Last week, I shared one of our engagement photos, and I’d like to share two more from that particular shoot. Looking at the images always reminds me of how windy and cool it was, and yet I remember feeling completely comfortable. These were some of our first images together.

This week, I’m posting a few additional images that were also shot on Maui. These were taken in Makena, where the island of Molokini can be seen in the background. Maui, like any other island in Hawaii, usually has amazing sunsets. Skies can be quite dramatic, as the air is clean — thanks to trade winds — and clouds are never scarce. When I moved to California, I actually missed clouds.

On this day, however, there wasn’t much color in the late afternoon. Nevertheless, still nice light for photos.

In the second image of this week’s post (fourth image from the top), I picked the location to do some shots on the sand, but it was surprisingly crowded. Consequently, we chose to remove ourselves from the sand and do some shots in the rocks. I wanted to capture the movement of the water, so opted for a slower shutter speed. This is one shot that was actually easier to do than if I was behind the camera, because it was easier to tell Loretta exactly how long to hold still for each exposure, since I was right next to her. Since there were no warm colors in they sky, I kept the color temperature close to 5500 K to keep the cool tones.

For the third image (last image), we drove to another location in the area. The light was fading quickly, and by the time we took the shot, I needed my maglite to assist me with focusing. It took a little while to set up because I wanted the horizon to be perfectly level. Thank goodness for bright viewfinders! Without any supplemental light, we would have barely been visible in the image, so I fired my flash off-camera to create separation between us and the background. The main challenge for this photo was staying completely still for a long time. For all the techies, my exposure for this image was 13 seconds @ f/4.5 @ ISO 800.

On our way back to the car, it was as dark as could be, as there were no street lights in the area. As we were packing the car, I nearly freaked out as a black dog and its owner approached us from behind. Fortunately there aren’t too many predators in Hawaii.

Here below are the images, starting with two images that continue from last week’s post. Tune in next week for more!

You gotta love it when a family is willing to miss the second half of the Super Bowl to drive to the beach for some photos. I, for one, didn’t even realize that I scheduled a session on Super Bowl Sunday until just a few days prior! Alison, Caleb, and family were visiting from California, and they only had a few days available to shoot. After looking at my calendar, Sunday afternoon was the only slot I had free. Fortunately, I missed the Super Bowl last year — for the first time since I can remember. So, I guess I’m getting used to missing it. lol

Alison happens to be Daphne’s cousin, and that kind of connection always helps to develop rapport when meeting a destination client, or any client for that matter. I never met this family before Sunday, and yet I felt like I already knew them.

Initially, I had another location in mind, but on Saturday I told Alison that Lanikai beach might work better. It turned out to be a great idea, because by then they had already seen the rest of the island.

When we hit the beach, the kids just started to play, and it never ended. Photographing children is an action sport, I tell you. When you look at the photos, I think you’ll have no doubt that they had fun.

A classic moment was when the little guy, for whatever reason, started to run for the hills. After a few hurried — and unbalanced — steps, however, he found his face buried an inch or more in sand. I actually put my camera down, thinking he’d be embarrassed. But when Alison prompted me, I just had to get a few shots. Fortunately, all it takes is a few Goldfish crackers to get a kid back on his feet.

All I can say is that this was one session worth missing the Super Bowl for.

P.S. I did watch the first half, and then watched it on DVR later that night.

So, I’ve been thinking of what I could say today, and the only thing that really sticks out to me is how much my life has changed since this time last year. It was just a year ago when I flew from LA to Honolulu to spend Valentine’s Day with Loretta. Of course, as some of you may recall, Loretta had a bad injury and ended up on crutches. Needless to say, we didn’t do much to celebrate.

Today, things are much different for both of us. This time last year, we were still getting to know each other, and today we are engaged to be married.

Some of you have already seen some of our engagement photos, and today I thought I’d start sharing some with the rest of the world. So, every week from now until we get married on April 10th, I will share some photos from our engagement session, as well as the occasional story behind the shots.

For today, I’ll start with a single image that we shot on Maui. It was late afternoon, very gloomy, very windy, and about to storm. Of course, we photographers absolutely LOVE this kind of light, because the softness just wraps around the subject(s).

We spent a good 30 minutes or so at this spot while my sister and her family stayed back to keep warm in the car. It was about a 12-15 minute hike back to the car, and it started to rain as we headed back.

We were truly blessed to have had just enough time to get some great images from this brief session. And I’m so grateful for having a girl that has the patience to create stuff like this with me.

Happy Valentine’s Day, Baby! :*

P.S. What are you doing this Valentine’s? As for us, we are planning a nice evening at home cooking something new for each other.

I always tell my clients that not everything will turn out exactly as planned. But this Moana Surfrider wedding is a great example of how a wedding can still be beautiful and beyond what was imagined when things don’t seem to work in your favor.

Last month, I posted a teaser image of Pheabe & Layne’s destination wedding at the Moana Surfrider. This was a very interesting experience, to say the least.

When Pheabe contacted me on Thursday night, I was excited about the opportunity to shoot their wedding on Molokai, which was their initial plan. Layne is absolutely in love with Molokai — so much that he calls it his “favorite place in the world.” Things changed, however, and on Friday Pheabe contacted me to say they were planning a ceremony on Oahu instead.

The thing is, when you plan to get married on one island, and then you change the location to a different island, you’re basically starting from scratch. And to accomplish this in a single day is no small feat — for anyone. Consequently, they didn’t have a venue or an officiant, and when I asked if she had any witnesses, Pheabe said “We’ll find a couple of people.” Gotta love her positive attitude!

And then, the big bummer — on Saturday morning, it was raining. I convinced Pheabe that a morning wedding would be best. They were planning on leaving for Molokai that afternoon, and I felt it was worth waking up early for [potentially] better light than what mid-day would offer. But, in the midst of having her makeup and hair done, there was no sign of the sky clearing anytime soon. And then, the rain stopped. As the clouds broke, I saw the amazing light outside and told Pheabe we should do it as soon as possible.

At this point, we still didn’t know exactly where we were going to have the ceremony. And even though they were guests at the Moana Surfrider, you can’t just wake up at a resort on a Saturday and expect to have a wedding ceremony somewhere on property. Well, at least that’s what I thought.

After meeting them in the lobby, we looked at a couple of spots to do the ceremony. The spot that I preferred was being used by some people, and just as I was about to ask them if they wouldn’t mind moving, they started to leave. In just a matter of minutes, we ended up having an intimate ceremony on the deck overlooking the gorgeous Pacific Ocean in amazing weather. And it was the simplest thing. You couldn’t ask for anything more, especially after thinking that it would be wet and gloomy for this couple who just arrived on Thursday from Washington, D.C.

In the end, I’m glad that I brought Loretta to assist me, because she and I ended up being the two witnesses.

I really wish Pheabe and Layne all the best. Their love for each other was truly transparent, and they were such a joy to work with.

Just an hour or so earlier, I was totally prepared to shoot the whole thing in the rain. It really is an amazing experience when a wedding couple can be so optimistic when there are so many reasons to despair.

Does anyone have any experiences where things didn’t seem promising, and it ended up being better than you ever expected? I’d love to hear your stories!

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Location: Moana Surfrider

Officiant: Rev. Mike Nelson

Before closing my 2011 season, I had the pleasure of meeting Ed Bridge, President of Ben Bridge and Thierry Stern of Patek Philippe, the maker of arguably the world’s finest watches and timepieces. In a brief conversation with Thierry Stern, I learned that some of his watches are comprised of over 1,500 pieces. These are some very complex works.

Thierry and his team were in town to show some new products to some of their loyal clients. They had been on tour for weeks, and Hawaii was their final destination. Ed Bridge flew in from Seattle to host the event with Patek Philippe. I met them all at Ben Bridge Timeworks at Ala Moana Center, where they all greeted each other in the morning. Then later, I documented their event at the Hau Terrace at Halekulani.

Yvonne Design and Mood Event did an amazing job, despite some unfavorable weather. It all turned out great in the end.

How many of you own a Patek Philippe?

Cake cutting is typically an important event at a wedding, but not at this one! When the bride’s father is Nobu Matsuhisa, feeding each other sushi instead of cake isn’t such a bad idea.

Yoshiko and Marc’s beautiful celebration at the Paul Mitchell Estate in Lanikai included a san san kudo and a kagamiwari.

It was an awesome experience to photograph a wedding so unique. Congratulations to Yoshiko & Marc, and thank you to all the fabulous vendors who made this all possible!

Continuing on my previous teaser image, I’ll share a few more images from this fabulous wedding. And to make it even more fun, I’m posting them in random order this time.

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Location: Paul Mitchell Estate

Event Coordinator: Nichole Weddings & Events

Floral Design and Decor: Yvonne Design

Lighting and Rentals: Mood Event

Catering: Nobu

Photo Booth: Yours Truly ;)

I received a call last Thursday about a wedding in Hawaii in two days. Pheabe and Layne had just arrived on Oahu, and they were looking for a photographer.

The one thing I love about small weddings is the amount of flexibility that you have. Don’t have a venue yet? No problem! How about the Moana Surfrider on Saturday morning?

And that’s exactly what we did.

Stay tuned for the rest of the story when I post their wedding day images.

For now, here’s one of the first shots that I took — just minutes after meeting them for the first time. ]]> http://www.kevinlubera.com/2011/12/19/teaser-pheabe-leighton-at-moana-surfrider/feed/ 0 http://www.kevinlubera.com/2011/12/15/queensberry-duo-lynne-jeff/ http://www.kevinlubera.com/2011/12/15/queensberry-duo-lynne-jeff/#comments Thu, 15 Dec 2011 22:17:14 +0000 Kevin Lubera http://www.kevinlubera.com/blog/?p=2979 NOTE: the images in this feed have been downsized or removed for copyright reasons. To see them in their unmodified state, please view the original post by clicking here.

Here’s Lynne & Jeff’s Queensberry Duo album — my signature album product. They chose a 14×10″ horizontal album with a beautiful stone silk cover. When this album is opened, it’s very wide at 28″, and with a flip page it’s a whopping 42″ wide!

This isn’t your everyday modern wedding album. The custom matted pages give it a timeless character, while the careful use of full-bleed images and flush-mount pages gives it a modern twist.

As you’ll see, their [2nd year] anniversary is just around the corner! I can’t believe it’s been that long already!

If you’re like many other wedding clients out there who have hundreds of digital files and haven’t ordered an album yet, now is the time to start the design process — before the next wedding season begins and turnaround times increase.

A wedding album is a great way to tell your story of your wedding day. How will you tell your story?

Four years ago, I set out to photograph some details for a beautiful, Rat Pack-themed birthday celebration at the Beverly Hills Hotel.

Alyse Sobel did an amazing job with the design, including wall portraits, a cigar lounge, and a casino. The 10-piece band brought everything to life.

At last, Miha & John’s wedding images are here, after I posted their teaser image last month.

When you think of a Lanikuhonua wedding in Hawaii, you might not think of a Persian wedding in Hawaii. And to take it one step further, Miha & John did something a little different, as they had both a Persian ceremony and a Western-style ceremony.

I was fortunate enough to meet with Miha & John prior to their wedding during one of their visits to Oahu. We scheduled a meeting in town and, upon introducing ourselves, we found out that we both drove all the way from Ko Olina to meet each other. Needless to say, we broke the ice in the first minute. Simple things like that can make a photographer-client relationship all the more enjoyable on the wedding day.

Thumbs up to Christina of Pacific Aisles for making this celebration run as smoothly as possible!

I can’t wait to shoot my next Lanikuhonua wedding!

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Event Coordination and Design: Pacific Aisles

Floral Design: Yvonne Design

Catering: Chai’s Island Bistro

Entertainment: Troy Michael DJ