A Maui Elopement Experience - Lahaina, Hawaaii // Kristine & David 02.22.2020

Mar 1

Bride & Groom elopement in Maui, standing in the middle of a enchanted forest of Hawaii. Photograph by Hawaii wedding & elopement photographer, Alfred Tang.

Kristine & David booked me two weeks prior to their elopement out on the beautiful island of Maui. They had a list of 30 photographers to start with, then narrowed it down to their top 3… so to be picked from such a field of talented photographers, made me feel honored and special. I knew I had to go above and beyond for Kristine & David.

A couple of emails and a phone call later, I booked my flight to Maui from Portland.

But this story isn’t about me or to brag (okay, maybe just a little bragging). As with every wedding or elopement, nothing is possible without two individuals who come together and commit to their love story. I’m just grateful to be there to witness and document such a special and intimate moment throughout the day. Sometimes, such as in this case, I’m the first and only to witness such a beautiful and important event.

4 1/2 yrs later, she married the man she slipped her phone number to and he got the girl of his dreams.

Kristine & David’s love story is a beautiful one. Something like from a movie - maybe “The Notebook”?

David was on a boy’s trip out in San Diego some 4-5 years ago. They were having an Easter brunch before their flight back home to Phoenix, Arizona when a waitress slipped over her number to David. After months of texting back and forth, Kristine & David set up the first date in Yuma, Arizona - a happy halfway point for the both of them. Their date was on a Sunday and they both had to work the next day. As you may guess, it was all worth it!

A year and a half of dating, Kristine left the coast for the desert and David. With careers set on a solid path, a condo and a puppy later, Kristine & David tied the knot on their own terms: just the two of them on the cliffs of West Maui, overlooking the beautiful beaches and ocean.

I got to spend a good couple of days with them, scouting, having a drink and just plain getting to know them more in person. Both are ambitious, goal-driven, and level-headed. He’s a financial advisor and she’s a dental hygienist. Together, they’re a bunch of fun and balance one another out.

As we went with the flow of their elopement day on February 22, 2020 we hit a small snag. Kristine had purchased a unique pair of earrings for her elopement the day prior. During our sunset portrait session, we came to realize that one of them had fallen out and put a damper on things. I didn’t realize the significance of the earrings and told her it’ll be fine and that you wouldn’t notice in the photos. It wasn’t until Kristine told me of her hopes of handing down the earrings to their daughter or their son’s bride on their wedding day that I realized how much they meant to her.

It was already getting dark and the chances of finding an earring on the vast floor of a forest or even heading back to the cliffs were very slim. Yet, I believe in karma and all good things end well with good people. So you’ll have to scroll through the images to see the outcome!

Kristine & David! Thank you so so soooo very much for having me on your elopement adventure! I’m so grateful to have been a part of it and I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for you and your family!