FAMILY ON FILM

 A mix of cheapie Fujifilm Superia and pricey Kodak Portra on Contax 645, Contax T2 and Canon 1V from the past few weeks.

CHRISTINA + CESAR // KOREA PRE-WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY

I love international couples.  Christina is of Korean descent but was raised in London, Hong Kong and Singapore.  Cesar's parents are from the Dominican Republic, but he grew up in New York City.  They met while they were students at Columbia University and currently reside in Singapore.  They swung through Seoul to have an engagement lunch with her extended Korean family at the famous Sam Cheong Gak restaurant, and arranged for me to take some photos of them beforehand.

I was happy to hear of Christina's appreciation of film, having taken a few darkroom classes as a student.  I put a Contax 645 through its paces along with my workhorse Canon 1V.  All shot on Kodak Portra 400; the B&W photos were converted in post.

JACK'S ADOPTION STORY // KOREA FAMILY PHOTOGRAPHER

Becky and Brian finally welcomed Jack Hwan into their family last week. The whole adoption process took them about two-and-a-half years.  Needless to say, it was pretty amazing watching a beautiful couple with so much love to give become a family of three.

Becky had shown my work to some of her coworkers, but never got in touch with me because she didn't think she could afford to have a photographer present.  Her co-workers secretly pitched in and arranged to have me document their adoption story; they surprised her at work a few days before she and Brian were scheduled to leave America for Korea.  I'm so grateful that I was able to be there and help tell the beginning of a new chapter in their lives.

JACK'S ADOPTION // A TEASER

I'm waiting on the B&W scans from my film lab, but wanted to post a teaser in the meantime.  The full post to come later this week.

SUNG + MIKE // SINGAPORE WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER

Sung and Mike met while attending NYU, and were friends for years before Mike boldly ventured outside the friendzone and finally asked her out on a date. (Good job, Mike!)

I've known Sung since we worked together in church youth group half-a-lifetime ago. She's told me for years that she expected me to document her wedding someday. I was thrilled when she contacted me last year to say that she was getting married to Mike in his native Singapore.

Sung is a Jersey gal, representing the Korean-American blood -- you'll notice she wore a modern, yet beautifully subdued, take on the traditional Korean hanbok. They had a traditional Singaporean tea ceremony at Mike's family home, in which they presented tea to family elders. Afterwards, they had an intimate Western-style ceremony at the Goodwood Park Hotel, officiated by Sung's brother.

It was an honor to be a witness for them. Thanks for trusting me to tell your story.