Photography

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!

Grace Tan In Portraits, Pre-Wedding & Engagement Portraits

Portraits: Eric & Debbie in Pangkor, Day2

Day 2 started at 4am in the morning for Debbie & Angie, our make up artist. While I was catching some much needed sleep, they had to get ready for the photo shoot. I admire such dedication from my couples! At 5am, I woke up, had some coffee and by 6am, we were off to catch the sunrise at the fishing village.

It was totally worth it, waking up so early in the morning for this view!!

If Angie wasn’t there, it would have been harder to achieve this shot – because I can’t hold a flash on a monopod with one hand, the camera in the other hand, and direct the couple to kiss at the same time. As Louis Pang says, “voice activated lightstand” :) Thanks Angie!

This fishing village is so quaint. And this jetty incredibly busy!! Every 5-10 minutes or so, we had to stop to make way for a passing motorbike. The ‘pak cik’s or uncles were really friendly! They were just so pleased to see a bride using their jetty for photos.

One of the things I am glad Debbie did was to ‘brave’ herself and climb down the jetty onto this boat! Eric said that it was only because I coaxed her!

And later, Eric ‘braved’ himself to climb this Dutch fort on Pangkor Island. Uh, is this even allowed? :)

That evening…

And to end our shoot…

Definitely a fun photo shoot. I’ve added Pangkor to my list of favourite places to shoot. :)

Grace Tan In Portraits, Pre-Wedding & Engagement Portraits

Portraits: Eric & Debbie in Pangkor Island Day1

It’s always so exciting when a couple decides to go out of the way to get beautiful images. Malaysia has lots of wonderful beaches. If you are thinking of white sand everywhere the eye can see, well you have to visit places like Four Seasons Resort in Langkawi for that (that’s coming up in another blog post!). Pangkor is not really known for white sandy beaches, but it definitely has a charm of its own!

We stayed at the Pangkor Island Resort, and these pre-wedding photos were taken around the resort itself. Debbie’s brief to me was… “I want sunset shots by the beach, and something different!”. Oh, we definitely had lots of fun those 2 days.

Stumbled upon this cool truck on the beach…

Day 2 started at 5am, and we ended up in a fishing village and also a Dutch fort! Coming soon…

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

Highlights for 2009

I have much to be grateful for in 2009. Through the brand Wedding Story, the team has traveled to many different locations and countries for wedding shoots. It’s been an exciting journey for me, as I’ve grown in my photography career and as a business owner. I’ve lost weight, felt the size of my eye bags growing, but it’s all worth it. The joy that I experience from doing something I am truly passionate about is overwhelming.

Working out of passion instead of the call of ‘duty’ creates meaning in my life. It’s because I truly believe that in every wedding I photograph, I am creating a legacy of images for the couple. That when they look at these images, and remember the joy they felt on that day, it is all worth it. There is a purpose to it, greater than just taking ‘pretty images’.

I appreciate Kee Sitt, Sharon and my husband Alex for all their advice and for journeying together the past few years. Life is exciting, and I am sure that 2010 has more surprises in store for us around the corner!

Here are 2 highlights that I’d like to share with you. They are compilations of various weddings & portraits photographed in 2009.

[flv:http://www.stories.my/wp-content/uploads/2010/slideshows/Stories_WeddingDay.flv http://www.stories.my/wp-content/uploads/2010/slideshows/wedding-highlights.jpg 700 394] [flv:http://www.stories.my/wp-content/uploads/2010/slideshows/Stories_Portraits.flv http://www.stories.my/wp-content/uploads/2010/slideshows/portrait-highlights.jpg 700 394]