UPDATE: OCTOBER 17 2008 WU CHUN IN BUTTERFLY LOVERS

If there is a name the media loves getting it wrong and gets away with, it’s Wu Chun who also goes by Zhun and Zun. Perhaps this is all part of show biz creative licenses at work or perhaps it [show biz] simply subscribes to the notion of variety being the spice of life!

This post begins with photos of Chun at his new establishment on the eve of the grand opening. It was the first time I had stepped into Fitness Zone and certainly the first time I had met Chun in person and I must say—he looked every bit like what I’d imagined and he handled himself with finesse when I introduced myself. The following three pictures are candids shot with a telephoto lens at 200mm on my EOS 5D.

Photo gallery from the Fitness Zone Grand Opening at the end of this post (incl. a bonus gallery dedicated to Wu Chun’s fans)

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Wu Chin @ Fitness Zone © Jan Shim Photography

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Wu Chun © 2007 Jan Shim Photography

With so many digital cameras and camera phones pointed at him, Chun remained unfazed by the attention and took a couple of shots of us in reciprocity.

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Chun taking a snapshot of his customers and the crowd

On Grand Opening day right after Chun concluded press conference, there was photo opportunity with Chun before he handed me a goodie bag and another for a special friend, Leukaemia patient Desmond Chin for whom I’m helping raise donations. Many thanks, Chun, you’ve just touched someone with your kindness.

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Me & Chun on Grand Opening Day

As a token of my appreciation, I produced these photo DVD as a gift to celebrate his success. On it contains still photos and a gallery of the grand opening that Chun can share with his family and friends and is welcome to share them with his fans on his personal blog. I’m working and commuting for most part of this week before I head over to my next shoot in Hanoi for the ASEAN 100 Leadership Forum. I’ve asked my sister in law Julie to pass the discs to Chun. I hope he gets them before he leaves Brunei.

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DVD design and photography © Jan Shim Photography

This is one of my favourite moments that I chose for the DVD cover.

Selected photos from Grand Opening day starts here …

Chun delivers his speech in Malay and English.

Well, I have to admit that I was rather amazed by how broadly fitness is now defined this century. What is fitness? It’s not just about working out at clubs anymore. It has also to do with how you eat, sleep and live … it should be part of everyone’s life!

This is why I had this dream to build a world-class fitness club that allows Bruneians to enjoy the intrinsic rewards of changing ones lives through fitness. That’s why I had a great passion for this job as much as today as I did when I was just starting out. ~ Wu Chun

Chun taking time out to refuel.

Press Conference nonchalance

One of Chun's many faces during the press conference

Chun makes his way to autograph signing after press conference

Chun spreading his magic in various colors.

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The Brunei Times: Wu Zhun willing to help to promote Brunei tourism (click on image to read article)

The grand opening day was quite an eye opener—for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out why there were so many edgy females that morning, an encounter that is rather unusual. Walking around with my long lenses and camera pouches, I sensed that they did not want to be photographed and when they began covering their faces or turning away, I knew something was up and it quickly dawned on me that these rather peculiar and uncharacteristic behaving females must be his fans who had come from several countries to see their idol. WOW!

PHOTO GALLERIES/SLIDESHOW:

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http://shimworld.wordpress.com/2007/08/11/shimworld-feature-wu-chun/

Gallery Highlights:
The photo gallery begins with the walkway between the Palm Garden Hotel and Fitness Zone and goes on to give you a journalistic view as events unfold including a peek inside Fitness Zone and the facilities it offers to give members a one-stop healthy lifestyle programme.

Oh, did I mention it was a HOT DAY ?

Thanks to poster and fan Rebecca_mel for the heads up on BAIDU.com, a huge site with a ton of information on Wu Chun and his Taiwanese pop band Fahrenheit (interesting background info) and SHIMworld makes its online appearance in China.

At the moment how much I wish you could read Chinese writing, then you could feel and understand how deeply the chun’s fans who have seen your works are thanking you and cherishing such precious pictures taken by a professional photographer like you….

All these high compliments are not only from myself, but also from the bottom heart of every Chun’s supporter…And they are one hundred percent sincere…I wish you can feel it ….

And at the end, please allow me to say THANK YOU VERY MUCH one more time, on behalf of Chun’s fans. As one of them, I’m more than moved by these rare pictures, and as a photography enthusiast, I sincerely respect and admire you…  Rebecca_mel

Here are previously unpublished photos of Wu Chun

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© Jan Shim Photography

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© Jan Shim Photography

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© Jan Shim Photography

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© Jan Shim Photography

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© Jan Shim Photography

I hope you enjoy your stay and thank you for visiting!