How lucky am I to have photographed these two back in San Francisco for their City Hall ceremony and another time several months later in Hawaii!

They had reached out to see if I knew of anyone in Oahu to capture their small ceremony and I had mentioned that I have experience photographing weddings and family session there and have often visited back when my cousin lived there but alas, they no longer do and because lodging is usually the higher priced ticket for a destination wedding since I do have miles I could use, I sent them a couple of local recommendations.

Hawaii is a wonderful destination for weddings, for some very obvious reasons, like its beautiful landscape of beaches, the warm weather, the food and of course the communities of people with their Aloha spirit. If you do decide to make a visit and choose Hawaii as your destination wedding, please be considerate and respectful of the land, locals, and the laws (regarding permits, signs about wildlife and foliage etc) and be responsible enough to leave no trace.

Like their SF City Hall wedding, they also chose a short guest list of only family - but when the bride mentioned their Hawaiian elopement to her friends, they really wanted to also be there and celebrate with them. So a few close friends were also there to witness their sweet ceremony between the palm trees with Diamond Head in the background. The bride and groom's outfits added an extra layer of uniqueness to their special day, since the groom's talented sister skillfully created their one-of-a-kind ensembles that truly reflected their personalities and the couple’s cultures and heritage.

It was such a warm & memorable experience because of the couple and their family and friends and not to mention, it was just really fun to hang out with everyone, not just as the photographer, but as a friend.