Uriage 1st Asia Pacific Regional Seminar

Uriage is one of the leading dermo-cosmetic thermal water brands on the international market.  Their 1st Asia Pacific regional seminar was held at Park Royal on Pickering, Singapore. This centrally located hotel provides easy access for the gathering of the representatives from various countries.

Commercial Photography : Iki Studio

These gorgeous minimalist watches designed by Iki Studio came to our office two weeks ago for some catalogue photos.

Photography was straight forward. I place the products inside the light tent to create nice even lighting from all directions. The challenge is to portray the stainless steel face accurately (the one on the left). It is very reflective and the light that bounces off made it look completely white. 

With some clever positioning of the lights and some tweaking of the curves in photoshop, It looks like stainless steel now. 

If you have similar products that needed photos done, please send an email to ted@teddytan.com.au .

Facebook........LIVE !

Any of you IT savvy folks has “liked” my page on Facebook? I had a play with Facebook Live a few days ago, and it seemed like a fun way to connect with my audiences. So here’s the question: What would you like to see in my next live video?

I already have a few ideas in mind,

-          Go behind the scene and have a peek at a photoshoot

-          Going through my bag, see what gears do I pack.

-          A live stream from my lighting and portrait workshop

-          Q&A session, ask me anything! Pick my brains! Maybe I will reveal some trade secrets!

It can even be non photography related, like what I am having for lunch. Let me know by commenting below!

If you have not liked my Facebook page yet, click on the link below and choose to be notified whenever I am on LIVE !

Where do I find inspiration ?

It’s been over seven years since the day I photographed my very first wedding.  With hundreds of weddings under my belt now, things start to appear repetitive. So how do I stay fresh?

Outside of wedding photography, I collaborate with models and makeup artist on various personal projects . Commonly known as Time-for-prints (TFP), these  projects allow me to experiment without the consequences of failure in an otherwise paid job.

It may seem daunting at first to put together all the logistics. But the result is worth the effort, not to mention subsequent photoshoots will be easier. There are a few ways to get the ball rolling – emulating other people’s work with my own interpretation, building a theme around a piece of amazing clothing or prop, or simply let my imagination runs wild.

Take this photo titled "Sewer Fishing" for example, the inspiration came from my childhood experiences when I caught tadpoles from the drain. The challenging thing in this shoot is crowd control. Luckily I had an assistant who helped directing the people while I concentrate on the shoot.

I also volunteer to teach portraiture lighting at a local camera club. I find that being able to impart my knowledge gives me satisfaction. Talking to my fellow photographers also generates fresh ideas and keeps me up to date in technology development. 

Sometimes I also go on road trips. By far the most frequented one is the Great Ocean Road. Visiting the same place at different time of the year bring fresh perspective to me. Usually I will also take this opportunity to location scout.

Fellow artists, I want to hear from you! So how do you let your creative juices flow? Leave a comment below!

How to Choose a Wedding Photographer - Teddy's tips

If you have been active on social media for the past week or so, chances are, you might have come across the story about poorly taken photographs of  the wedding of Ms Jaclyn .

Here’s a reminder:

Photo: Facebook/Jaclyn Ying

While it is subjective to rate the photographs, as each photographer has his or her distinct style, there are still a few core criteria on what makes decent photography . Here are my few tips to help you select a wedding photographer, and hopefully you will receive images that you like, more  than Ms Jaclyn liking hers.

1.     Select a photographer with the biggest lens.

Size matters. Surely, the biggest lens will produce the most flattering photos, right? How many times have you told yourself, “This person must be a good photographer, look at that big lens he is carrying!”. Having a big lens is a big bonus. The photographer simply needs to park the car, roll down the window, and start shooting, private detective style. This is the highest form of photojournalistic photography, a style that wedding couples rave about nowadays.  It will be least intrusive and images captured will be most candid.

So, the first question to ask when you meet a photographer is, “How big is your lens?”

Photo: fotosale.com.ua

2.     Select a photographer with the highest megapixel camera.

This comes a close second. A high megapixel camera will no doubt capture a lot of details. All the hard work you’ve put into the wedding preparation will be captured with a deservingly advanced camera. High megapixel camera are easily accessible by the masses. Chances are, many of your wedding guests already have smart phones that are capable of shooting more than 10 megapixels. It might come with smile detect ion function as a bonus! In the future, scientist might even come up with cameras that will automatically detect important moments, and capture them.  

So don’t forget to ask, “how many megapixels can your  machine do?”

Photo: properplanner.com

And thank you for staying with me till now. Hope that this satritical piece (in case you don’t already figured it out) will brighten your day a little. In all seriousness, make sure you do your homework when it comes to selecting a wedding photographer. I’m sure there are more serious articles on the web which will guide you through.