I must say that, while I enjoy full-day weddings with elaborate details, I’m just as fulfilled with intimate and simple weddings. After all, as a documentary photographer, I’m there to capture love and commitment — things that just can’t be substituted in a relationship.
Desiree and Ebi traveled to Maui all the way from Massachusetts, and I never met them until their wedding day. When I first showed up at their villa at Ho’olei at Grand Wailea, it was Ebi who greeted me with a joke that I had come to the wrong door. I could tell already that I was going to have fun with this photo shoot. Between his sense of humor and her straight-to-the-point way of communicating, I must say their interactions were quite entertaining. But the strongest observation I was able to make was that this was a couple with a very deep love for — and commitment to — each other. Something told me that I was going to see more of this through my viewfinder as the day unfolded.
And I was right. 🙂
Desiree and Ebi got married at a small beach in Kihei, with just a few family members and close friends with them to witness their wedding. It was emotional. And it was genuine. They had probably one of the longest kisses that I’ve seen at a wedding; when I looked at the timestamps on my images, I calculated their kiss to be at least 36 seconds. If you don’t think that’s long, try kissing someone — in front of witnesses — for 36 seconds, and see how that feels. My guess is that you’d have to really love that person to kiss them for that long.
We wrapped up with some photos on the beach for sunset and then headed off to the Grand Wailea for their reception at a cabana by the pool. After just a few hours with them, I was reminded that you truly only need two things for a successful marriage — love and commitment.
Congratulations and best wishes to you both, Desiree and Ebi!
How many of you are in love? If you’re reading this, and you’re in love, feel free to shout it out here. 🙂
Aloha,
Kevin
