in Malaysia

What an honour to be able to learn from one of the world’s best photographers. Joe McNally is not a new name to the photography world. His works appear all over the National Geographic, and he’s done portraits of so many amazing people & celebrities – including our famous Dato Michelle Yeoh. Thanks to Louis Pang, many hungry Malaysian photographers were able to meet the man himself, on our home ground, Kuala Lumpur.

I only managed to attend the seminar on the 6th of February, where over 300 photographers came from all over Malaysia and some from other countries to hear Joe speak. Joe is a really funny, down to earth man. I can’t believe he is 57 years old! You need a lot of stamina to do this kind of work, AND do things like speak for 8 hours x 6 days a week! (referring to the entire workshop, of course!)

There was a grand start to the seminar when 3 groomsmen and bridesmaid danced into the ballroom, followed by Joe McNally himself, with beautiful Evon at his arms!

Didn’t really get a good shot of the guys dancing in, featuring Mark Leo & Ian Chong! :) Too many photographers blocking my short perspective.

Here’s Louis Pang, the man who made it happen.

After this seminar, I am sure Lastolite’s sales in Malaysia will skyrocket drastically.

Joe says, “80% of photography is not about photography. It’s about managing people.” How true.

Some amazing models who were there that day.

The ever so hardworking and creative media team who were shooting the entire seminar, as well as doing the live video stream so that the people at the back could see what’s going on on stage.

And of course, I had to join the 300+ people in queue to get my standard ‘pose with Joe’ shot. AND get my Hot Shoe Diaries book signed.

What an amazing day. I learnt a lot about lighting that day. I truly believe in investing money for education such as seminars like these. I am always on a quest to improve myself, and I believe that you can always learn something, even if you are 80 and been in the business for years.

In a few week’s time, I will be leaving for the States to attend the WPPI conference – where thousands of wedding & portrait photographers will gather to learn from the top in the world. I can’t wait!