I Moved My Blog to TerryChanPhoto.com/blog

As of today October 1, 2008, a new quarter, I moved my blog to the following location.

http://TerryChanPhoto.com/blog

I decided to host my own blog rather than hosting on Blogger. There are many advantages to having it on my own web server. I have more control, I can upload more images, my slideshows will run faster, I can add plugins for special effects, etc. Essentially, I have outgrown Blogger and I am ready to move onto another level.

I want to thank Blogger for hosting my blog for the past 3 years. I totally recommend Blogger over any other free blog services out there as it served me well, served me consistently without down time, and most of all... it's free. I would definitely recommend Blogger to anyone who wants a quick turn-key solution.

I look forward to your comments and your continuing support. Drop me a line anytime. I also want to thank Jeff Revell who helped me make the transition to my own blog. He did it without any expectation of benefits of any kind. Basically, Jeff did it out of the kindness of his heart. I have to say I only met Jeff once at Photoshop World in Orlando, and he's been a big help and resource to me. Thank you Jeff. You can read Jeff's Photowalk Pro blog by clicking here. He's a fantastic photographer and his posts share many of his insights and tips on photography.

Truckin' for Kids 2008

Tiamo was “Blinded by the Shine!” These are no ordinary truckers, but rather men, and even ladies, who not only know the value of a great cause like Juvenile Diabetes, but also take immense pride in their trucks. Tiamo Photography once again had the privilege of photographing the Truckin’ for Kids Truck Show and Races. Those astounding semis began arriving on Saturday morning out at the Irwindale Speedway and out came the polish and rags. It is chrome so shiny, that you can see your reflection (just check out the photos for the proof)!

Some of the real magic happens on Saturday night when the lot turns into a light spectacular courtesy of the thousands of lights coming off the trucks and trailers. As photographers, it’s magic to see what we see traveling around the states delivering goods and produce become a piece of art. Sunday the gates open to the public and they are treated to the sights of these hard-working folks as they are given the opportunity of getting up close and personal with the trucks and drivers. Of course, they are treated to the sounds as well when the racing begins on the drag strip in Irwindale. The crowds fill the stands to watch the rubber being laid down and the smoke off the tires as the trucks compete for top speed.

Tiamo photographers truly appreciate being a part of an event that year after year does so much to benefit the children they represent and the hard work on their behalf. Diabetes hits close to my heart because my Mom has been living with this disease for the past 35 years. It's difficult to see my mom take insulin shots every day. The add bonuses are the meeting of new friends and the renewing of old ones, and of seeing trucks we’ve enjoyed photographing before and discovering new favorites. We will see you all next year!

(We invite you to take the time to visit our online proofing to see for yourself just how fantastic these trucks are, and ordering images for yourself is also available.)

World Team Tennis Sectionals

These guys met up against a very tough team this morning playing last year's National 8.0 WTT Champions. They fought hard and provided the spectators with thrilling tennis that equal to the professional level. I'm so proud of all of them. It was a long journey for them this season and unfortunately it ends here this year. Well, there's always next year. :-)

"Window in Arizona"

I photographed this picture exactly 10 years ago today when I traveled to my first Arizona camping trip. This brick window was at the visitor center by Meteor Crater exhibit. It intriqued me because it looks like we're peeking into the great southwest of this great country. I remember reading many details about Arizona when I was in the 4th grade. Now that I was there 10 years ago, I thought it would be so cool to capture it and bring it back home with me.

I photographed this picture with my first Sony Mavica digital camera. That camera used floppy disks as storage media and each picture is less than a megapixel. But it did the job for me back then when I primarily photographed everything on film... from 35mm, 6x6cm medium format, to 4x6 large format plate film. *Sigh* I haven't looked at this picture for almost 10 years.

Edna and Paul Driving to the Petroleum Club

I've been tailing Edna and Paul for the past 15 minutes waiting for the perfect moment to photograph their wedding day while driving from one venue to the next. They looked so cool in their vintage Mustang convertible. Everyone was driving by and honking at them as a way to congratulate their recent nuptial. This is such a Southern California Style Wedding. :-) I'm glad to be part of their special day.

Edna and Paul Ramirez Wedding

This is a picture I took with my iPhone right before the lovely couple exchange their vows. The St. James Church in Redondo Beach is gorgeous add to the perfect afternoon lighting. I rate this church as one of the best churches to get married.

Amanda & Cris Montoya Wedding

I wasn't feeling well today so our associate photographer Jennifer "pinched-hit" for me working side by side with Brian. I came by later in the afternoon to join the dynamic duo in photographing Amanda and Cris's wedding. Their wedding coordinator Helen Wu did a fantastic job in assisting the lovely couple with their choice of venue at the Church of Our Saviour in San Gabriel, CA. This church had the right amount of ambiance to make their wedding ceremony extra special.

We then headed out to LA River Center and Garden for their reception. This place is magnificent as it's decorated with beautiful greeneries. We couldn't be happier to be part of Amanda and Cris's special day . Here's a sneak peek of their wedding images. Enjoy and turn up the volume. :-)



Here's what Amanda and Cris have to say about Tiamo Photography, LLC.


Amanda & Cris Montoya Wedding from Terry Chan on Vimeo.

Titanic Exhibit at the Tropicana Hotel

My high school buddies and I spent a day touring Las Vegas. We ventured into the Titanic Exhibit at the Tropicana Hotel. We were not allow to take any photos inside the exhibit. However, we did take a photo by the house photographer in front of a green screen. She then superimposed us in front of the grand staircase of the Titanic. By the way, this is a real set. They did a great job replicating the grand staircase. The tour was relatively short because we read every entry and looked at every artifact carefully. And still, the whole tour took less than 1 hour even though we spent 15 min at the gift shop. Fortunately, we got half price tickets at the Tuscany Suites Hotel where we stayed last night. I believe the exhibit will be moving to the Luxor Hotel next month. All in all, it was facinating looking at the artifacts that are almost 100 years old and how well it was restored from the bottom of the ocean. Definitely a must see but leave the kids home as it is a somber exhibit.

Photoshop World Star Trek Spoof Blooper Reel

This is the Star Trek Spoof Blooper Reel at Photoshop World Las Vegas 2008... ahem the G version. There's a R rated version as well. :-)

Photoshop World Las Vegas Star Trek Spoof Blooper Reel from Terry Chan on Vimeo.

Please Say a Prayer for Jasmine Star's Mom

I met Jasmine Star briefly in the past and most recently at David Jay's Freedom to Succeed Tour. She's a wonderful and gifted photographer. In fact, I have seriously considered to hire her as my wedding photographer if and when I get married.

On her post today, she spoke of her Mom's illness. Click here to read Jasmine's blogpost and say a prayer for her and her mom. Jasmine's mom produced such a talented and gifted child, she deserves to win this battle against cancer.

Adobe Announced Photoshop CS4

Adobe announced Photoshop CS4 Launch Date today. I signed up for the webcast on 9/23 at 9AM. You can also sign up by clicking here. Johnny L gave us a sneak peek of CS4 at the Photoshop World Keynote this morning.


Photoshop World Las Vegas 2008

Well boys and girls, I'm heading down to the Mandalay Bay Convention Hall to attend the Keynote Address and other entertainment by Scott Kelby and his crew of Photoshop Instructors. I've been looking forward to this convention for several months now because it is a fun place to learn a very difficult graphic program... Photoshop CS3. I get a good bang for my bucks because for $399 I get 3 days full of instructions from the nation's best instructors. Can't beat that! Stay tune, I will update what I learn from some of the classes this week. By the way, you can download your own hi-res version of the poster above by clicking here.

Afternoon at the Beach

Finally, kicking back taking a little R&R at the Mandalay Bay wavepool beach. Tomorrow will be hectic running around at Photoshop World Expo and Convention.

World Team Tennis 3.5 Division

Ditto, my WTT 3.5 team remains undefeated the whole season after we won our final match today. We're heading to Las Vegas as well in April. I'll be having both of my teams competing in UNLV. I'm hoping that there will be no schedule conflicts (like I did at Mixed Sectionals earlier this year). Stay tune for more info and progress. :-)

World Team Tennis 4.0 Division

Yay, it's official, my WTT 4.0 team made it to sectionals. We will be competing with other WTT 4.0 teams around the nation in April of 2009. It was a tough season but we managed to stay undefeated and therefore clinching the local title without even have to win the last match of the season. We played our final match today and even though we lost to the 2nd place team, we are still the local champs because every team as lost at least twice. SO, stay tuned and I will update our progress at Sectionals next April at UNLV!

Photoshop World Las Vegas in a Week!

Yes, it's that time of the year again. PhotoshopWorld Las Vegas in a week!! I usually learn so much during 3 days of conference. It's well worth the registration fee because I end up using what I learn and apply it to my photography business. It has brought back the registration fee many times over. Besides, I enjoy networking with other Photoshop users in the world. You know how the NBA claims they are World Championship when it's just teams within the US. Well, PhotoshopWorld attendees are actually from all over the world. Scott Kelby and his elite team of instructors draw attendance from all over. In fact, NAPP has reached new heights in membership back in April at 700,000! I'm sure it's much higher by now. Also this year, the theme is my favorite television show... Star Trek TNG. Yes, I'm such a geek. :-) So, you folks who have not joined NAPP ($99 annual membership), just come to the PhotoshopWorld in Las Vegas, and they will even throw in 1 year NAPP membership. Members has their privileges as they say in AMEX commercial. You get full access to PhotoshopUser website which is filled with tutorials, and an annual subscription the Photoshop User magazine. In addition, you get discounts on all Kelby Training materials, DVDs, books, etc. Oh, I forgot you also get discounts from AVIS rental car, hotels, and B&H Photo to name a few. I really learned a great deal about Photoshop since I joined 7 years ago and I encourage all of you to join. It will be the best investment you would make in your photography business.

Jennifer and Michael Macaranas Wedding

It's a beautiful sunny Southern California day today and why not? It's Jennifer and Michael's big day. Allen and I have been looking forward to photography our lovely couple for more than a year now. We did their engagement photos last year at our favorite beach location. We had many awesome images. Today is no exception as we capture our lovely couples' special day. Here's a sneak peek of their wedding images.



Here's a brief comment from Jennifer and Michael about their wedding photographers.


Jennifer and Michael Macaranas Wedding from Terry Chan on Vimeo.

Tacoma WA: Glass Museum

This afternoon after visiting Museum of Flight, I ventured 27 miles south to Tacoma and visited the Museum of Glass. I didn't get a chance to walk into the museum because it closed 5 minutes (5PM) before I arrived. However, as most of you know, I'm intrigued about photographing stairs and this place is paradise for me. :-) The outside structure is so interesting that I spent over 30 minutes photographing it. Here's a slideshow of some of the images I photographed today.

REI in Seattle WA

I woke up kinda late this morning from the early flight to Seattle, and working all day yesterday. But, I managed to stop by the REI store in Seattle WA. I believe this is the original REI store. I remember making my first mail order purchase when I was 18 years old. REI is now a large chain store covering the entire US.

It's the biggest REI store I've ever been to. It consists of 4 stories, and an outdoor waterfall...in the middle of the city!! I was also intrigued with the giant compass embedded on the floor on the second level. You can see right through to the ground floor. I actually compared the compass heading with my trusty Tissot Multi-Touch watch. Surprisingly, they both point to the same direction. ;-) LOL

REI in Seattle WA from Terry Chan on Vimeo.

Michael Phelps: The Most Decorated Olympian in History of the Olympics Games

Well, I got back to my hotel after dinner and a long day photographing a wedding in Seattle WA. I washed up and got ready for bed. It was a good thing I turned on the TV and sure enough it was Micheal Phelps winning his 8th Gold medal in one Olympics. What a feat! I ranke this way up there with Pete Sampras winning 14 grand slam titles. The only other athlete to do so is Mark Spitz and he only won 7 gold medals... back in 1972... 36 years ago?!?! Now Phelps has raised the bar to another level, a level which no human can attain any time soon. Perhaps another 36 years?!?

Let me put it in perspective for you... I was living in Hong Kong at the time when Mark Spitz won 7 gold medals in one Olympics. Now, I want to remind you that it was 1972 and broadcasting was at its infancy... no Internet, no WWW, no nothing. We didn't even know the sport of competitive swimming but we all knew who Mark Spitz was. He was a household name! Thirty-Six years later finally another American not only matched Spitz record but surpassed it a day later. Michael Phelps' performance is not human as he had to swim 17 races, setting 7 world records, winning 8 gold medals with one winning only by a mere 0.01 seconds... in 8 days. By the way, this makes 16 medals, 14 of them gold...WOW!

Anyway, I'm glad that I watched it tonight. It's inspiring to know that with a little talent, a lot of hard work, plenty of self-discipline, and undying competitive will, one can achieve greatness. This is a recipe of being successful and achieve anything we set our minds to. It's an inspiring lesson. I hope all of you enjoyed this Olympics as much as I do.