Jason Lanier's Real Wedding Workshop- Kauai, Hawaii (October, 2019)
Just after Jason released some images from the Real Wedding Workshop in Alaska, he received a phone call inquiry from a follower, friend, and fan, Ileana and Michael. Ileana and Michael shared that they were going on their honeymoon to Kauai and wanted to do two full days of couple’s shoots all throughout the Island.
Jason and I were thrilled to have another opportunity for two full days of wedding couple portfolio shots!! We just love when couples give us free rein and let us create! The work is best when we can create without restraints.
Michael and Ileana are an adventurous couple who loves hiking and the outdoors so Kauai was the perfect place for us to shoot. Below is a list of locations that the team generated together: Beach Camper, Church, VW Drive, Napali Sunset, Abandoned Coco Palms, Waimea Canyon, Sun Rays, Polihale, and Wedding Rings.
A key component to truly capture the essence of Hawaii was not getting hung up on solely shooting the beaches at sunset. Hawaii has so much to offer. You can get lost in its vast jungle and memorized with the views overlooking the Napali Coast. So as beautiful as the ocean was and is, we were really careful to make sure that wasn’t the ONLY location we hit.
Quintessential Hawaii, Quintessential Hawaii we kept telling ourselves. It’s always super important to make the couple really feel like they’re in Hawaii when they look at their pics. Before heading out we looked into different places for potential shoot spots (i.e. fruit stands, old surf shops). They were certainly on our radar to help tell a terrific story.
On the first day of the workshop, we planned to head out to the Napali Coast. Emily did Ileana’s hair and makeup and then we hit the road. We learned that Michael and Ileana had a dream of traveling the country in an RV. They found this RV camper at the beach and we set up a scene. Jason used the Sony A7Riii with the Godox AD600 Pro modified with the 48” Westcott Rapid Box XXL. Take a look at the story we created! The couple went from happily married, had a pretend fight and then made back up. Keeping it playful and purposeful is such a key component in telling stories.
Due to the spontaneity of shooting in the RV, we had to flip flop the game plan. It was mid-afternoon and we wanted to get a sunset shot at the beach. As we were driving we saw this gorgeous church and of course, Jason flipped one of his famous U-turns and the caravan of cars behind us followed! The church screamed Hawaii. It was a fantastic stop. Lots of people started to beep and cheer as the group photographed Michael and Ileana. It was a fun experience and a great spontaneous stop.
Then! We looked across the street and found this abandoned VW bus. You can’t make this up. Kauai has little “movie-type sets” all over the place. You just have to look! Across the street the lighting was perfect so we decided to jump on the opportunity. Remember folks, if you say you’ll come back to it, the light might not be right anymore. So Michael and Ileana hopped in the VW bus and started to pretend drive. We needed to tie the pictures in a little bit more so we decided to make a “Just Married” sign. Emily reached in her bag of goodies and with an old piece of wood we found next to the abandoned vehicle we created a “Just Married” sign on-site using body paint. Jason had Michael and Ileana pretend as if they were on a road trip and as we have all experienced, road trips bring an array of emotions from happy to silly to frustrated and the couple demonstrated the expressions perfectly. Take a look at the gallery below inside the VW bus. Jason used the Sony A7Riii with the Godox AD600 Pro modified with the 48” Westcott Rapid Box XXL. We used two Rotolight Neo 2s as headlights!
The sun was getting lower in the sky! We knew we had to get to the beach. We packed up the cars quickly and hit the road for the next location. Jason photographed Michael and Ileana at the beach for a gorgeous Napali sunset. When the light started to diminish we busted out the Rotolight Aeos and modified it with the Illuminator. The couple went to this tree with gorgeous roots above the ground and Jason and the group took some shots. Day one concluded! It was a very successful first day full of creative imagery and storytelling. We were thrilled to see what day two brought.
On the second day of the workshop, Ileana met Emily for hair and makeup. After getting ready, it was time to hit the road. Our goal was to cover the whole island. This day we headed the opposite direction toward Waimea Canyon. But first… of course, there’s a stop first, was the incredible abandoned Coco Palms resort that aired in Blue Hawaii with Elvis Presley in the 50s. We had no idea the resort was used in the Blue Hawaii film prior to going; its abandoned beauty lured us in from the street!
Hurricane Iniki hit Kauai approximately 25+ years ago and wiped out Coco Palms. The property is looking to rebuild. Huge shout out to Travis, the property manager for giving us access to this gorgeous location. It truly was one of our favorite spots. The place appeared to be straight out of Jurrasic Park. It was full of giant palm trees, fallen palm fawns, and overgrown sugar cane covered the path.
At Coco Palms Resort, Jason utilized the natural light in the stairwell for some really awesome groom, bridal, and couple shots. The couple posed at the top of the stairs and in this open atrium. It was gorgeous; Michael and Ileana did amazing during this set. We could have spent two weeks at Coco Palms, but we had to remind ourselves not to get caught up in one location. So we wrapped up and headed on over to Waimea Canyon.
As we got closer to the canyon, the weather changed. The storm clouds rolled in. A few miles in we found a pull off with a gorgeous vantage point. We propped Ileana and Michael on a rock and Jason fired away capturing his “fake skies” right before my eyes.
Next on the agenda was Polihale. On the way to Polihale we stumbled across another beach. Jason again went with his gut. We pulled over to the beach. Placed the couple on top of these green vines on the sand and got some really pretty shots in the middle of the day.
Off to Polihale and again it was a race against the sun. We raced around on these sandy/ dirt roads to the beach. An attendee who rented a jeep popped his tired on that road. Coincidentally there were like two other jeeps changing their flat tire on that road too! Regardless, we ditched the rental and had some people jump in our car and also the bride and groom’s car. We made it to the beach just in time for a remarkable sunset. Jason also took really pretty shots of the wedding rings too. It was very organic. He asked me to go find some stuff so I ran on the sandy beach to the spot where there appeared to be vegetation and grabbed a handful of walnuts, vines, and sticks. Jason propped up the ring and placed it just above the horizon of the sunset. It truly was so so beautiful. A fantastic way to end a great real wedding workshop.
After we carpooled back to the rental jeep we abandoned and helped the attendee switch out his flat. With a team effort, we were done in no time and on our way home. Huge thanks to Michael and Ileana. You both did amazing. We were so glad to shoot your wedding and share these special memories with you. Thank you to all who attended, all who read, and all who support. We love you guys. Thanks!
Jason Lanier Photography.
