Jack and Yen Ling - Part 2

The wedding dinner was held near my place which was good as it allowed me more time to work on the morning shots and produce the slideshow for the dinner.



The surroundings for the restaurant made it a nice place for relatives and friends to catch up. There is a pool nearby and people can walk around instead of just sitting in the dinner hall.



Jack and Yen Ling were lucky that they had three cute lil girls as their flower girls. Their smile and enthusiasm for the night was very refreshing indeed.



Of course, the star of the night were the couple and as they stroll in, cheers, applause can be heard and the couple was smiling from ear to ear.



It was a wonderful night and they were very gracious host. They took care of us and made sure we had something to eat although we were too busy running around to worry about eating.



I wish them both the best and it was a blast covering their wedding :)

For more pictures of the night, click here

I will not be blogging for the rest of the week as I will be away in Kuching for Christmas. To everyone reading this blog, have a good holiday and Merry Christmas :)

Jack and Yen Ling - Part 1

Another wedding, another job introduced by Tim and we are pretty much improving as we go. I think this was so far my best coverage of a wedding yet so I am pretty happy with the direction we are heading.



This time around, we managed to get some posed shots, some natural shots and best of all, the bride, the groom, the relatives and the friends were all so smiley that it was so easy to capture their raw emotion on camera.



The groom's friends were also largely cooperative and they did everything in good sport. Of course, there were some bargaining here and there but in the end, they played all the games. Good sport.



So, I wish Jack and Yen Ling all the best although I still have another series of them to share after this. But as usual, enjoy the video I created for their dinner below:



For high quality version, you know what to do.

Tomorrow: The dinner pics!

Kumar & Rathika

Our first Indian wedding under Through Our Eyes was quite an eye opener. I never expected the Indian wedding ritual to be so different.



And of course, the makeup session was done so fast, you just have to be amazed. I think it took half an hour for them to be done with the bride. Talk about efficiency! If it was a Chinese wedding, the make-up artist would be there for hours working on the bride alone.



And then, when it was time to pick up the bride, the groom is not present. This is indeed a change of direction for me. I was waiting for the groom to show up and I just saw the bride walking to the car. Luckily, we still managed to get the shots.



And then of course, the best part of the day is in the evening when you get to shoot a half-naked Indian priest. The whole ceremony was very interesting but it was all quite central. Unlike Chinese weddings where the couple move around, this was pretty much done and dusted on stage.



But the most interesting part was one of the last thing they did. The bride will put her feet on the stone and the groom will tie something to it. The act of putting her feet on the stone is a symbol that she will always remain strong for him. Amazing, ain't it?

So, thats a collection of my favourite pics, you can view the video here:



Click on the video, and then click "Watch in High Quality" if you want to see it in a better resolution.

Up next: Another wedding?

The beginning of a journey...

When Tim first asked me to shoot a wedding, I was reluctant. I always thought that wedding photography was unrewarding and I would not derive any pleasure from covering a wedding. However, the idea of trying was enough to make me say yes to Tim.

I went through countless threads of wedding photography and I was slowly inspired by what some would term as "wedding journalism" where pictures replaced words in reenacting the wedding experience.



And so I went with Tim, and I wanted to do well. At least, I didn't want to disappoint the bride. After all, it is once in a lifetime. I didn't want to be the guy who messed up the wedding.



From the first click of the shutter, boy was I hooked! The freedom given by the couple (since we were technically free) meant that I could shoot anything, any way I like.



And I realised how wedding photography can be exciting. When you are chasing for the moment, the rush is quite something else. And it is so rewarding when you look at the LCD screen and you see that you nailed a shot.



So here I am now, ready to embark on a new journey, a new experience. And I thank my friend Tim for showing me the way. Then again, I got a brain fart yesterday and I need to share with him some concept which I will reveal in due time.



So, wish me luck and I don't know where I will end up in this new journey. But I hope on the way, I will give lots of smiles and create many moments for couples everywhere.

By the way, we set up a site to showcase our work so drop by if you have the time. It is http://toephotos.wordpress.com and no, it is not a toe fetish site. TOE stands for Through Our Eyes.

Tomorrow: Its back to macro! With a new toy!

Kelly's Wedding - Part 4

Going to the new house means the prayer ceremony and the tea ceremony begins anew. While the couple was waiting for the prayer ceremony, I saw a moment where the bride held the groom's hands.

The toughest thing about wedding photography is staying alert to opportunities like this. I was glad that I noticed it. Then again, she did hold his hand for quite some time :P



One of the many Chinese traditions is that the groom will remove the veil for the bride. This was a tight angle, there was no room to move about so I had to sit myself down on the floor right beside the dressing table.



And then the bride will remove the groom's coat. I am sure there is a meaning to these two actions but I can't remember what. I tuned off to the "dai kam che" after a while. :P



And finally, the bride get to have some time with her friends and relatives. All in all, a happy day indeed. Well, that covers the wedding series. I am probably going to be serious about getting involved in wedding photography so wish me luck!

Next on Shutter Nick: Bugs? Nah, we go for bigger stuff this time around. My trip to Zoo Negara.

Kelly's Wedding - Part 3

After picking up the bride, it was time to move to the groom's parents house. I was sticking my head out of Tim's car to take shots of the car. And Tim need to change his car. His window cannot wind down fully which made life difficult for me as I am not exactly the smallest person in this town :P



Of course, with the bride and the groom entering the lift first, we had to run up seven floors to catch her exiting the lift. Never knew that wedding photography will give me a workout.



As we were working in quite tight space, Tim entered the house while I shot from outside. This gave me the opportunity to try some new angles and luckily, there is a walkway directly opposite the unit she was getting into. Else I would be missing lots of shots.



As Tim snapped away happily inside, I took some from outside. Kelly and her husband was performing the prayers and I sneaked a shot from between the windows.

Next up: Photos of the couple in their new home :)

Kelly's Wedding - Part 2

The bride was eagerly anticipating for the arrival of the groom and she didn't have to wait long.



The groom was quite on time and he waited in the car for a bit before the bride's brother opened the door for him. Get angpow you know :)



The father began a prayer ritual to get blessing for the wedding. I was trying to capture the movement but I think I might have chosen a shutter speed that was too fast. Next time must try slower.



The groom had it easy though when he picked up the bride. No need to wear any underwear on the outside, no make-up, nothing except some simple games right outside the door.



Of course, the people watching still found it amusing. Wait till it is your turn :P



And finally, once he got in, its time to take a look at his bride. The woman he will spend the rest of his life with. Look at her joy, a happy day indeed.

Part 3 next Monday as I will be away in Singapore :)

Kelly's Wedding - Part 1

I was given the chance to shoot Kelly's wedding recently and this is my second wedding job. I hope that when the CD is passed to her, she will love the photos. I was shooting with Timothy, my partner in crime, and also the source of my wedding jobs. The bride told us to come later but of course, we wanted to shoot the preparation section as well and to her surprise and joy (I hope), we reached there two hours earlier.

Of course, we immediately set out to capture shots and I took the above shot of the altar table with some sweet offerings. I believe it is tong yuen or some would say tang yuen.



Of course, since she was busy with her make-up, I decided to shoot other stuff first, like her wedding dress. It was a simple off white dress and it looked quite nice indeed.

I concentrated on the little details first because ada macro lens ma :P



Then I decided to go for a full shot and converted it into B&W as I think it removed the distraction of other colours in the room.



We then kidnapped her shoes and tried to find a place to shoot it. I thought the red colour pillar of the altar table outside made for a nice contrast with the white shoes. I then cross processed it to give it a lomo feel.



We went back into the room and now I tried to capture some of the make-up stuff. The tools of the trade of the make-up artist couldn't be any more different than mine. Then I thought, it differed in looks but the concept is still the same. I have different lenses, she have different brushes.



And the make-up artist working her magic. Again, using the macro lens to isolate the tip of the make-up brush. Or is it the eye-liner?

Next up, Part 2, where we take a look at some shots when the groom arrives.