Our First Wedding Shoot in Tokyo!

Our first international wedding shoot in Tokyo, Japan!

Alan and I had an opportunity to shoot Yuka & Yasuyuki's wedding at Hibiya park last week :) I was super excited when Yuka first popped the question to me: "Are you by chance in Japan in October? We have a wedding reception back in Japan, and I would like you to photograph it as well..." Working internationally was one of my goals of 2013, so my answer was YES! This was our international shoot debut for both photo and video team.

The above photograph was taken in front of a busy intersection right outside of their venue. I wanted to incorporate the Big City feel into this picture with the motion from the cars passing by. More photos will be posted later on. Stay tuned!


- Kay (blog, photography)
- Alan (videography)

From left, Naoko (hair and make-up), Kay (photography), Yuka & Yasuyuki (bride and groom), Alan (videography) and Yasu (video assistant) 

Reina & Taro Married!

Reina and Taro decided to have their dream destination wedding in Hawaii.  Their day started from getting ready at the historical Royal Hawaiian Hotel, enjoying some champagne gift from their friend, having the ceremony at Calvary by The Sea church then photo session in Downtown. They brought some props and balloons - which made the photo shoot fun and cute :) This time I made this blog post entirely Black & White to match the vintage and classic feel of the day - Enjoy!

- Kay (Photography + Blog)

(Click "Read More" to see more photos after the Japanese text.)

（もっとお写真を見るには、"Read More"をクリックして下さい）

Kotomi & Judai Married!

Kotomi & Judai Wedding Highlights from Isle Media on Vimeo.

After Judai and I had long correspondences via email over 30 times in between Japan and Hawaii, we finally met in person for a final client meeting two days before the wedding day. Kotomi brought a giant binder filled with wedding ideas that she had prepared to make her dream wedding come true! One thing they specifically wished to have was a "vintage feel" in their photos and video - it sure did turn out amazing with the locations they selected for the day. I could see how much preparation they did to carefully design and plan their own wedding. Her dream All-White-Theme was beautiful, especially in the green surroundings at the Bayer Estate.

At the wedding, I teared up more than a couple of times when I saw Judai cry at the first-look, and during the speeches of Judai, Kotomi, and their guests. Very caring, very touching. The day was full of joy, smiles, and a little bit of happy tears here and there.

Congratulations Judai & Kotomi!

- Kay (photography & blog)
- Lester (photography)
- Trevor & Vanessa (videography)

Hiroko & Daisuke Married!

Hiroko & Daisuke flew from Yokohama for their intimate wedding in the Big Island! They got ready at a beautiful resort hotel, Mauna Lani Bay in South Kohala coast, then had a ceremony in Kona, then reception back at Mauna Lani Bay. Both Hiroko and Daisuke work for a TV production company in Tokyo - they were rather comfortable behind the camera (just like me!), but this time, they were in front of the camera :-) A few days before their wedding, Kona had pretty thick vog and the sunset was less colorful - on the contrary, on their wedding day, it was just like magic that the sky was so clear and the sunset was so beautiful! It was wonderful to be a part of their day!

Congratulations!

- Kay (photography & blog)
(Click "Read More" to see more photos after the Japanese text.)

大輔さん＆寛子さん　ご結婚おめでとうございます！

ハワイ島でのリゾートウェディング。準備とレセプションはサウスコハラコーストにあるマウナラニベイホテルにて、そしてセレモニーはコナにあるLiving Stone Churchで行われました。日本ではテレビプロダクションで働いていらっしゃるとの事で、普段はカメラを回している方が慣れていらっしゃるためにカメラシャイなお二人でしたが（私も同じ立場なのでよく分かります^^）、この晴れの日には私のカメラスクリーンに収めさせて頂きました:-)

Vogが続いていたコナサイドですが、結婚式当日はとてもよいお天気に恵まれ、サンセットもとても素敵でした。特にビーチには２つの木が寄り添うように立っている場所があり、そこでのシルエット写真は私のお気に入りのサンセット写真の一つとなりました。

これからも末永くお幸せに:-)

- けい（フォトグラファー＆ブログ）

（もっとお写真を見るには、"Read More"をクリックして下さい）

Kaori & Wataru ~ Love Dolphins!

Kaori and Wataru flew from Japan to get married at beautiful Ko Olina. When they contacted me they had already pre-booked a photographer for their wedding, but they wanted to have additional pictures of their lunch reception.  So we decided to have some fun with a 3 hour photo session in Waikiki.

We exchanged emails many times before meeting in person just a day before their wedding.  Kaori and Wataru showed me a cute "bride-n-groom" dolphin that they brought from Japan! We decided to bring it on our photo shoot as well as a custom-made Hawaiian quilt that also had dolphins on it :-)

Kaori and Wataru were so adorable with each other, and I really had a great time with them. Kaori told me that some day she would like to add a baby dolphin on the quilt and come back to Hawaii for a family picture! I am looking forward to our "three dolphin" photo session in the future :-)  best wishes to them! 

佳織さんと渉さん、ご結婚おめでとうございます！
「挙式とレセプションはカメラマンがもう決まっていたけれど、結婚式の後でフォトツアーをしたい」ということで、ワイキキでの写真撮影をすることに。結婚したてほやほやのお二人は、一緒にいるだけでとっても幸せそうでした♪ハワイアンキルトや結婚式で使用したイルカのぬいぐるみなど撮影小物も持って来て頂けたので、バラエティに富んだ素敵な写真がたくさん残せました。これからも、末永くお幸せにいてくださいね！

- Kay (blog & photography)

(Click "Read more" to see more pictures)

Kanpai for A New Life!

Destination wedding is very popular all over the world - and as you probably know, Hawaii is one of the most popular places! Isle Media works with both local and non-local couples, including ones from overseas. Every time I receive inquiries from bride/groom-to be, I always tell them that they are so lucky to be having their special day in beautiful Hawaii :-) Yuki and Yoshitaka inquired us from Japan, who made their dream wedding in Hawaii come true. I was very fortunate to capture their wedding day in my camera :-)

After getting ready in their hotel in Waikiki, they moved to Ko Olina in a limo (first time riding a limo!).  Lanikuhonua has been a very popular wedding venue lately, with its beautiful green grass and beach at a lagoon. If you are seeking for a nice sunset shot, remember that Ko Olina has a spectacular sunset!

It was very fun to work with Yuki and Yoshitaka, and their family and friends all from Japan :-) Every body was so happy to be there. Surrounded by lots of smiles and laughter, they became a wife and husband forever! Happy happy wedding :D

Photographer: Kay
(Click "Read more" to see more pictures)

ゆきさん、よしたかさん
ご結婚おめでとうございます！ご参列頂いたみなさまの笑顔に囲まれて、とっても心温まる結婚式でした。ワイキキでの撮影の後はリムジンでコオリナへ移動。コオリナは緑に囲まれている一方でビーチエリアもあって、色々な風景とお写真が撮れる素敵なロケーションなので、オアフで一番好きな撮影場所です:-) 結婚式の日のハイライトお写真を、どうぞお楽しみください！

フォトグラファー：サレラけい
(全てのお写真を見るには、"Read more"をクリックして下さい）

Fun Fun Photo Tour!

     Sumie and Hiroaki decided to take their pre-wedding pictures while they were visiting Hawaii! They came over from Japan to spend their time together as boyfriend & girlfriend one last time... since they are getting married in the end of the month back in Japan :-) They had an idea of taking pictures in Hawaii-y places in the wedding outfit. My phone rang one afternoon, and Sumie told me that Isle Media was referred by the hotel concierge where they were staying at. They did not have anything besides their great fun personality - no dress or tax, or transportation. My suggestion was - let's rent the outfit out, and I would drive you around and take fun pictures in beautiful locations you would love! So we went to Waikiki city center, Magic Island, and Waimanalo.

     Our 3.5 hour session went by so fast, and I was so happy to take their pictures! They were just merely happy to be each other. I didn't even have to ask them to smile at each other :D Love and laughter were everywhere around them. It was such a fun fun photo tour!  ~ Kay

(Click "Read more" to see more pictures)

おめでとうございます！すみえさん＆ひろあきさん

日本での結婚式を控えた素敵なカップルとフォトツアーに行ってきました。ドレスをワイキキでレンタルしたあとは、おすすめの３カ所のロケーション（ワイキキ、マジックアイランド、ワイマナロ）でのフォトツアーに行ってきました。お二人ともとっても仲良しで、撮影している私までニコニコしてしまう、そんな楽しい３時間半の時間でした。元気いっぱいで愛情もいっぱいなお二人の撮影の様子をどうぞお楽しみください。

Photographer: Kay

(全てのお写真を見るには、"Read more"をクリックして下さい）

Concept Shoot - Slow and Fast Movement

One beautiful Saturday, Isle Media Team went for two concept photo shoot. In the morning Reese led a model shoot in Kakaako, and in the afternoon, I led another shoot at Sandy beach. The video team filmed each photo-shoot, so if you are planning to come to our Isle Media 1st year anniversary party, you will get to see how the shooting was done :-)

For my Sandy shots, I wanted to do two things - capturing the wave movement in a slow motion with long exposure. I used an ND filter to make this dreamy looking waves. For this one, I imaged something like Chinese sumi-e painting with flows of time. I also wanted to capture the beautiful wind movement in vivid colors, which is what you are seeing in this main picture. Both are shot in the same location, but I like these totally different looks in the following set. 

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

~Kay

Special Thanks to my model Natsumi

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)

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