Yes… he’s carrying a huge roasted pig!!!  =)

Jan and Kim had a hybrid wedding:  a traditional Vietnamese and a Western-style wedding.  Their day started early with a Traditional Vietnamese Ceremony.  In a traditional Vietnamese wedding ceremony or a traditional Chinese wedding ceremony, the groom’s family would come over (to the bride’s family) and receive her.   They would line up in a specific order with the first person being a representative from the groom’s family, followed by the parents of the groom, the groom himself and then his friends and family.  The groomsmen would carry different trays of gifts representing the wealth that the groom’s family will bring to the brides family.  There are about 6 to 8 different trays filled with goods (i.e. fruits, cakes, wine/tea, fabrics,  an abundance of jewelery for the bride… and of course a ROASTED PIG!! ).  Can’t forget the pig!  Gavin (my fiance) would always jokingly tease me by saying… ” All I need is a pig for your hand in marriage?!?!  You realize your parents are switching you for a pig!!!”  Silly Gavin…

Upon arriving at Jan’s house, the groomsmen would then hand over the trays to the bridesmaid.

The bridesmaids would then carry the trays in and place them on Jan’s ancestor’s altar.

The ceremony begins with the Jan and Kim lighting incense sticks and asking for a blessing from the ancestors.

Following the prayers, Kim and his mom gave Jan the jeweleries that were brought over.

A formal tea ceremony is a must in a Vietnamese wedding ceremony.  Jan and Kim served both sets of parents tea.   However, in a Chinese wedding ceremony, the bride and groom would have to serve tea to both sets of parents, grandparents, as well as aunts and uncles.

After the Vietnamese wedding ceremony was over, Jan and Kim changed out of their Ao Dai (traditional Vietnamese dress) and got into their American wedding attire.

Love the dress!!!  Simple…. yet so elegant!

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What’s a blog entry without my famous ring shots!?!?  =)

Before their church ceremony, I did a quick session with the bride and groom and their bridal party.  I love the contrast in the two colors that Jan had selected for her girls… red and black!!  It is definitely one of my options for our wedding.

It was raining on Jan and Kim’s big day, but these two love birds did not let the rain bring them down one bit!  Jan and Kim are awesome!! I really adore their friendliness and down-to-earth attitude.

Kim’s uncle was their officiant and he did an awesome job.

Here are a few detail shots at the reception hall

Jan and Kim had an awesome… I mean…. AWESOME grand entrance!!!

It’s so sweet how the entire bridal party joined hands, embracing Jan and Kim with lots of love!!  Great group of friends!!

You can tell how much a man really loves you from the way he looks at you.  And from this… I can feel the love that Kim has for Jan!  You both are an amazing couple.  I wish you nothing but the best for the rest of your lives.

Oh yeah… and the tiger too!! Khoa is Kim’s brother and his tiger costume was a total HIT at the reception !!

Grrrrr… show ‘em what you got Khoa!!!  LOL…

Of course… I HAD to pull his tail!!!  Thanks Doug (of furious photographers) for the picture!!  Hahaha…

Jan ended the night wearing a lovely evening gown and dancing to “Lady in Red”…

Congratulations Jan and Kim!!!  Thank you for having me and Doug be a part of your special day!!

Click here to see their engagement session at the Mondrian and the Standard Hotel in Hollywood.

Jan and Kim’s wedding was a great way to end year 2009!!  I am super excited to step into 2010 with many more exciting wedding stories!!!

Cheers everyone!!!

Happy New Year Everyone!!!  May the New Year bring you lots of love, warmth and happiness!!!  I hope you all had wonderful start into 2010!!

Gavin and I celebrated Christmas (12/25/2009), our wedding (12/26/2009), Gavin’s Birthday (12/27/2009) and New Year in Binh Duong, Vietnam.  With 3 consecutive days of celebration and festivities with family, we couldn’t ask for more!!!  I keep joking with Gavin that he’s only gonna get one present for all three occasions.  Does that sound fair?!?!  =)  Vietnam is a BEAUTIFUL country… and I’m not saying that because it’s my motherland, but because there were soooooo many beautiful photo opportunities! We had a great time and our wedding was AWESOME!  I can’t wait to share all the pictures we that took in Vietnam!  Check back soon for those and more…

Jenn and Sang got married on Nov. 27, 2009 (Thanksgiving weekend) at the beautiful Rancho Los Lomas in Silverado Canyon.  As you may recall from their engagement session, these two have been together for 14 years!!  WOW… it’s about time guys!!!

Here are a couple of wedding details:

I meet Sang for the first time while working on the 7th floor (Rehab) at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Beverly Hills!  He came across as a little shy (to me) but he’s a great and caring Pharmacist!  It was always very nice to work with him at the hospital.

And here he is getting ready for the big day!

Emily (the little flower girl) is just too too cute!!!  She’s is always in automatic mode.  For some reason, she would always seem to know when the camera is pointing at her!!! I can be far away and yet she can sense the lens of the camera! LOL…  Her dad (the best man) believes that she got that trait from him!!  hehehe… And I believe it because he’s always ready for the camera too!!!  LOL

Cute huh??

Here is Jenn, ready to head out from the Ayres Hotel & Spa to Rancho Los Lomas.  I love her sweater… “Soon To Be Mrs. Chau”

Ceremony site was beautifully decorated

From start to end, the ceremony was super heartwarming!  Tears of joy and cheerful laughter flooded the room as Jenn and Sang exchange their vows.

And here she is again… our lovely flower girl Emily… posing for the camera!

After the ceremony was such a special moment for the two families!  Sang’s mom couldn’t stop crying as she welcomed Jenn into their family!  I got a bit emotional and teared up myself seeing her hug Jenn so tightly while crying her joyful tears.

Emily and the Ring Bearer!  Isn’t this just soooooo adorable!!!

Got GAP socks?!?!  LOL… love it!!!

Rancho Los Lomas is an awesome location with so many photo opps!  There was a red phone booth and I couldn’t resist putting Jenn and Sang in there for photos!

So silly….

I just LOVE LOVE LOVE this picture!!  Love the look on Sang’s face!  That’s right Sang… Jenn will now pull you in any direction she wants to!! LOL… Literally!!!

Check out the texture on the wooden wall! I love background that have texture!  It adds so much to the picture.

I wanted to have a picture where it looks like Sang was hanging from the wall!  Wouldn’t you say that it’s quite believable?!?!?

As it got darker, Gavin busted out some remote lighting and was able to get this awesome image!!

The ceremony site was quickly changed into a reception hall as soon as the wedding ceremony was over.  Beautiful transformation huh?  I really like Jenn and Sang’s choice of center piece… Manzanita trees make great center pieces.

Their cake was different from all other cakes I’ve seen.  There were four different individual cakes placed on different levels of a huge Manzanita tree!

As soon as the outdoor reception dinner was done and the wedding party and guests started moving into the lounging/dancing area.  Not long after, it started to rain outside!  Perfect timing!!!

Sang is always so quiet and professional at work… but on his wedding day I saw a whole different Sang!!!  The saying is so true…. “it’s always the quiet ones”

Congratulations Jenn and Sang!! I’m so happy for the both of you!  It was such a pleasure working with you both and being a part of your big day!  Warm wishes and much love to you both!!!  We’ll definitely have to get The Boiling Crab soon!!!  My mouth waters just thinking about it!!! =)

On November 16, 2009 Gavin and I warmly welcome two new family members to our Tran-Holt family.  Hi everyone… meet our adorable baby kittens:  Button and Powder.  On our way into PetSmart to grab some food for our bunnies, we stumbled upon these two in a cage.   Heather, who is with a non-profit organization, was adopting them out.  I instantly feel in love with the both of them as soon as I laid eyes on them.  I’m so glad that larger pet store chains (such as PetSmart and PetCo) have stop selling cats and dogs and are now beginning to switch over to being adoption centers.  There are many cats and dogs out there who are in desperate need of a home… so please please please adopt (instead of buying new ones).  I am so happy that Gavin and I are able to welcome Button and Powder into our lives.

After donating a $100 adoption fee per a cat (which includes two sets of vaccines for each cat, de-worming and flea treatment, and spraying and neutering service), we were able to bring them home.  I asked Heather about their history and was sicken by where these poor cats have been (before they were rescued).  One was found in a dumpster and the other was found wandering behind some bush in a vacant home.  Sad isn’t it?!?!

So… let’s meet them shall we?

This is Button at six weeks old.  We decided to name her Button because she is cute as a button! =)  Button has a very friendly and playful personality.  Here and there she will just sit there staring right back at us mischievously.  I sometime wonder what goes through her tiny little head! =)

This is Powder at 8 weeks old.  She got her name because she white and soft like baby powder.  She’s somewhat prissy and looooves to cuddle.  Her nickname is “motor-boat” because when she cuddles with us, her purring is super loud.  It’s really cool that Powder has one green eye and one blue eye!

My two babies sleep, eat, and play together all the time!  They seem to be pretty independent for their age!

This is just toooo adorable to not take a picture of.  Powder is sleeping on Button’s tummy as Button is completely passed out with her hand hanging over the side of their bed.

Look at this mischievous little one!

How can you not love that face!?!?!?

Well…  actually…let me take that back….  LOL!!!

And the evil side of this cute little kitten comes out when you piss her off… I’m joking!  This picture was taken in the middle of her yawn!

Well… Thank you for visiting and hope you will come back again soon for more updates on my work (wedding photography) and personal life!  If you are interested in adopting or would like to foster, please let me know and I’ll be more than happy to refer you over to Heather.

Cheers,

Judy

I had a blast hanging out and photographing Bernadette and Payon’s wedding at Yamashiro in Hollywood!  It was a beautiful wedding filled with lots of love from friends and family!  Bernadette and Payon (along with their group of friends — bridal party) are so much fun to be around.  Everyone was so down to earth and my gosh… they can drink!!!  One thing I really admire about this group is their friendship and love for each other!

Bee and the girls got ready at the Magic Castle (in Hollywood) located just seconds away from Yamashiro.

As usual… my ring shots!

Bee and her girls had a few shots during their preparation to loosen things up a bit!  I don’t know… but for some reason I think I’m gonna card the little girl in the red-plaided shirt! =)  I think she’s under age… and she’s drinking coke… and rum!!!  Just kidding…

I don’t know why or how this happened but the under-aged junior bride’s maid ended up holding the Ketal One Vodka bottle walking around the garage and then into Yamashiro.  Look at the size of the Vodka bottle compared to her face! LOL…

Their ceremony took place in Yamashiro’s beautiful Japanese garden.

In Payon’s culture (Thai culture), the sponsors ties the couple’s hands together to symbolize their union and that the couple will be “tied” together for eternity.

As for entertainment…  a couple of Bee and Payon’s friend who are professional swing dancers put on an awesome show!!!

I started to tear up a bit seeing Bee cry during this slow dance.  I love this moment between the two of them as Payon wiped her tears away.

What was more emotional was when all their friends came up and joined them in a big group hug/dance!!  It was GREAT!!!   Bee and Payon was crying AND laughing from the love all around!

After their wedding, we went around Yamashiro for some couple pictures.  It was pretty dark out and Hollywood was glowing in the background!  I LOVE it!!!  Check out the moon!

Yamashiro… if you like sushi… gotta try it out!  It’s located on top of a hill overseeing the city of Hollywood!  Beautiful restaurant inside and a great lounging area outside (next to a pool with fire pits).

After their wedding Bee and Payon invited Gavin and I to come to their after-party at their hotel suite (at the Magic Castle).  I had a great time hanging out with and taking a few shots with Bee and her girls!  By the end of the night… Bee was done!

Thank you so much Bee and Payon for having us be a part of your day!  Can’t wait to hang out with you guys again…

It was great hanging out with Jan and Kim today; I felt like I’ve known these two for years!!  For their engagement session, Jan and Kim wanted a modern look so they suggested doing a shoot at the Mondrian Hotel in West Hollywood.   This hotel definitely has a luxurious, modern and edgy look and feel.

To start, we hung out by the pool.  We pretty much kept the shoot low key because The Mondrian Hotel did not allow photography without a permit.  I thought we played it off pretty well though.  When anyone would ask, we were just friends meeting up for a drink and the reason they are dressed up is because they had a nice dinner to go to later.  Our waitress kept asking questions like,  “oh… so where are you guys going to dinner tonight?”  Jan and Kim of course didn’t expect that so they kinda hesitated answer.  Then the waitress answer her own question by saying, “oh no… I’m ruining the surprise huh?!”  We laughed and nodded… “yes”.

I LOVE what I do and do not even consider it to be work!  And even if it is work… LOL I get to drink during working hours!!!  =)  Jan and Kim treated me to a awesome Lychee Basil Martini at the Mondrian Hotel.  This drink is not very strong, but the after taste of the lychee is just … WOW!

And here’s Jan and Kim… chilling by the pool side sipping great cocktails!

I saw the way the sun reflected off the mirror and loved the way it casted shadows of the trees on the wall.

Inside the Mondrian Hotel is very simple and classy!

After hanging out at the Mondrian Hotel for a while, we decided to go hotel hopping!!!  Yes… Hotel Hopping!

On our way to the Standard Hotel (also in West Hollywood), we stopped by the back lot of The House of Blues for some quick pictures.

I love texture!  Any structural buildings with rust or other texture is always great for photos!

As we made our way down the strip in West Hollywood, the sun was beginning to set.  I love this dreamy look…

At The Standard Hotel, we found two “bubble” chairs!  It looked really cool, so I asked Jan and Kim to have sit and work the chair! LOL

We then headed to the pool area again… for another drink!  Coffee… that is….

On the way back to the car, we walked passed the House of Blues again.. but now it’s nicely lit!

After hanging out with Jan and Kim, we went to the Stinking Rose for dinner!  These two are super sweet!  I insisted that we go Dutch, but they said they wanted to treat me to a belated dinner!  They even had the crew from the Stinking Rose come out to sing to me!  It was a wonderful day!

Thank you Jan and Kim!! I can’t wait to photography your wedding on 12/12/09!! I know it’ll be lots of fun!