With images all complete, albums designed, delivered and files all archived and stowed away, I look back at what an incredible year it has been and how fortunate I have been to not only be given the opportunity to document, but to be a part of all my couples special day and lives. It is such an honor and I cannot thank you all enough. Speaking of thank yous…I received an little note from Andrea and Edward that I wanted to share with you all.

Andrea, Ed, thank you so much for the thoughtful note…and on that note…heheh..(get it?!) Have a great weekend everyone.

Around this time last year I had the pleasure to share and document  Rachell and Jim’s wedding. Now because they live in Chicago, we’ve been keeping in touch via email and facebook but never had a chance to catch up like I do with many of my other couples. It’s just nice to see how things are going you know?

Besides, after sharing and participating in my couple’s special day, we tend to become friends and make time to catch up here and there over coffee or dinners. Well, as luck would have it, Rachell and Jim actually decided to come back to Toronto a year later for a quick visit and we managed to get together for lunch. Thanks guys!!! Happy one year!!

For those who know me, know that I love noodles and pastas. They are my carb of choice. I remember having this conversation with Wendy and Kevin recently on one of our catch up sessions. They had just come back from eating Ramen and the conversation went from there. It gets trickier when I visit a vietnamese pho restaurant as the rice options are appealing…but 9/10 times, I will pick a steamy bowl of hot pho. It’s my kinda comfort food, in fact, that is actually a wedding tradition that I started with my team a couple of years ago. So far without fail, after every wedding, we will hit up on a pho restaurant and enjoy.

When people find out, they are often surprised, and I am not sure why…I tell them that I can’t cook anything elaborate and that I can only really cook for myself. Since I am the only one that I know of who can have meals the way I do. You see, the reason why I think I can do better than the recipes on the magazine is because I can live off noodles and some seasoning. Simple..like what I just made today. Yummy no??? Just me? took me 8 minutes flat!!! Take that!!

What’s your favorite simple food that you can just live off?

Wait…where was I?  Well, I was in Las Vegas for an amazing…let me re-iterate..AH-MAAAAY-ZING time at WPPI (Wedding & Portrait Photographer International) with my two friends Sandy and Albert from Sandy Tam Photography. Enveloped by photographers, established and budding, the whole experience was uplifting and inspiring. What’s more is that I had the opportunity to meet with my awesome vendors who have been an integral part of my business.

Despite all the WPPI events, we still managed to check out some of the casinos and other sites in Vegas while taking photos of each other.

Here are some photos of Sandy and Albert.

Now, those who know me know that I don’t get really “star struck” but I was just happy to be around so much talent. I was lucky enough to have my photo taken with some of the photographers whom I absolutely love….pardon the iphone pics.

Quinn, myself and Dave from DQ Studios

Joe Buissink and I

Jasmine Star and I Myself and Susan Stripling (Please mind big face)

Thanks you guys!!
I am definitely looking forward to WPPI 2012.

Happy Thursday everyone…Due to the cold cold cold weather we’ve been getting here my mind has been wandering to warmer climates which lead me to share with you this blog post of my trip to Cuba with Lucy and two of my close friends Jen and Ron.

I have to say that I was never one for a “relaxing” type trip. I always much prefer the trips that involved exploration and the experience of different cultures, not to mention the food of course. However, in keeping with trying new things and just having a trip with friends, the Sandals Royal Hicacos resort in Veradero was the place we picked to get some much needed R&R.

I must say that my first all inclusive experience was quite awesome. I now know what people mean when people tell me they did absolutely nothing on their vacations. At the resort, I was spoiled with soft sand, gorgeous weather, falling asleep on the beach, having drinks served to you with those tiny umbrellas (it does not take much…i know). Of course, the company was not bad either.

In any case, please enjoy the photos…

As a photographer, I find myself behind the camera more often than in front of one. As a result, I, let alone Lucy and I don’t have very many photos of each other together. Such is also the case for Ron and Jen. It was then that the idea of taking a day and taking photos of each other was born and here are the results of Ron taking photos of Lucy and I.

Photos of Ron and Jen will follow soon.

Thanks Ron!!!

I have yet to meet someone who does not like to travel. Even if you are not adventurous per say it’s nice to see or experience something new. This being said people travel very differently. I recall my last trip to Japan a couple of years ago with Lucy. The trip was focused around trying new food and getting immersed in the culture. Tourist attractions served as guidelines, not the main destination. I remember there was one time where Lucy brought me to the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. I was a little let down by the fact that we could not tour the inner grounds. Of course not! Lucy exclaimed, the imperial family still resides there! duh! While accepting her logic I noticed something in the distance. It looked like a radio tower, yet it was lit in such a way to draw special attention. I asked her what it was and she guessed that it may be Tokyo Tower. Being curious, I suggested we walk towards it to confirm my curiosity. The tower on the horizon was our beacon, we did not know how long the walk would be but along the way, we detoured and stumbled upon a unique shrine and an awesome coffee shop. About an hour of walking later, we discovered that the tower was in fact Tokyo Tower. For us, it was more about what we would find along the way rather than just going to see it. Yes,this involved a little bit of walking but we found that stumbling upon things were much more rewarding than if we mapped out the route.

Segway to the present time and I am delivering this blog post to you while I am on my way to Osaka via Shinkansen (bullet train). As I feel the train catapult myself and the other couple hundred or so passengers forward I am pleasantly reminded about a decision I had to make recently, allow me to share. A little over a month ago, I chose to leave my place of full time employment to pursue my passion of becoming a fulltime wedding photographer. I have never left a job before, the concept was so foreign to me that I needed to google “how to write a letter of resignation”. Actually submitting my resignation letter was equally foreign and scary to say the least. I recall having to print a second copy of my resignation letter because I clutched onto the first one for so long that i made creases on it and it would have looked like something typed up on a napkin. With the support of family, and friends near and dear to me, I was reminded that doing something one is passionate about is an important part of life’s journey. The thing is that I loved my work and I loved the people I worked with, it was just that my passion was now more focused, and in order to fully pursue it, I needed to pick one. I drew inspiration from Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Tim Ferris, Stewart Brand, Cheri Huber, Benjamin Disraeli, to name a few. Let me tell you, taking the risk is never easy, and there is never a good time to do it, but looking I know that I made the right decision. The next couple of weeks after submitting my resignation was difficult, leaving the work was one thing but leaving my extended family was tougher. My three years at my workplace seemed short but during this time, I forged many lifelong friendships and learned a great deal on a world I never knew existed. For this I am eternally grateful. Below is a quick slideshow of photos I took of the individuals I had he pleasure of working with over the years. They were taken with my iphone courtesy of Hipstamatic. Thank you so much for everything guys. There are a few photos of people that were not taken sorry. Thank you so much.

IMG_0327 IMG_0242 IMG_0240 IMG_0239 IMG_0237 IMG_0201 IMG_0200 IMG_0195 IMG_0194 IMG_0193 IMG_0192 IMG_0189 IMG_0187 IMG_0186 IMG_0184 IMG_0182 IMG_0180 IMG_0179 IMG_0175 IMG_0173 IMG_0172 IMG_0166 IMG_0163 IMG_0162 IMG_0161 IMG_0160 IMG_0159 IMG_0158 IMG_0156 IMG_0155 IMG_0150 IMG_0148 IMG_0142 IMG_0131 IMG_0130 IMG_0129 IMG_0127 IMG_0114 IMG_0113 IMG_0112 IMG_0110 IMG_0099 IMG_0093 IMG_0092 IMG_0090 IMG_0089 IMG_0087 IMG_0085 IMG_0084 IMG_0082 IMG_0081 IMG_0079 IMG_0078 IMG_0077 IMG_0076 IMG_0075 IMG_0073 IMG_0071 IMG_0066 IMG_0063 IMG_0057 IMG_0055 IMG_0049 IMG_0047 IMG_0044 IMG_0043 IMG_0042

Now on a little lighter note. Spend time with family and friends guys. Re-connect with past friends and see what’s up. My brothers and I realize that time is going by so quickly that we decided to take a brother trip. Unfortunately my younger brother Patrick could not make it due to exams so it’s just Robert and I in Japan. Surely another trip for the three of us will be planned. For now, this trip has gone well. I must say that hostel life, albeit more affordable and exciting as we get to meet other travelers is just not for me. Something about it that I can’t quite articulate or put my finger on. I am not saying that it’s a bad way to travel, no, I have already met a few backpackers who have shared their world travels with me, I am jealous of the 30 stamps they have on their passport. I am just saying it’s not for me.

My “travel” phone (iPhone) proved to be one of the best travel tools. You don’t know how many Japanese language and transit maps I have loaded on this thing. Where it fails is that many of the applications require a data connection,something that is super expensive in Japan. If you plan on traveling here, don’t even think about getting free wifi as there are far and few between. I am also very thankful for my brother Rob, as he always manages to keep things fun and light with his somewhat immature behavior. I could only imagine how it would be like if Patrick was here too. Rob is some what of a foodie. Because of him, I have eaten soba noodles from a place that has been serving it for over 220 years, tried chicken sashimi (don’t know it till you try it), hormone, among other foods. Not sure if I will be creating a dedicated blog post for my travels but you can follow my random photos here on my Tumblr account. The majority ofthe photos will be of food and stuff that I come across as interesting. I plan on maintaining it to a photo a day of some sort when I get back.

Traveling and life have many parallels. At the end of the day, we all share the same inevitable destination, however how we chose to get there is really up to us.

Stay Hungry.
Stay Foolish.

Kevin

As I went through the photos from this session, I relived many of the moments I shared with Andrea and Edward and their friends that weekend. It became apparent to me that there was no way this would be an ordinary post, there was a story to be told in this session, as a result I will be posting images mini adventure in addition to the engagement photos. Enjoy!

After loading the cars full of food, clothing and supplies, we were off! It did not seem long until the convoy needed make a pit stop for some food.

After photographing Andrea and Edward a little, I was reminded at how hard it is for this couple to be serious. They were always making each other laugh and smile. See what I mean?The cottage was beautiful. It had a rustic kinda feel to it but was also very warm and cozy. I have to admit that I would totally consider going to a cottage after this experience.After an amazing hot pot meal, the group (Andrea, Edward, Derek, Joanna, Benet, Karen, Lucy and myself), enjoyed a beautifully star lit sky and warm fire outdoors where Andrea and Edward shared with everyone their story of how they met and how Edward proposed. It was a great evening.Something I forgot to mention, there was the promise of good food, and at first I thought it was a bunch of take out. Not the case here, Andrea and Edward are amazing in the kitchen and the BBQ. Andrea makes these light and fluffy eggs they are to die for, as for Edward, when he puts on this hat, he becomes king of the BBQ. He made home made mini burgers, an amazing rack of lamb and flavorful steak a la “SPM”. After an amazing lunch, we set out for the town for some photos. There were the “usual” photos, but upon our return, Lucy and I noticed this magical light in an open field. We had to pull over frogger over some traffic to get the following. Andrea and Edward were amazing to be so, cool with these spontaneous mini shoots.On our last day, we hiked 30 minutes and spent another 20 minutes strategically climbing down a rockface into a cove. I have to say it was quite dangerous given we were travelling with everything. There was one point where I thought we would forgo this location because it seemed too dangerous, but Andrea and Edward did not let this roadblock stop them. We figured out a way to get down there and boy was it worth it!   

Phew, we are at the end of the post! Thanks for taking the time to check out this unique engagement session. Andrea, Edward, thank you for inviting Lucy and I to spend the weekend with you both and your close friends. We had an amazing time together and we cannot wait till your wedding!!!
P.S. Happy Thanks Giving everyone!!!!!

Ok, so I am not going to make a habbit of posting a wedding related video but this came to me from Ron and when I saw this, the first thing I thought was, man I hope that photographer has backup equipment (brides, future brides, please please please…make sure your photographer has backup equipment!). Second thing that caught my eye was the man who was helping the photographer get out of the water at about 25 second into the video is awesome!!! Not sure if he was the second shooter or assistant but that guy sprung into action and had nothing but the photographers best interest at heart because the first thing he went for was to get the camera out of the water! I hope his quick actions saved the camera.

Funny enough, I was talking to a photographer friend and the topic of back up equipment came up. The example I used was, if I fell into water with my equipment I would need a fresh set of everything (which I have), to which he replied, we are in Toronto, where would you fall into water? Well dude…case and point… ; )

Happy Friday, have a great weekend everyone!

It is just the beginning of the wedding season and already things are busy. I love work and blogging, but time is always too short. For a while now, everyone in the Fung residence has been busy with work, school and just life. I too have been guilty of getting side tracked with work most times and am reminded by my close friends, it’s not about how much money you make or how much you have in the bank. What it comes down to are the people you love and relationships you cultivate. It is for this reason that this impromptu backyard “bbq” was perfect. The whole family was together and we were not only able to enjoy the beautiful weather, but each others company. These are the moments in life I cherish the most. Happy Tuesday!!

Took this at work today and wished that I could take some time to lounge. Been crazy busy these past couple of weeks, work has been keeping me on my toes so much that I am behind on blogging a couple of weddings.  Excited for tonight as I will be shooting the Red and White again. Hope to blog more soon, Happy Friday!!!!

On the menu was:

Goat Cheese & Roast Pepper Triangles
Herb Roasted Potatoes
Grilled Shrimp and Lobster
Fillet Mignion with Red Wine Pan Jus
Chocolate Espresso Mousse with Mixed Berries

Lucy and I loved this awesome experience and would love to do it again. Thanks to our Chef instructors Susie Reading and her amazing assistant Steve Wilson. Here are some pics.

thanks for taking this photo for us Trixie.

got my colleague Brigid a photo with Ron MacLean.

My boss always says that we live “just in time lives”. We catch the bus…just in time. We get to work….just in time. We meet deadlines…just in time. Between all the responsibilities we have, it’s generally hard to find time to enjoy life with family, friends and loved ones. Just yesterday, I found myself editing on the subway of all places. Generally this slice of time is reserved for me to take a little nap or catch up with Lucy, but lately there is just so much to do. I am not complaining here, what I am trying to say is thank you. People generally have so much to do and so little time that I really really really appreciate Jeff’s email. Thanks for taking the time out of your day to send your thanks and appreciation. You guys are great!

Despite being so busy, I managed to carve out some time for a little getaway with Lucy. Some of you may/may not know but I don’t take much time off, however, I had to make an exception this time around as it was not just time off, it was the day Lucy and I were to celebrate our 5th year anniversary. We decided to stay local so we went to Ruth’s Chris. I love steak but for some reason I barely finished my Filet. A sign that the bottomless pit my stomach used to be is not so bottomless after all. We did not bring a camera but our kick ass waiter had one handy and took a photo for us right after he surprised us with dessert!

I was busy on the weekend assisting Joee on another awesome wedding (photos coming soon), but I still wanted to do something special. Seeing that Wednesday was Canada Day, I took Monday and Tuesday off as well, making it somewhat of a long weekend. As a result, I surprised her by bringing her to Langdon Hall in Cambridge Ontario. The staff here were awesome. Truly, they just made everything so easy and everything happened the way it was suppose to. I chose Langdon because I wanted to get away from the city for a little and it was only a hour drive away. Needless to say, the getaway was short lived but nice anyway despite the crazy on and off rain the whole time. As a result, we did not get to wander through the whole property but what we did see was just awesome. The architecture was beautiful, and there was beautiful light everywhere during the day.

Rather than post a mess of photos, I am just going to post a small series of montages.

The property is just amazing. Great place for a wedding!

We loved our gorgeous room. There was even a small terrace where we could enjoy some fresh air, too bad it rained so much. We were even greeted by a nice bottle of wine and a note addressed to Lucy and I. Later than afternoon, we enjoyed our spa appointment which was really welcomed as my whole body has been aching from all the shoots lately. We had time before dinner and wanted to go out to discover Cambirdge a little, it was then that the hotel offered us a vehicle to drive. It was meant to be a test drive, but they essentially handed us the keys and said, have fun! It was a Lexus RX 350. I am not a huge fan of SUVs but it was a pretty sweet ride. It was practically brand new judging by the total mileage on it. There was nothing much to see since it rained even more but we passed by a Little Caesar’s pizza, something Lucy apparently had never tried we had to go. Alright, I have babbeld enough….enjoy the rest of the photos.

next “exteme” adventure? Sky diving is next on Michele’s list but Kate, Jimmy and I will need to do some research about that.

ok, ok….so Elaine and Alex are not engaged…but they might as well should be, they’ve been together for 5 years, 3 months and counting! In any case, they were kind enough to have me photograph them as a couple, we had a great shoot planned out. Would have been some off camera light action, some urban concrete like backdrops, some urban grunge stuff and a lot of mainstreeting but…something we did not account for was the weather. It rained so hard that day the all day shoot turned into a 30 minute session indoors in her condo. Boooooo! The upside was that it was an overcast day and she had pretty nice light coming through her windows. Regardless, the session was fun and full of laughter. It was just nice to see how great this couple got along.

And finally, the family shot. Elaine, Hagu and Alex. Thanks so much for letting me document your love.

Enough about me…Last week Lucy and I made some time to photograph some gyoza’s. I love gyoza’s, they are so easy to make and taste so good! It’s a very versatile “food” to work with! You can have it in soup, sans soup, pan fried, deep fried…I am starting to sound like Bubba from Forest Gump when he talks about shrimp.

Bubba: Anyway, like I was sayin’, shrimp is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. Dey’s uh, shrimp-kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There’s pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich. That- that’s about it.

if you still don’t know what I am talking about. Check the video.

Almost forgot…the gyoza pictures!

i think these are not bad but does not really tell a story. It is what it is, should add some extra props next time. Yes…we ate the props after. om nom nom nom

Chad is a firefighter and so obviously, the wedding would not be complete with an appearance of a firetruck!

Here we go…

May 7, 2007 – Sophia and Han’s Wedding Reception

I never thought that I would be an image maker. Traditional mediums available at the time were never appealing to me, they generally took too much time, space and I lacked the patience to work with it. However when I played around with Photoshop 4.0 way back when…I was hooked. I had instant gratification for my work, I could play with filters and effects to see what looks best to make my art. What’s best…I could clear the canvas and start over any time. My experimentation with photoshop branched into web design. Free geocities websites and custom asian avenue pages became my world. The attraction was that I could create my work and I could share it with others around the world instantly! Genius! The technology was so easy to work with and it just got better and better. My love for creating interactive multimedia naturally evolved into print design. I have been working online so long that I wanted to make something tangible. Print was the answer. Not only did I have the design aspect but you had the luxury to pick the papers to match, creative folds and so many more ways to display work. It was not long until I picked up photography. My friend Ron was the avid hobbyist, he convinced me to pick up a digital SLR over the prosumer type digital cameras. The moment I held the camera and took a photo, it was blissful. It was a crappy picture I can assure you, but the feeling of reading one’s surroundings, setting the camera to work accordingly was so gratifying. Ron always refered to it as working for the shot.

I have been shooting since 2005, “professionally” so to speak since 2007. After a season of following various wedding photographers, I believe that this is the stream I want to follow…I have been trying for the past 10 minutes to articulate my attraction to photographing people, especially during a wedding. I will have to come back to this.

In any case, I have babbled too much…I will be posting photos in the coming weeks of weddings which I have assisted this past season. Please feel free to leave comments. Thanks!