Taking Family Portraits for Cát Tiên
When she reached out to me via Facebook messenger, I had no idea I was interacting with a celebrity. I didn’t even realize her name was a pseudonym. I just thought it odd she has a masculine name. When we met in person, she introduced herself as “Tiên”, a very feminine name meaning angel. I immediately thought I met her before. She just looked so, so incredibly familiar. But my priority was to make sure my clients are comfortable, not tracking memory lane of if and when I previously made their acquaintance. Her husband introduced himself as Don and their two boys are Carter and Levi. She jokingly stated they’re very into fashion. And I would not take that as a joke because they are so picture perfect and dressed like they just stepped out of a catalog.
Tiên came so well prepared with bubbles and snacks to bribe her oldest son. 😉 Her diaper bag was packed to the brim as she envisioned all possibilities, including a potential blow out from her youngest who was suffering from diarrhea just the day before. Although the park was busy with other photoshoots, we truly were able to capture intimate portraits that speak to their familial love and happiness.
Immediately after I posted their family portraits on my Facebook page, I started getting texts identifying her as Cát Tiên. I literally stopped breathing for a second. Then, I ran around the house, excitedly telling my family what just took place. As I was recalling their portrait session, I felt total embarrassment of having sent her my styling tips. Ha! As if she needed wardrobe help. Yet, she responded so kindly and told me she can “use all the help”. I had to sleep on my excitement before reaching out to her the next morning to let her know I finally realized who she is. And she has the kindest words for me:
“Good morning Nhi! Thanks so much for a fun shoot! The boys actually cooperated a lot better than I thought! I’m really glad you were able to squeeze our family in last minute. You’re very good and passionate about what you do I love it! Thanks so much can’t wait to see the rest of the pics!!!!”
This might as well be it – the pinnacle of my photography career. Haha. Can I say I’ve been endorsed by a celebrity? 😛 Joking aside, I am so very flattered that she not only booked me for her family portraits but expressed definite interest in working with me again. She even referred a friend to me. Is this even real life?! 🙂
When Cát Tiên was first introduced to the Vietnamese community on Vân Sơn Entertainment’s stage, I knew she would be an overnight success. She has so much star quality – personable, down to earth, kind, and super talented. She is one of those famous people who isn’t concerned about fame. Her smile never left her face. Her correspondence always gracious. And she expressed genuine concern when she saw a bloody scratch on my face (let’s just say eyebrow threading gone wrong lol!).
It was an absolute honor to photograph Cát Tiên and her loving, beautiful family. I can’t wait to work with them again!
