During every shoot, I will visualize a setting where I see beautiful lighting and equally beautiful backdrop are available at the location of our photography session. Then, I’ll “put” my clients there. So what’s next, you may ask? Well… I’ll then encourage my clients to be themselves. To interact with each other. To forget this big black box in front of my face. To look into each others eyes & communicate within. To kiss & smell the person next to them. To feel the ray of life & cooling breeze that surrounds them. To forget what is not define as pretty & happy, instead, to remember & recreate what makes them warm & joyful inside.

And if this doesn’t work… I’ll create a scenario for them to imagine or act on. Often enough, this worked. And then I wait… I wait for the magic to happen.

And here are a few magical moments I’ve managed to capture with my big black box.

The moment when Little N leaned on her mummy & embraced her baby bump, then looked up at her mummy with that cheeky smile. That’s MAGIC.

The moment Baby S reaches out her hand & touches her daddy, while looking into his eyes. That’s MAGIC.

The moment Baby K peeps over his daddy’s head, trying to get assurance from him that it’s okay to be so high up there. That’s MAGIC.

The moment C & R touched their noses together & C cracked up a funny face. That’s MAGIC.

The moment Little H gave out a shrill laugh while being swing around by her mummy, that’s MAGIC.

The moment Baby E looked into his daddy’s eyes while his doting parents looked over him lovingly, that’s MAGIC.

The moment Baby A squeals with happiness playing with her parents, that is Magic!

So really… I have my clients to thank for everything magical seen in my work. All the plannings, the long walks, the efforts to carry the props, the efforts to manage the children, the sweats and many more… All these are worthwhile after all! Do you agree with me?

Alritey… Bedtime soon so I better wrap up for today & look forward to another crazy, hopeful day tomorrow! Good night world and thank you so much for continuing to follow this blog. Sweet dreams & let the magic appears!

xoxo
Asther

~ My very first post on ALP’s blog! Woot! Oh this is Su, Asther’s PA by the way and I have been handling email enquiries sent by you lovely clients. Can’t say I wasn’t nervous in the beginning – She does receive a lot of emails! Lol.. I was so worried I’d get clients mixed up or give them the wrong information but as days and weeks went by; I got the hang of it and what can I say? Gotta love having an awesome and understanding (not to mention very patient) boss.

I’m a mummy of 3 – two boys and a lil girl. I’m lucky to know Asther and trust her enough to let her shoot my baby girl at 6 days old. I know how important it is to capture our kids’ moments as they do grow up very fast.

Ok enough about me.. Let’s move on to our new post and I sure hope you readers enjoy reading it (and all our future posts ) Cheers to all! ~

Mummy A contacted Asther months ahead for her “Bump to Pop!” sessions. Both N and A are very soft spoken & good natured people and the maternity session was done with them totally relaxed & calm throughout.

Mummy A giggled a lot whenever Asther cracked up a joke resulting in this nice shot

Exuding warmth and love to their unborn child

Pretty mummy with her petite belly ^_^

Kisses for his lovely wife. Such a sweet couple

Their baby girl finally came into the world about a month later.

She carries the same calm serenity of her parents'

After a bath (she hates bathing for some reason) and a full feed, she went into a deep slumber and the entire newborn session was done with her sleeping soundly. Asther usually conducts her newborn sessions with the baby sleeping throughout the most part of the photo session. This is because posing a sleeping baby is much easier & more possible as compared to an awake baby. An awake newborn baby is usually very wriggly & tend to fuss for milk or to be held. Often than not, the newborns in Asther’s session will wake up some time so she’ll try to capture some “awake” shots as well. But this is usually without much/any posing done on the newborn.

In baby dreamland!

Don't ya wana "bite" her?

Sweet baby!

Comfortably hanging in there

Sweet Baby S with her warm and loving parents

Wishing Mummy A and Daddy N all the best with their little princess. Hope Baby S continues to carry that serenity and calmness in her. Perhaps we could see more of her in the future?

Oh and have you noticed the head bands worn on Baby S? (I know I have! Lol) These beautiful hand-made headbands used in this photo shoot was bought from Sew Whimsey by Asther. Go check it out!

Before signing off, we would like to send out a special thank you to Irene Lim who became our props assistant for the day Until our next post, remember to hug your loved ones today, tomorrow and every other day! Toodles!

xoxo, Su.

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A match made in heaven.

Beautiful pregnancy curves!

Pure happiness!

Daddy C sure knows how to goof around which is just perfect for my camera.

And their pretty little princess Baby G finally came into their loving arms.

So much LOVE!

Sweet baby details

*sigh*

I think Baby G’s most favorite part of her newborn shoot was being carried in this swing.

At times like this, I’m just very thankful for being able to do what I do. And that God keeps sending me beautiful beautiful clients such as Baby G & her lovely parents. Don’t you agree?

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were a breeze to photograph cos they just focus on enjoying each others presence while being in-front of my camera. I love it when my couples are just so relax & true to themselves.

Baby Bump Love

Sweet...

*sigh*

SO much LOVE!

Tickle tickle tickle!

Beautiful, aren't they?

One of my favorites!

I ran out of words for this... anyone?

Such Joy!

Once again, thank you Mommy C. I can’t say it enough. For our new-found friendship & your understanding. Means a world to me.

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They’re also one giggly couple, and that makes my job so much easier in capturing their happy moments together.

:D

Super sweet!

*sigh*

Pretty Mama!

Mommy K was such a sport to get down & wet in their tropical swimpool.

And alas! They celebrated the birth of their little princess, Shevaune a few weeks after the maternity session was done. Baby S was too excited for her photo session that she stayed awake most of the time. She was slightly more than 2 weeks old when these were captured.

With daddy & mommy who adore her to bits!

Those eyes... WIDE AWAKE!

Trying to suck her own thumb.

Alas! She fell asleep but refused to be out of mommy's arms.

I love old houses. This was taken in her grandparents home.

Awww...

And FINALLY we managed to get some (very quick) sleeping shots of her alone!

Zzzzz...

That is all for today. Just a little note to let everyone know that our March weekends are fully booked, leaving a few more weekdays dates open. If you’d like to have your moments captured by ALP, be it pregnancy or your newborn baby or just casual moments, do let me know ASAP to avoid disappointment.

March is also when my LTinker Bell and I will be celebrating our birthdays, so stay tuned and we might have something exciting for those who visits us often here at ALP’s blog/Facebook Page.

April weekends are almost filled up so hurry!

It’s going to be a busy busy weeks ahead with 3-months long of editing backlogs to clear as well as some exciting new shoots coming soon. So please bear with us and we promise to try our very best.

Till then, have a great week ahead!

xoxo,

Asther

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I decided to do a mini session for her at my little home. Hubby R has just arrived Malaysia from their overseas home (they’re currently living overseas because of work assignments & they came back to Malaysia to welcome their little girl into this world ) just hours before and we’re really happy to be able to include him in the portrait session.

I really enjoyed this mini session, especially when I get to witness & share their joy & love together. ♥

P/S: Decided to show this series in Black & White. Hope you like them.

The ever radiant Mommy P!

I love baby bump!

Beautiful!

She looks so sweet here.

With Hubby R. Awww...

Baby Bump LOVE! ♥

Hubby R gave his lovely wife a ring to celebrate their pregnancy and I was stoked to be able to document this memorabilia for them! This is the first for me!

Baby Bump with the Pregnancy Ring. *bling*

Here’s wishing them a happy life with their little baby girl, Aishah. Hopefully we’ll meet up again in the future. *hugs*

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Mommy A was approaching 9-month in her pregnancy when we did her pregnancy portraits. Am so blessed to have such beautiful client! And her husband agreed with me too! Cos while I was photographing his wife, I could hear him talking to himself, “Wah… my wife is so beautiful!” in Mandarin.

Wana see? Come… here are some of my favs from the session.

Pretty MaMa!

She's got such beautiful soft skin!

Love her pregnancy curves!

Sweet!

Now some belly shots!

Nice & round!

Mommy A was halfway making this green blanky for her little prince!

And here are a few intimate moments with Daddy D!

Jolly Joy Joy!

They look kinda "cool" here, don't-ya think?

Awww...

They finally have Little J in their arms a few weeks after and once again, I was welcome into their home for his newborn photo session. He was already 1-month old and have almost lost all the “curliness” a younger newborn would have from birth. BUT we managed to capture a few contemporary portraits of him in the end. He’s very good natured except in a few occasions when we “disturbed” his sleep. But once he’s in Mommy A’s arms, he’s back being a happy sleepy boy! Hahaha…

Mommy A explained to me the meaning of his Chinese name. “Jia” = home and “Hao” = good or mighty. So I guess he’s going to be a good homely person or a mighty protective person in the future! Protective in a good way, of course.

Okay… come meet Little J!

Sleepy head!

A little squint!

Mommy bought a new hat for him! Look at that yellow car!

So sweet!

Baby lips & eyelashes!

Little J in the blanky Mommy A made for him!

Hehehe... can't resist with that little red fan!

So comfy being close with mommy!

Ooohhh... those little fingers!

A kiss from mommy...

And a kiss from daddy!

Sooo cute!

A dotting daddy! Even after Baby J pooped all over daddy right after this shot! Hahaha...

This is my all time favorite!

"Oh! Look what have we got here!"

A blessed baby boy!

A big thank you to Daddy D & Mommy A for having me over & trusting your little one into my arms (and in-front of my lens!). I felt so much warmth & happiness when I’m in your company. Take good care of each other and hopefully we’ll meet again soon.

*HUGS*

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I’ve known Amin for YEARS during my scuba teaching days. But I’ve never met his lovely wife, Shareen, until last year when I was engaged by Amin to do their FIRST ever photography session with a professional photographer. (not that am calling myself one! )

One fine day in November 2009, I received a call from an unknown cellphone number. Turned out it was Amin, calling from his personal line! He asked me if I’m free to document his moments with his wife as a wedding anniversary gift to her. They were going to celebrate their 14th Anniversary together as husband & wife come December 2009 and they had never had an official photography session even on their wedding day! Well… it’s never too late! Even if it’s already 14 years down the road.

To make it even more meaningful & memorable, Shareen was diagnosed with TWO types of cancer in within 13 months period! Thanks to God the Almighty, she survived them, having to go through series of surgeries & chemo & what-not. So Amin thought this special portrait session might cheer her up.

I was thrilled! So we communicated via emails to plan the photo session. From make-up service to a tiny surprise of a beautiful hand-bouquet for Shareen. I asked Amin what’s her favorite flower and it happened to be an ornate yellow Oncidium orchid, also commonly known as the “Dancing Lady Orchid”. I did a research on the internet and found a few gorgeous samples of hand-bouquet with the said orchid, then I forwarded them to the florist to order.

Hand-bouquet by Summer Pots Florist

Totally Gorgeous!

After her make-up session at their home, we headed over to Bukit Gita Bayu Clubhouse for some intimate portraits.

Shareen's beautiful shoes!

Make-up by Julie of Manja Brides

Amin preparing for the session.

The love birds were all smiles accompanied by such pretty morning sun that day.

I totally can feel that they're communicating with each other with just by looking at each other!

Sun flare surrounding them with love!

Sigh...

Happiness!

Lovely!

Gorgeous couple, aren't they?

They're so at ease infront of my camera!

One of my fav!

I'm so lucky to have such gorgeous clients!

Smooch!

Shareen had had a surgery JUST one month ago prior to this photo session! Yet she showed such strength & beauty during our time together. You Go GIRL! *salute*

Wow!

Natural Beauty!

She's such a natural infront of the camera too!

Amin and Shareen are proud parents of FIVE children. Yup! FIVE gorgeous children! Shareen was so thrilled over the portrait session that she brought her girls for a shopping spree! She did such a wonderful job in coordinating the attires for her family. Such exquisite taste! Come see for yourself.

Gorgeous family!

The girls!

And the boys!

One big happy family!

Their eldest daughter, Afiqah.

Their second daughter, Amira

Their eldest son, Aiman

Their youngest daughter, Aisyah

And their youngest son, Adam!

Shareen is a stay-at-home mom and I gotta say she’s done such a brilliant job being a wife & mother to her family. So I’m going to dedicate this post to her as a Belated Happy Mother’s Day celebration. Thank you Amin & Shareen for sharing a little part of your family with me. And thank you Shareen for the new friendship bond. May it grow as the time goes by… Take good care of yourself & your family. Hope to see you all again soon! *hugs*

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What’s even more wonderful is that they’re one of my closest friends I ever had. And they’re one of the brainiest friends I’ve ever had too!  Cos one’s a Geologist while the other one is a Gynecologist! Awesome eh! In fact, Aini was the one who guided & took care of us throughout my pregnancy journey. She’s the first person to touch my Little Haley as she helped bring her out into this world.

Ghaz & Aini celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary last year (I know… this is a VERY LATE entry! ) and I offered to document their little moments together as a memory to be treasured for endless time. They hesitated at first but I’m really glad they accepted and we had a blast of a time filled with lots of laughter & giggles all the way. How can we not with Ghaz around! Hahaha…

Here are a few of my favorites!

Awww... Ghaz was about to crack another joke.

So pure is her smile!

They're really funny!

Some Bollywood fun!

Something mushy for a change.

They had 3 wonderful sons of which two of them were my youngest scuba diving student. Their eldest is currently studying in Australia, hence he’s not able to make it for this family photography session with us. But we’re planning to have another one the next time he’s back! Now let’s meet the two youngest ones.

Zharif loves cars & his guitar.

Azhry is the baby of the family and he's got such a warm heart! His ambition is to be a neurosurgeon!

I think this family portrait totally rocks! Literally!

This one makes me all warm inside!

Thank you for your friendship and trust, my dear friends! You’ll always have a special spot in my heart. *hugs*

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She has always been a good listener to my various rantings & what-nots. I’ve shared with her intimately on my dreams and my worries, my crazy ideas and my daily goings. Needless to say, she’s always there, accepting me for who I am and never even once judge me for my foolishness & silliness on certain events in my life.

The best memory I had was during our photography rendezvous around Kuala Lumpur; Putrajaya, The Butterfly Park, etc. I just picked up land-photography (previously I was only into underwater photography) and I always admire Alison’s arty-fartsy work on her paintings and photographs taken from her P&S. She’s been such an inspiration to me! Hahaha… Check out her work here:

Pics @ Deviant Art

Paintings @ Deviant Art

Blog @ Blogspot

She finally got swept off her feet by a Greek guy & moved to Greece few years back. I miss her a lot since she left. Where else can I find a crazy female buddy like her who is always open for crazy ideas & impromptu decisions to go for something on that very second?! Sigh…

This Chinese New Year holiday, Al finally found a chance to return to Malaysia and along with her is Yiannis, her long time sweetheart. They had their marriage solemnized in church, infront of God & her beloved family members on a ridiculously hot & humid evening. Her poor beau was literally melting while waiting for his bride to arrive! Hehehe… But he told us this,

“… if this is what I gotta do, I WILL do it for her!”

and he said it with a big warm smile.

I attended the wedding as a guest and my heart was filled with such warmth & happiness for my best pal. I managed to snap a few during the ceremony, followed by the dinner reception at the church’s common hall. Albeit simple & small, her wedding was planned out with such warmth & love from her family members and the little details made the wedding  just as beautiful as a big wedding would!

Here’s a few I managed to capture that evening.

The beautiful church of St. Francis Xavier.

A Chinese (Lunar) New Year decor in the church.

Beautiful flower arrangement decorating the aisle.

Yiannis trying to act cool although he's literally melting under the tropical heat!

And here comes the bride!

Look how beautiful the church altar!

Being blessed by the priest.

Al putting on the wedding band for hubby.

Mr & Mrs Hadjirallis!

Here's the wedding car. Love those flowers!

Bridal bouquet. *heart*

Beautiful tropical orchids decorating the tables at dinner reception

Cutting the cake

Sparkly sprinklers!

And this one will a part of my Project 365 photo of the day.

The First Dance. Awww...

Here’s wishing you two a blessed & endless love for each other, a life filled with continuous happiness and may you travel this journey hand-in-hand till eternity!

With lots of love, Asther. xoxo

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