Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Diana & Minh Engaged!

A few weeks ago, I did an engagement shoot with Diana and Minh over at Ko Olina! It makes a world of a difference when the couple is very open-minded, and Diana and Minh were exactly that. During the shoot, they ducked under trees, climbed over rocks, and waded through the water so that we could get our shots :)

In the usual Isle Media fashion, Alan was also there to build footage for the wedding video, so we were able to bounce ideas off each other throughout the shoot. The weather was perfect, the sunset was beautiful (typical Ko Olina), and we even had an unexpected visitor drop by on the sand :)

Happy Tuesday!



-Reese

P.S Something to note for future brides who want to do an e-session with us: Diana had her make up trial session right before our shoot (her idea), so she was able to make the most of her make up :)

Monday, January 30, 2012

International Wedding (part 2)






Blue skies, sunshine, and ocean waves...in JANUARY. I guess that's why everyone wants to come to Hawaii to get married in the middle of winter? : ) Maiko and Brian had a dream wedding at the Ihilani/Koolina property that was small and intimate. There was an international audience that seemed to be exceptionally excited to be participating in the America version of a wedding day.

What's great about morning ceremonies: amazing lighting and piercing lens flares. Something that the naked eye will not catch but when the light hits the glass of the camera lens it creates a stunning effect. The breathtaking environment was perfect for all of the heart felt emotion that happened that day. 

Congratulations Maiko and Brian!

Alan (single shoot, edit)

Saturday, January 28, 2012





When Nate's mom first called me and mentioned they might possibly interested in videography, their first concern was that there was wasn't going to be a big reception, no hotel to get ready in, and the wedding was going to be a very small, private... not to mention... last minute affair. (lol) 

Imagining a wedding video without access to the typical amenities, most wedding videographers would consider to be rather problematic. For me, this was a wedding I very much looked forward to, it would be a true test of whether I could successfully do my job: capturing the essence of their day that Nate, Rebecca and family would appreciate. After some days of deliberation, the family opted into hiring us, trusting that we would make all of the magic happen utilizing what we had at hand- beauty in its most simple form. It's not visible to everyone, but it surely is visible to me. 

There is a long list of wedding songs that I keep in my arsenal, "Walking on a Dream" by Empire of a Sun was one of them, as I hope you can see, even the intro of the video matches beautifully with the keyboard that Nate is playing. Music, as Nate and Rebecca mentioned prior, was a very big part of their lives. So I knew I had to incorporate it. My other favorite moment was the placing of the fresh flower crown, also known as a "Haku." Not all brides could pull this look off, but Rebecca fitted into her Haku rather elegantly. 

I hope you both enjoy this video Nate and Rebecca. Congratulations!

Alan (shooter/edit) & Trevor (2nd shooter)

Monday, January 16, 2012

International Love



Hawaii is a good location for weddings - One, because it's very beautiful with great nature with ocean and green. Another reason it's good for a couple like Maiko and Brian is that Hawaii is in between Japan and the mainland US. 

On the 11th of January, they had their beautiful wedding in Ko Olina, a beach resort in the west side of Oahu. It was very nice to be part of this wedding - in the mix of Japanese and American, and I was communicating with Maiko and her family and friends in Japanese :-) Alan also used his hidden talent - communicating in Japanese this day :-)

It was such a beautiful day! Brian and Maiko flew from freezing Iowa for their wedding to Hawaii and they were very happy with the beautiful day :-) During the ceremony, we found a honu (sea turtle) came to see their wedding and everybody from Japan and Iowa were so excited to see the unexpected guest. Here are some shots from the wedding.

Please enjoy! (Click "Read more" to see more pictures.)


Kay



Monday, January 9, 2012

Jackie and Cole Engaged!


Wow. Where to begin? Jackie and Cole were soooo much fun to work with! The shoot consisted of numerous jumps, goofy faces, Kung-Fu Panda-inspired poses, and endless laughter...Jackie and Cole made it so easy for me to shoot the photos :)

The e-shoot began at Kahala Beach, and ended at KCC. We were fortunate to have beautiful weather the entire time, and I ended up barely using my strobes towards the end of the shoot, because the sunset light was so gorgeous :) Alan and Trevor shot video alongside me during the shoot, so it was good fun, as always, to collaborate with them!

We're all stoked to shoot Jackie and Cole's wedding this May!


-Reese

Monday, January 2, 2012

Cali - > Haiku







Haiku, Maui is described by many to be the island's cultural melting pot, a mixture of lush greenery and spectacular backdrops, combined with million dollar homes and plantations. Kaylee and Loren decided to get married in one of the rainiest parts of Maui, where many would consider too overcast for a wedding celebration, the precipitation and grey skies set a very romantic and chill mood for our Californian couple. Kaylee and Loren had one of the biggest spirits as you can tell from their footage, non-stop laughter, smiles, and good humor. 

Thank you for allowing us to be there!  Alan (edit), Jeff (videography) & Reese (photography)