Allan Tuan Photography » Us

A Tribute to Yolanda for Mother’s Day

Allan — Sun, 09 May 2010 18:55:05 +0000

The kids and I made a special present for Yolanda this year. It took a while, but we were all patient with each other…mostly. Afterwards, we talked about how special their Mommy is. For example, “Mommy” is probably the MOST uttered word in our household. It seems like “Mommy” precedes every word and/or sentence out of their little mouths. More than that, Mommy is the person they run to in joy and in sorrow. She leads them in their faith like no one else, and she weaves herself into their very characters. Just like God planned it (In 2Timothy 3:14-15, Paul reminds Timothy that he learned spiritual truth from his mother and his grandmother)! They are blessed with a wonderful and faithful Mommy. Happy Mother’s Day, Yolanda!

Destination Weddings

Yolanda — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 09:15:19 +0000

We had a really fun dinner with some friends Saturday night and a topic of conversation that came up was what kind of wedding you would have or where you would get married. (There was one couple at our table who were not married.)

Allan and I got married in Seattle (ceremony and reception) and had a second reception in California for most of our family who couldn’t make it to our ceremony. Our wedding day was absolutely BEAUTIFUL. It was a November day in Seattle, so we were tempting fate a little bit, but it turned out sunny, bright, and as beautiful a day as could be. I wouldn’t change very much about our wedding. But, and it’s a little but, it would be tempting to do a destination wedding if I had to do it all over again. I think that our closest family and friends would still go (I’d hope) and it would just be so fun! We haven’t gotten to shoot a destination wedding yet, but hope to soon!

Sleep is Overrated

Allan — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 08:26:23 +0000

Exactly five years ago, I discovered that sleep is overrated. On February 19, 2005, Yolanda went into labor with our oldest son. We were admitted into the hospital mid-morning and twenty sleepless hours later, my sweet son was born. He has been depriving me of sleep ever since. Midnight bottles, late-night prayers, 4 am nightmares, early morning breakfasts, anything he could do but let me sleep! Joy is strange…sometimes you don’t realize it’s there until you have a chance to see it in hindsight. We celebrated Lucas’ birthday today with a Star Wars party. Yolanda and I made Jedi Robes and planned games for Lucas and his little buddies. We stayed up late and woke up early to finish preparations.

BRING IT!

Yolanda — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 05:26:00 +0000

We are Cardio X tonight! We just finished P90X’s cardio workout and we feel…eh. No, we feel good! That’s a lot to say for the two of us who are non-exercise-type people. The workout lasted about 45 minutes and consisted of cardio (duh), yoga, a kenpo workout, plyometrics, and some core synergistics. We grunted and laughed our way through it all and now we’re ready to go and throw up. (Hopefully not!)

The Usual Suspects

Allan — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 07:34:54 +0000

Me and the family were just hangin’ out the other day when all of a sudden my youngest baby comes running through wearing her brother’s goggles. So, we had to do some head shots. It was a very cute ending to a fun day that started at the park. My wife and I were on a mission to get some photos of our babiest girl. She’s the third child, so these are a few rare pictures of her. You know how it goes…

Just the appetizer?

Old Blog — Sat, 23 May 2009 18:00:14 +0000

Crab cakes and fresh slaw as an appetizer. The main course was a bread crusted halibut with lemon sauce. All homemade by my aunt, the fabulous chef.

Party of 5 – Wedding Photography Workshop

Old Blog — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 07:18:40 +0000

I love wedding photography! And, I love my business because it provides me with so many cool experiences. Earlier this month, I was able to attend one of [b]ecker’s Party of Five workshops. [b]ecker is a hugely influential photographer, and thankfully, he uses his powers for good…sharing knowledge and generally elevating the industry. Part of the workshop involved a little engagement shoot – Gavin and Erin were gracious enough to show off their good looks. Easy to be gracious if you have such good looks. ; ) One more plug…if you are a professional photographer, then sign up for the [b] school!!!

Here’s a few samples from our little engagement session. I don’t normally shoot with such a wide perspective, but the other photographers were mostly in close, so I thought I’d experiment using a wider lens.

Winter in the Tri-Cities

Old Blog — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 21:08:44 +0000

I mostly grew up in California, where winter and Christmas meant, at best, cool weather and rain. Now that I’m in Washington, I really appreciate the snow we get during the winter. Here’s a quick pic from my phone.

I get lots of questions about the possibility of doing portraits in cold weather. Can we do them? Will they look good? My answer is “YES!” Winter portraits in the snow and/or cold weather can be tons of fun, and I can work with you to produce great results. It just takes flexible folks that are willing to put on their sweaters and scarves and hang out in the crisp air. The same can be true of night-time portraits. I’ll post some recent examples soon.

Interested? Give me a call!

Unpause this blog! And a love song.

Old Blog — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 19:31:20 +0000

Times have been challenging recently and this blog has suffered. In late October, I injured my knee, in which I had already completely torn my ACL. After a visit to the doctor, I found out that I had torn my meniscus and, surprise, my ACL was still torn. The treatment? ACL reconstruction and removal of the torn meniscus. Ugh. Well, the procedure was performed in late November and I’m on the mend. The good news is that I will be up and ready for my weddings and none of my clients need to worry. Bad news is that the past month has been crazy hectic. And here I thought I would have plenty of time to watch movies and play MarioKart on the Wii while I was recovering. Uh…no such luck. Thanks for being patient and I should return to my normal bloginess soon.

With the holidays coming up and with my first weddings for 2009 coming right around the corner, love is in the air. I leave you with this awesome love song, which any Mario Kart fan should truly appreciate. Blessings to all.

Did I mention how awesome my wife is? She has totally stepped up to take care of me and the kids.

Seven Years of Wedded Bliss

Old Blog — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:21:13 +0000

Yesterday marked my seventh anniversary with my wonderful wife. I wrote a poem for her based on something I read in the Bible. I share it now in the hopes that she would be honored and that she would know how much I love and appreciate her.

Whom have I found?

Who is she, more precious than jewels,
Trusted by the man who’s heart she holds?
She does him good, and not harm,
All the days of her life.
Her selflessness and sacrificial efforts
Yield provision and comfort for this blessed one.
Clothed with strength and dignity,
She speaks wisdom and kindness.
She is deserving of praise
For many women have done excellently,
But she surpasses them all.
Whom have I found?
Whom have I found?
Only you, my beloved wife.
Only you, my precious Yolanda.

Happy Anniversary, Sweetheart!
I love you more now than ever.

Here’s a picture of us taken with my phone at our celebratory dinner at Tagaris Winery.