A Day Before - Jennifer Pre-Wedding Dinner

Right after finished an assignment in the morning, immediately I rushed to Jennifer's house to cover her simple pre-wedding dinner. Maybe there is a better word for it, it is a dinner event before the wedding day, hehe. Shot a lot of candid's groups photos. Did a pre-wedding session with Jennifer a while ago in Kundasang, Kota Kinabalu. And that night I saw many people kept asking the same questions to Jennifer after they saw her pre-wedding album, which was "where was the photos taken?". So we laughed. Felt sad that I was unable to cover her big day the next day as I have already been booked earlier. Thanks Jennifer for everything. 

Love Unwither - Alwin & CJ Pre-Wedding

CJ is my cousin sister, she used to stay in my house for a while and saw how she started with Alwin and finally decided to tie the knot. I was very busy editing my pictures in the home office every night and I left the living room freely for them lol. Time flies, for the moment she asked about my package I was surprised, with the zombie face, yes that was my life when I used to work alone. Gave CJ a good deal, and we went to some local places for some fun shots. CJ brought over all my other cousins over during the shoot, it was filled with laughter and such and end of the day Alwin said that he is about to be addicted and shooting pre-wedding is not that tired afterall. We so ventured to some nature, and finished off in Petaling Street, we did some shots at the chicken rice shop :p, the old tailor shop and in the heart of Petaling Street lol. 

The session went great and one of the session I love is the session in the begining where I asked them to do some shots with just her veil on, just right outside the balcony. I thought it might be quite meaningful because they spent most of the time here in my house. Sharing some coffees with the beautiful sunrise, yeah thats the main reason I like about my condo. Its always filled with positive energies. 

Final Moment - KA & Bobo Wedding Day

Its a warm and peaceful wedding day for KA & Bobo. I remember the sunlight for that day is somewhat different from the rest of the day, very bright and graceful. Just love to observe the reaction of Bobo on different encounters during the day, with laughters and tears, accompanied by many kids during the make up session. I guess the day for Bobo, after pre-wedding and our ROM session, the wedding day to her is about not just the day, but also imagining that finally the wedding day is about to finished by end of the day. Her heart is all accepting, enjoying every moment of the day. Thanks to KA & Bobo who had me captured your special day and having me as part of your journey. I wish all my couples are as friendly as both of you, that able to enjoy every part of your wedding process, like I always want them to be.

Marry You - Ling Eng & Rachel Pre-Wedding in Cameron Highlands

Ling Eng and Rachel both resides in Singapore, I remember the day before we did the pre-wedding shoot, we both discussed about how the pre-wedding will run and made them recall a little. And during the shoot it was quite fun and relaxing, yeah in cozy cameron highlands, it is a lot easier compared to hot sunny Kuala Lumpur hehe. Both of them are quite easy going but I believe there are more to be discovered in their minds. Yes, Asians are reserved sometimes, sometimes we get to know this much about them, and sometimes you can just discover everything. However, I am glad that the session went well and both of them told me that the experience they recevied in return was meaningful.

Love Being Delightful - Ling & Niki Pre-Wedding in Kota Kinabalu

Ling and Niki came to our studio and that was when we first met and get to know each other. Both Ling and Niki are both ex-Etihad airways pilot and cabin crew. And later Ling moved to AirAsiaX, while Niki managed to safe keep her Etihad uniform, we did a shot with the airline uniform they had, lol quite unique. It was sweet when Ling handed over the flowers he got from the ground and that was how the pre-wedding session started. Both Ling and Niki are quite outspoken, we made the theme to be an enjoyable and cheerful one while the gown session we made it to be an inert one, recalling the future after 10 years of relationship. 

Ling and Niki had known each other not too long in Etihad and Niki, Niki got pregnant later and had a baby girl taken cared by her mom in KK. We chat over whatsapp for a lot of times, and get to know that the journey ahead is going to be a long one and will face a couple of obstacles, and that was the reason I made the gown session an imagination of the 10 years of relationship that will be coming by. A series for them to recall after 10 years from present day. Life is an encounter of many obstacles and hope that both of them will be able to be rejoyced whenever they saw the pictures, that recalls those important things that they once cherished. 

Love Made Our Life Different - Kok Hui & Cheryl Pre-Wedding in Kundasang, Kota Kinabalu

Kok Hui and I had known each other since college time in an intern where we all went to sell books and bibles to help ourselves through school. It was a pleasure for him to love my works. While Cheryl being the perfectionist, plus Kok Hui had a lot of ideas for his unique occasion, they picked Kota Kinabalu as their location to enjoy their love and revive those feelings that brought them together. Well I have shot many of places in Kota Kinabalu, one of the famous place is this place. However, the most funny incident we had was they thought that the Tip of Borneo actually called Kundasang and we end up going to Kundasang instead of Tip of Borneo, only found out when the driver had sent us up to Kundasang LOL. We all laughed but the shot went very well. I missed the trip to Tip of Borneo so much, I really wish to go back there again. Everytime I showed couples this location and often times I get engaged to this place, lol so Kundasang is my another home for pre-weddings hehe. Love the gown the Cheryl had brought over, it was the gown made by Carven Ong, a well known designer in Kuala Lumpur. The color tone specially defined for this couple is to enhance those simplicity in their love, refining those valuable elements in the past and the session also a metaphore of the past and the present. 

I was quite eager to know what would this couple feel when they saw the slideshow, and when I saw their lovely eyes watching the slide, I felt so glad that they love it. It is quite stress to photoshoot a friend, because really do not want to upset them LOL. You know what I mean. 

Living Together . Growing Together - Ryan & Trixie Wedding Day

Finally, Ryan & Trixie wedding day after we did the pre-wedding session together. On this special day Trixie invited many of her friends over as bridesmaid, they were all very funny and everyone seemed like to tease Trixie. After the wedding day I realized that the wedding day is what Trixie wanted to share with her friends and its a day that both person value friendshop, love, and family. All these 3 elements were very precious. And so I made this theme for them while doing the SDE "Living Together and Growing Together", the song sounded like the smurf movie. After I hand over the pictures to them, Trixie felt heart warming about the shot with her hugging her dad, and she said that, that was the only time she gave her dad a big hug, and I've captured that. Too many nice pictures in returned, and at that moment I guessed she got piled with lots of nice pictures and unable to know where to start LOL. But it all went great, I love this couple a lot, they just made everyone laughed. 

The Love in Our Mind - Square & Lincole Pre-Wedding in Perhentian Island

Had been communicating with Square and Lincole for a while before the pre-wedding and they wanted their pre-wedding in perhentian island, which is one of their favorite location for get-a-way from the hectic life in Hong Kong. This Hong Kong couple is quite unique, they just want something casual and what we did was rather an emotional session on the island. I was surprised that Hong Kong people are actually more emotional than us malaysians, this has been proven for a few assignments I did with HKers. They are more easy to express themselves and allow the emotion to pour. Loving this couple and finally Lincole poured her tears during the session, and I guess that folds a unique experiences for them.

Love to go geek - Jennifer Personal Portrait

Jennifer is an old friend who started photographer for quite some time and we did a session of personal portrait a while ago, right after she received the pictures she was eager to do another session with me, due to her busy schedule the session had to postponed until this day. In between Jennifer joined a few of my photography workshops and now I think she had been a model for many photographers, so for our session we were thinking what kind of theme we will do for this session, so I suggested instead of doing all kinds of fancy stuffs, this session is to express her personality as a shooter, so we did our session in Melaka together with Wayney, the make up artist. 

A Touch for Unification - Vincent & Erin Wedding Day in Hong Kong

Finally after 1 year shot Vincent & Erin's pre-wedding, its like meeting back old friend, both of the are the type of couple who are easy going and love God deeply. What a touching ceremony, my eyes were wet during their sharing session. Will never forget this one. As the wedding was so long, I only got 1.5 hr to do the SDE, everything was done very fast but still love it! Long and tiring but memorable. Fell in love in HK hehe... Thanks Vincent & Erin, hope to meet you both again. *sob* sob*

What I felt great about this session was it is my experience for this beautiful couple. In this video is a day I felt strongly about creating the most genuine thing for the people that engages us. The morning I went to the bride's house I met up with this group of videographers that is covering Erin's make up, I believe it is a Hong kong culture that people does poses for everything they do. There was this session where the mom was wearing the necklas for Erin in the room, but the videographer had the bride to redo the session again standing infront of the window and asked the mom to wear the necklas again. Though I do not dictate but do strongly felt that those genuine things that had occured, does have an amount of value for memory, just like the mom indeed wear the necklas for the bride in the room, if we asked the bride to redo it infront of the window, the whole meaning of journalism failed. That day I want to ask the world "why are we hired, and what is our responsible as a photographer", we are hired to capture those beautiful things that had occured, and we should also honor those things that had occured isn't it? If we changed something, what has been occured has lost its value for memories. 

Not only does the wearing necklas was redone, the videographers had asked the couple to prepare themselves when walking out of the house, certain time they need to stop, redo, walk again, including how should the bride enters the car etc. For that moment I felt sad, but I only capture those things that had really occured, I tell myself not to capture those posed session, the above clip are all natural occurance, isn't nice to see everything is real and also done nicely? Then after certain years it able to allow the couple to recall those authentic moments in their lives? 

There is no such thing as the best angle of the world. Finding an alternate angle is not hard but to some people it is lol. I remember the time we marching out of the house, the videographers had already stand and prepared themselves on a specific spot, so at first I was standing at one spot and I got a shout said that I have blocked him, then I changed and the other guy shouted LOL, I was like hey I am a photographer should I also have a say too? :p I went to capture an alternate shot and done~ but for many times that I have gave way to the others, I wonder why they did not find an alternate themselves. Maybe its different lol. 

The wedding lasted for a very long time, and I prepared the slideshow within 1.5 hours time, that was still the fastest slideshow production time in my life. Well I know others can do better but thats my best. :p While the slideshow being displayed, the crowd kept on watching it, laughed, and smiled. I wondered why so many people looked so interested, and the video guy came over and said that my pictures are unique and asked for my name card. So we shared a lot, also about the posing part, and he said posing ones and the the none posing ones are different styles. But what I felt at that moment, looking at the crowd, isn't it nice to have a nice style without posing? Posing is so tiring to me, if I am a groom. And for that moment, I felt that the Hong Kong culture is seeking for these kind of pictures inertly. 

I will wait for my second assignment in Hong Kong. :) Crossing my fingers.