We shot both in the studio and on-location. And luck would have it, it poured just as we were about to head out. No, my positive thoughts on weather did not work this time, unfortunately, which meant more DI work that we had to do but we didn’t really mind it. Although it was a tedious and painstaking process, it’s always amazing to see how powerful Photoshop is!

Working with experienced models/talents is always a breeze as little direction is needed because they already know their best angles and can do like a million poses in 5 minutes. (Ok, I’m exaggerating here but you get my drift!) I’m really thankful for the opportunity to work Emilia from Limverly Clerk, and with Maggie from 3Q Brand Works, both who we worked really well with!

Special thanks Fukuharu at the Terrace for allowing us to shoot at their location, and to Schmidt Marketing who allowed us to shoot at their flagship store at Avenue K.

And a big shoutout  to the wonderful team – Shahnaz, Lisa and Liyana for the makeup, hair and styling. And of course to my trusty team of boys, Nicholas and Wei Jun!

And here’s a Behind the Scenes video of the day’s shoot!

Enjoy!

Makeup and Hair by Shahnaz

Creative Direction by Fiona

Videography by Nichols & Wei Jun

It’s a 3-hr drive from KL. You get to the Marina Island Pangkor at Lumut and you take a 5 min speed boat ride to get to Pangkor Laut Resort (PLR).

Once we checked in, Juliest & I headed staright to the pool for some sun. Cat who had a fever from 2 nights ago wasn’t feeling well and decided to take a nap.

By late afternoon, Cat was feeling better and she made it to the spa with us. If you ever visit PLR, you HAVE to experience the Award-winning Spa Village, at least once. The Spa is special because with any spa package you take, you get to enjoy a unique bath experience which starts off with short traditional foot reflexology/foot bath.

as you enter the “bath gates”, you make a wish and throw a coin into a well…

… then you get to the cold bath. It’s pretty cold water so we take a quick dip and get out as fast as we can!

(But of course, we withstood the cold for a photo!)

Next, you’re led to 4 heated aromatherapy corners where you slowly inhale the relaxing vapors from 4 different scents that are calming and relaxing.

Before you take a dip in the “hot springs” (heated pool), you’re required to scrub and wash yourself in a Japanese-style bath

This next part is the nicest – you get to dip in a warm pool, for as long as you like… and warm tea is served!

The last part of the bath experience includes a scrub.

Now, after you’re all relaxed and cleaned, you’re wrapped in a sarong of your choice (which you also get to take home with you as a souvenir) and led to the massage rooms for further relaxation. The massage session is magnificent. Ayu, my masseuse was so good that I fell into a deep sleep and when I woke up, my body was completely relaxed… the knots in my neck and shoulders were gone and my body was soft like a jelly fish. I can’t remember the last time my body felt that way but it felt GOOOOOOD!

Unfortunately though, Cat didn’t feel that great after the spa, probably due to the cold bath and with her not feeling well in the first place, it definitely did not do her any good. Poor Cat stayed in bed that evening and we requested for porridge to be sent to the room for her. Her dinner came with a handwritten/drawn “Get Well Soon” note. Sweeeeet!

Juliet & I had dinner at Feast Village. Since we took the Accommodation + F&B package, our meals included our choice of an appetizer or dessert and a main.

Day 2

Mariana, one of the Managers at PLR called us early in the morning to check on Cat and offered to bring her to the Doctor. Juliet & I went for breakfast while Cat went to the in-house clinic. She met up with us soon after and had half a slice of bread. Poor girl! Breakfast is served at Feast Village and they have a wide variety of buffet spread ranging from Asian to Western. My favorite for breakfast is the juice bar where you pick your mix of fruits and greens and they make you a cup of fresh juice! Rejuvenating, revitalizing, refreshing!

Look who decided to join us for breakkie!

After breakfast, Cat who still wasn’t feeling well, returned to the room to hibernate. Juliet & I headed to Emerald Bay where we spent the afternoon chillin’ by the beach and playing in the waves (it was high tide that afternoon)…

We had our lunch at Emerald Bay itself and played in the sea awhile more before heading back to the spa for round 2 of relaxation!

We had initially pre-booked one spa session but we ended up going on both days. Yes, it is THAT GOOD!

Since we stayed at the Garden villa and we’ve been taking the car back and forth, I suggested we take a slow walk and enjoy the beautiful sunset by the sea villas…

we headed to the pool for a short swim before dinner…

It was Jules and I again for dinner and we decided to try the other restaurant that was included in our package, Uncle Lim’s. Here, they serve nynonya/thai style cuisine. Super delicious! (Actually, the food at all the restaurants I’ve been to from my past few trips, have all been really good!)

Jules was bored at work… look what she decided to do…

Day 3

Our last day on the beautiful island and finally Cat was feeling slightly better. I got a text from Mariana (because she didn’t want to call the room and wake us, how thoughtful!) that morning asking how Cat was feeling. And on the day Cat was feeling well enough, it had to drizzle. So I kept thinking sunny thoughts but it kept on drizzling…

So after breakfast we hung out in the library where they were giving complimentary neck & shoulder massages while we waited for the sun to come up. Sure enough, it did, but just about enough time for 20 mins by the pool, have our lunch and then get ready to leave. Me being me, suggested the girls take the latest flight out (from KL to S’pore) so we could extend our stay, even if it meant a few more hours… I managed to get them booked on the latest flight, coordinated our boat time (from PLR back to Lumut) and requested for a late check out. All that in a few short minutes and there we had it… we bought ourselves 2.5 more hours on the island!

Since Cat had missed out on almost everything on the island (which means she has to make it back again sometime soon! … with her hubby, perhaps? hint hint Lawrence!), we decided to bring her to Emerald Bay to spend whatever time we had left…

… and before we knew it, it was really time for us to leave. This time, for real, unfortunately! We were presented with photo greeting card to remind us of a fantastic girly weekend getaway (not so fantastic for sick Cat but at least she has photos to remind her of our weekend together!)

We’d like to say a big THANK YOU to everyone at PLR who provided such personable and excellent service, which made it the fantastic weekend it was!

For those of you looking for a short, relaxing weekend getaway in a secluded island with NO distractions (there’s no night life, no shopping, just you and the island), I would totally recommend PLR! And if you’re Malaysian, or Singaporean, or if you’re an expat living in Malaysia or S’pore, you can take advantage of the special All-inclusive Resident package (which is what we got) which includes accommodation and meals. If you only have 1 weekend to spare, I’d recommend the 3D2N package. But it’s never long enough. Personally, if time permits, I’d recommend you do the 4D3N package. Best way to book is online at www.ytlhotels.com.my or call the YTL Travel Center at +603 2783-1000.

All photos above taken from iPhone 4s.

Check out our 2009 FIFOTO Company trip photos here!

Speaking of company trips… we are going on our 2012 one in a few hours! So watch this SPACE for photos from our next FIFOTO crew getaway!

]]> http://www.fifoto.com/blog/plr-girls/feed 0 http://www.fifoto.com/blog/ekowood?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ekowood http://www.fifoto.com/blog/ekowood#comments Thu, 03 May 2012 16:08:43 +0000 fiona http://www.fifoto.com/blog/?p=8782 Shooting weddings and events and portraits is one thing. Doing a commercial shoot is a totally different ball game. Any commercial photographer would tell you The bulk of work comes from the pre shoot. You spend most of your time planning & organizing for the shoot. Coordinating your client, your props, your makeup artist, your stylist, your designer, your staff. And on the day itself, you pretty much just click away… and that could very well be just 20% of the assignment.

Having the affinity for all this planning and coordination work, I will admit, as stressful and challenging commercial jobs can be, I do enjoy the pre production work that is involved. With the right team behind you and with diligent planning, shoot day can be a breeze. I’ve learned to take it easy and just breathe on shoot day. Everything else will fall into place.

This shoot for Ekowood‘s new Milano collection was in Gopeng where the hardwood floors are produced. We spent 3 days there shooting a mixture of lifestyle shots and also product shots which included a total of 38 different species/types of wood.  Thank goodness, with the assistance of a few very helpful Ekowood staff, we managed to keep to our planned timeline and got the shots we wanted!

Have a great weekend ahead! My weekend starts here and I’ll be soaking up some sun in one of my favorite local beach destinations, PLR!

At 3 months, Baby Joash is long and lengthy. He slept awhile while waiting for mommy to get prettied up  but after a while he didnt hesitate to let us know that it was feeding time! Daddy Ho Meng took care of things – diaper change and feeding and all and I could tell he was still trying to get the hang of daddyhood. Cute.

Baby Joash dozed off for a little while and I managed to get some close ups of the little one. He slept like an angel even with the lights on. Soon, he was wide awake and when Saw Gin joined us, wide-eyed baby Joash was looking straight in the camera, with the occasional whining from the flashing lights. With mom and dad dressed in blue, it almost felt like a Gap commercial!

Towards the end of the shoot, it was time for Joash’s nap time and the smiles turned into pouty faces which also seemed to work for the shots!

Congrats to Saw Gin & Ho Meng on their new addition to the family!

 Makeup + Hair by Neeza Rahim

This was almost a year ago (yes, we’d like to catch up on our blogging!) and it was somewhat the launch of Tate, a private and exclusive lounge where you’d expect to find a gathering of mob bosses in the 1950′s with their cigars, discussing business, drinking whisky. That night, Glenfiddich was there with their array of fine single malt whiskies for the gentlemen… and gentlewomen.

It’s always nice when party people dress to theme and make good use of the props provided. Even better when they pose for my pictures!

With a pregnancy body like a goddess (and yet she was complaining she was chubs!) it was so easy to shoot Reikko! With props hubby and poodle Momo who was specially groomed (and fur dyed red) for the shoot, it felt almost like a Sunday picnic outing in Wonderland!

Congrats to the lovely couple on their new addition to the family!

Photography by Fiona

Makeup + Hair by Shahnaz

We arrived at the Brunei airport, which is located near “pusat”, aka town. We traveled 1.5 hours away where Linus lived, in Seria, also known as Shell town where there’s a huge community of Shell employees. The night before the wedding, we were invited for Catherine’s pre-wedding dinner party at KB (Kuala Belait) where she lives, 15 mins away from Seria. This was the first time we met one half of the couple and was glad to find her and her family so warm and inviting! It was an early start the next morning. We started shooting at 6:30am and ended at 2pm. Immediately after, we left Seria for Pusat which took us another 1.5 hour. When we checked into the hotel, we dove straight into working on the express slideshow which meant no rest for us that day but we were running on adrenalin rush (it’s always the case when it comes to express slideshows and this time we must have done it in record time!) so we didn’t feel no pain!

The dinner reception was held at the Empire Hotel, in a huge ballroom with a huge stage. If all weddings in Brunei are as well planned in terms of keeping guests entertained and occupied, then Bruneian weddings definitely triumph Malaysian ones when it comes to all-night entertainment. There was hardly a dull moment from start to finish. The night was filled with dances from Studio C, a professional dance studio, performances from friends and relatives, and fun games for their guests and the couple themselves. With a bilingual and very entertaining MC, Elizabeth who spoke in both Mandarin and English, there wasn’t a dull nor quiet moment and it certainly kept us busy throughout the night, in a good way, of course! And because our ride back had left earlier, Linus and Catherine ended up driving us back to the hotel, which we felt so awfully bad about! He even stopped by to da pao Kolo Mee for us for supper! This was certainly the first for us in the many years of being in the wedding industry – having the couple themselves personally drop us home, after their wedding night! WOW! Honored!!!

We are so very thankful and super grateful to Linus and Cat, for taking such good care of us and for being so hospitable during our stay there! Congrats to Linus and Catherine and wishing them a fantastic Dragon Year ahead filled with many exciting adventures!

Photography by Fiona & David

On the contrary! Tim was a hoot! And he definitely wins the best groom award! He was freaking hilarious! Why you ask? Have you ever seen a groom and his groomsmen dressed up as hotel staff? and being caucasians, and them trying to fit into asian-sized uniforms…. with bedroom slippers provided by the hotel, it was an interesting morning indeed!!!

To calm their nerves, the boys had a round of beer at 8a.m. while the chi muis prepared their usual poison which included belacan and durian pancake. Even the hotel staff had to politely ask the chi muis to put those pungent food outside, worried that the entire hotel lobby would stink! (It’s alway interesting to see foreigners try to eat durian. Its like poison to them!) The fun had only just begun!

Michelle, the bride shared an interesting tip, she can pack her bags for a trip in 15 minutes! The perils of being a jet setting employee of a multi-national company. I think she’s been living in too many countries throughout her whole working life, and she hopes that she’ll be able to stay in one place just for once.

Towards the end of the night, when dinner was almost wrapping up and as we were about to wrap up too, Tim came up with a request for one last photo with his groomsmen, an interesting photo indeed. Look towards the end of this post for that!

Congratulations Tim and Michelle, I have no doubt that your lives together will be filled with joy and laughter, every second of every minute!

Photography by Steve & Nicholas