Norm Yip was born and raised in Canada by Chinese parents. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree (cum laude) in 1984 at the University of Saskatchewan and his Bachelor of Architecture degree in 1989 at the University of Toronto. In 1994, he moved to Hong Kong where he worked as a project architect for Wong & Tai Associates Ltd and RTKL International Ltd before pursuing his greater interest in art and photography.

In 1999, he co-founded the art collective Meli-Melo Artists Alliance (MMAA) where he curated several exhibitions with artists such as Gavin Tu, Neung and Oksana Movchan from Hong Kong, Thailand and Canada. Shortly thereafter, he formed his own photography company Norm Yip Photography, in addition to Studio 8, a semi-public photographic and art space located in the district of Sheung Wan — where he hosted private and selected exhibitions in all three mediums of photography, painting and graphite.

As a photographer, Norm's work has appeared in HK Magazine, WHERE, Global Investor and American Express' Centurion magazine. Celebrities he has photographed include Zhang Yimou, Jennifer Lopez, Ricky Martin, Destiny's Child and Korean pop-star Rain. Norm is internationally recognized for his fine art photographs of Asian men, with work featured in The Best of International Nudes Photography III by Feierabend Unique Books, The Romantic Male Nude by James Spada, and Physique Pictorial (Edition 43).

His photographs of Asian men were first selected for publication in 2Blue and Dreamboys 2, both special editions of the acclaimed Blue Magazine. He subsequently self-published three hardcover books — The Asian Male 1.AM, 2.AM and 3.AM — as well as the pilot soft-cover publication Beaux Magazine, V1. Limited edition signed prints from his archive are available for collectors upon enquiry.

In 2021, Norm returned to Canada to care for an aging parent — a period that, while marking a pause in his exhibition practice, deepened his reflective approach to art-making. He is now re-engaging with his vocation with renewed focus and purpose.

With a rich archive of fine art photography spanning over two decades, Norm is currently making selected works available as limited edition signed prints for collectors and galleries worldwide. Each print is produced using pigment inks on fine art matte paper and accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity.