Nationality Malaysian Known for Photography | Name Kid Chan Education Curtin University | |
 | ||
Born 15 January 1978 (age 46) ( 1978-01-15 ) Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Notable work Kid Chan's Guide to the Business of Photography | ||
Kid Chan Montage (Small)
Kid Chan (born 15 January 1978 in Kuala Lumpur) is an international wedding photojournalist, portrait and celebrity photographer from Malaysia. He was the first Malaysian to be accepted as a member of the Wedding Photojournalist Association (WPJA), and was named by Malaysian Tatler as "one of the 100 people you must know in Asia". Chan is often credited as a pioneer in Malay wedding photojournalism. Notable high profile personalities photographed by Chan include Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz, governor of Bank Negara Malaysia; Cherie Blair, wife of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair; actor Jackie Chan; business tycoon Tan Sri Dr. Francis Yeoh; model Elle Macpherson; and designer Jimmy Choo. The media often refers to him as "one of Malaysia's most sought-after wedding photographers". In 2013, he published his first book, Kid Chan's Guide to the Business of Photography in 2013, which went to number one in the Malaysian best-sellers list.
Contents
Life and career
Raised in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, Chan attended the Sri Cempaka school before pursuing a degree in international business from Curtin University of Technology in Perth, Australia. He began his working life in the corporate world before taking up photography. After two years as an executive assistant in the corporate sector, Chan became burnt out and decided to take up an apprenticeship at a photography studio under the mentorship of TS Lim of Studio 88.
In 2000, through a management buyout, he took over a company called Portrait One. The company was later rebranded as Kid Chan Studio.
Originally focused on corporate photography, along the way, Chan agreed to take photographs of his clients' children's weddings. He has since photographed many high profile royalty, politicians, artists and celebrities.
Chan has photographed numerous celebrities, including being the exclusive photographer for the weddings of television personality Paula Malai Ali and Tengku Kudin, and songstress Siti Nurhaliza and Khalid Jiwa. He was also the official photographer for the royal wedding of Tengku Aslahuddin Jaa'far and Sofia Erica Lane, and these photos were used in an exclusive cover story in Harper's Bazaar. Other notable high profile personalities he has photographed include Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz, governor of Bank Negara Malaysia; Cherie Blair, wife of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair; and actor Jackie Chan. Chan was commissioned to take the cover shot of Millionaireasia, which featured business tycoon Tan Sri Dr. Francis Yeoh. Other celebrities photographed by Chan include Elle Macpherson, Jimmy Choo, Jeslina Hashim, Tunku Myra Madihah and Shaleen Cheah.
In a photography competition organised by the History Channel in 2009, the grand prize offered was a photography session worth RM10,000 with Chan. In 2010, his collection of images of three cancer survivors and their families were exhibited in 50 Courts Malaysia's stores nationwide, as part of an exhibition to raise funds for the National Cancer Society of Malaysia (NCSM) through its "Hope for Our Children" campaign. In the same year, he was invited to photographically document the shooting of Britain's Next Top Model Cycle 6 in episode 11, which was filmed in Kuala Lumpur. In 2011, Chan was invited to be a judge for the Malaysia's Online Fashion Entrepreneurs' Weekend (MOFEW), together with Amber Chia. In 2012, he was appointed ambassador for MenCare. Supported by GE, MenCare is an initiative by Pfizer Malaysia and the National Council of Women's Organisations (NCWO) Malaysia. It aims to educate men on breast cancer and how it affects families as well as to gather men's support for breastcare health of their spouses and female members of their families.
Chan is married to Shirlyn Lim, a chartered accountant, and they have two daughters and a son. Their names are Faith Chan,Adira Chan, and Joshua Aquila Chan
Book
Chan published his first book, Kid Chan's Guide to the Business of Photography in 2013. The book contains 11 chapters, and covers topics that deal with setting up a photography business. It is the first photography business book written from a Malaysian perspective. The book is part of the "MPH Masterclass Series" from publisher MPH, which is a collection of books by experts who want to share their experiences.
The book shot up to the number one position on the MPH best-sellers list in the non-fiction category for the week ending 16 June 2013. It remained on the best-seller list and was the number one selling book for the month of June 2013.
Accolades
Chan was the first Malaysian to be accepted as a member of the US based Wedding Photojournalist Association (WPJA), and was named by Malaysian Tatler as "one of the 100 people you must know in Asia" in 2006. In the same year, Le Prestige magazine named him in their "Top 40 under 40" list. Chan is often credited as a pioneer in Malay wedding photojournalism. The media often refers to him as "one of Malaysia's most sought-after wedding photographers".
In 2008, Tiger Tales, the official magazine of Tiger Airways, named him in their "annual list of trail-blazers across Asia and Australia". In the same year, he was named as one of Malaysia's most influential youth entrepreneurs under 30 by Youth Entrepreneur. In 2011, Glam, Malaysia premier lifestyle luxury magazine, listed Chan as the only photographer in their top choice for luxury wedding vendors, citing in-depth knowledge of Malay wedding culture and protocol. In 2012, he was the only Asian photographer to be listed in Conde Nast's Brides UK's "Top 20 Extremely Talented Destination Wedding Photographers in the World" feature.
Chan has received numerous accolades from the media, and has been featured in Harper's Bazaar, The Edge, the New Straits Times, Persona Pengantin, Harian Metro, and Prestige magazine. Chan was also featured in the inaugural edition of August Man magazine.
Speaking engagements
Chan has been invited as a motivational and photography speaker at numerous conferences and workshops. In 2009, he was invited as a guest speaker for the 1Malaysia Entrepreneurship Month, which was organised by Sunway University College in collaboration with the Higher Education Ministry. In 2010, together with award-winning director Yasmin Ahmad, Chan was invited as a speaker at TEDxKualaLumpur.