Joseph & Karen

It's been a hectic week at work, on top of coping with my cough, which seems to get worse everyday...haiz. Therefore, I was definitely looking forward to taking a day off last Fri to participate in Joseph & Karen (my future bro & sis in law hehe...)'s big day! Needless to say, I also took the opportunity to take some photo with my new tamron!!!

The day started off at Changi Chalet, where Karen and her family (who came all the way from Pahang) were staying for the weekend. As Xian-Jun was abit late, Karen had already finished her make-up and was all dressed already. Luckily, the groom was delayed due to traffic jam and the photographers (2 of Karen's relatives and moi) were able to take some portrait shots of Karen, who look soo gorgeous and slim!! (I really must try to lose more of my fats before wedding...hmmm). The below 2 shots are my fav.

Soon after, Jo arrived with his brothers and the gate-crashing games, which I thought was very mild!!! (Xian-Jun, be prepared for more to come in future okie? haha....) The bummer was that 2 of the brothers sneaked off and found the backdoor!! The jie-meis were so indignant lo, but what to do? Luckily, Karen's room is locked and Jo pacified all by producing alot of amusing ang pao (like 20 one-ringgit notes, food court value card, korean won...*roll eyes*...and finally a huge ang pao containing S$) .

I've witnessed how they got to know each other till the day they tie the knots.
Really happy to see them looking so loving and wish them many many happy years ahead!

Felt abit lethargic after the tea ceremony and hence went home to have a rest before the dinner at Raffles Marina. Wow, that place really brought back alot of fond memories....coz my IA farewell lunch was held there too and I got to know many good friends during IA....Good old days.... Anyway, venue was nice (with a lovely view of the yacht and highway to JB) and food is not bad. The only thing to complain about, if I choose to be picky, is that it's rather out of the way. Overall, had an enjoyable day. Just to share 3 more photo taken at Raffles Marina....

This is Xian-Jun and Jo's granny. Think she was very very happy that day as she seldom leave her house nowadays due to poor health and do not have much chance to meet so many relatives at one go.

Moi & Sis fooling ard before the dinner


Really nice and serene sunset view of Raffles Marina

Alone on V Day

As usual, my Xian-Jun is a man with a mind of his own. In the past, when I was still at the age when I would want flowers on Valentine's Day, he'll blatantly ignore my hints. After I've finally grown up and start feeling that practical/ meaningful gifts are more worthwhile, he'll go and get my flowers. What an irony.....

Nevertheless, I wouldn't go to the extent of saying that I didn't like the flowers. Which girl wouldn't at the sight of a huge bouquet of flowers from Shiroi Floret? It was absolutely gorgeous lor......Perhaps my photo didn't really do the flowers justice *sad* Gotta say that Shiroi is really a place that prides itself on providing the best flowers for its customers.....even if you are not buying, no harm stepping into this quaint little shop at the basement of Parkway Parade just to give yourself a visual treat. No one can feel unhappy or stressed in this aesthetically pleasing shop with all that subtle but lovely smell..........

Apart from Shiroi, a few other recommended shops are Fiore Dorato and Fleurlicious, which is where I should be getting my bridal bouquet. The designer Justin is a master in this area....his designs never fail to blow me away. Can't wait to see what kind of bouquet he'll design for me....which of cos dep on the season and the design of the dress.

One of my little present to Xian-Jun.....think cost of putting mat + manhour put in to make this collage is cheaper than the bouquet of flowers....shocking!

My New Toy

Ard Christmas last year, my good friend Loony lent me his Minolta 28-75mm/f2.8 lens and I became an instant fan. Photo with depth of field has such alot of feel! Ever since then, i've been trying to get hold of the Tamron 17-50mm/f2.8. Sadly, I could not find it anywhere and it was not even from a lack of trying.

Besides MS Color, I covered more than 20 shops at Sim Lim Sq and Peninsula Plaza. While there is alot similar lens for Canon/ Nikon cameras, there's virtually none for Sony Alpha cameras since somehow stock is not coming in to Singapore. As I was about to lose heart, a kind uncle asked me to try my luck at Peninsula Hotel and waalaaa....I finally found IT!!

Life is funny sometimes, isn't it? Even if you have money, you may not be able to buy something that you want so much....But when you no longer want a certain thing, it'll appear in front of you, causing you anguish whether to take it or not.... Of cos in this case, the decision is a no-brainer. I probably laid my hand on the last possible Tamron 17-50mm/f2.8 for Alpha that is available in retail shops now hahaha.

Already plotting when I should get my next toy........or rather which toy to get......Lomo vs Wide Angle Lens? Tough choice once again......

A Simple, But Possibly Biased, Review of Wedding Photographers

Wedding photography is so powerful because it is able to convey so much more than what the eye sees. It is more than posing.......If you miss that smile, laughter, tears, hug or kiss, the moment is gone forever. There is so much to learn and experience before I can (if ever) reach that level. Love for photography alone is not sufficient, there must be a sincere interest in the people, environment and lighting, the desire to constantly improve, and be technically savy in photoshop!!

In the course of my wedding preparation, I came into contact with many wedding photographers with very varied styles, much to the disgruntle of Xian-Jun (as he is the slightly unwilling driver). But wedding is a once in a life time (to some, maybe more than once, but that's besides the point) thing and I would so love to make it as perfect as possible. To me, photography is one of the most important element. This blog will highlight my opinion of some of the photographers ...it may sound slightly biased, but photography is very subjective anyway....

RAVES.....

1) William Chua Photography: A slightly nerdy guy with big eyes and a nice smile. Soon after I got to know him, I realised that he is a also a very fun guy to chat with and he is extremely passionate about photography. Some of his recent travel photo reminded me of Ansel Adam's black and white photos, which is high praise, trust me! Though his rates are on the steep side, it's considered to be reasonable by Wedding Photographers Network's standard (http://www.wpn.sg/). I've engaged him as either my Pre-Wedding / Actual Day photographer. Would love to have him for both...but financially not able to do so. Whichever it is, I'm sure it'll be fun working with him, seeing how he can bring to life my love story.

2) Tan Eng Howe from Montage Studios: Had a brief session with Eng Howe yesterday. Even though his style is not the typical photojournalistic style I tend to prefer, there is a feeling of fun and happiness in his photo, which is lasting. He is also the only photographer I spoke to who bothered to write down the ideas the couples have. I definitely liked his attitude.

3) Aloysius Chua from Impression/ Image Garden: A cute guy I met at my friend's wedding, who specialises in AD photography. A very straight-forward style of photography, but Aloysius is willing to go the extra mile for his customers, in the sense that he will stay back after wedding dinners to help couples take more photo around the hotel area. Of cos, that is only to privileged customers of Ted Collection.

4) While I did not speak personally to some of the photographers, I simply love the work of Kelvin Koh from Lightedpixels, Jonathan Ho, Gilbert Chua, Gabriel Mendes and Stephen from Lyrical Moments. There is something very special in their photo which I could not see elsewhere. The freaky thing is…….they are all from WPN!! And naturally, good things come at a cost. I lament everyday why I did not win the toto….

CRAPZ….

Perhaps Crapz is too strong a word, but I was quite appalled with Studio Sxxo’s obvious lack of professionalism. Met him a few years ago at a friend’s wedding and in view that another close friend is engaging him for both her pre-wedding and AD photography, I was quite excited to meet up and see his work. Nonetheless, he completely forgot about our appointment though it was only made the afternoon before and in the end we had to make another appointment. Luckily we didn’t get any summon, otherwise our degree of irritation would have increased threefold. Nonetheless, I think I will happily spend my money elsewhere. I don’t think I can accept it if my photographer turn up late or forgot about my wedding.

Working like an Ox in the Year of Ox??

Barely one week ago, I was still enjoying all CNY goodies and bang luck with my relatives. Can't rem the last time me and my cousins took a group shot, but we really had fun trying out different poses and permutations on the first day of CNY at my Da Yi's place. Really glad we are such a close-knitted, if not, the family gatherings would not have been sooo fun and memorable.

But gotta say this is one eventful CNY though....Since last week, I've (a) suffered from flu & cough, (b) ganna whacked on my face by a Wii player at Best Denki and almost got disfigured (nvr realise how dangerous that game is!! I think I will suffer some withdrawal whenever I see people playing wii from now on), (c) settling back into work after being away on course for the past mnth, which sux cos I got quite a bit of arrows, (d) and visiting home reno/ bridal services (to me, prep is def more fun than the actual event hehe...can't imagine me giving out ang pow next yr...sweat)!! Anyway, this seems to set the trend for the year of OX.....I gotta work like one too. hehe....hopefully all these activities will let me slim down abit more before the big day.....

Meanwhile...back to studying for test.......