It’s amazing to realise how diverse the culture of wedding is. Despite having been able to witness and shoot almost a thousand weddings from all the over the world (from Mexico to New Zealand), there are still a lot that I haven’t seen or experienced. Just several months ago, I was treated to yet again to something I haven’t seen or been before. In the island of Aitutaki in the Cook Islands – a place I didn’t even new existed (despite having a decent interest in geography) until last year, for the incredible wedding of Shana and Jesse.
Three degrees separate me from Shana and Jesse. Jesse is the brother of the lovely Lanier, the maid of honour in the beautiful wedding of my now buddies – Anthony and Glenn. Both Shana and Jesse are from Australia but both have roots in the pacific islands, particularly Jesse who’s parents are from The Cook Islands – Aitutaki where his mom was from.
It took me a total of 32 hours and 4 changes of airplanes just to get the Aitutaki from Manila, and what welcomed me was a totally different world. It is tropical but magical, it is in the pacific, but you feel totally off the grid. It was unnerving but at the same time it felt glorious. I have never shot a wedding alone in more than 2 years and this brought back the kind of excited uneasiness that I never thought I’d miss. I was too excited to shoot beautifully but I also told myself to be realistic on what I can accomplish without any help.
Shana and Jesse is just the most wonderful of couples. I met them for the first time a day before the wedding and they consulted with me all the timing and activities for the wedding, they made sure that I get as much help and control as possible (they were able to find some assistance for me during the wedding preps and reception). I coundn’t be more thankful. Because of that, not only was I able to shoot their one-of-a-kind wedding as impeccably as possible, but I was able to fully enjoy the experience as well. There were time where I had to carry all my gears while shooting and while even hauling an 8-ft ladder towards the beach and back. The sense of accomplishment is imcoparable and this is why this wedding is very much close to my heart. I hope that you guys enjoy the photos of this Aitutaki, The Cook Islands Destination wedding today, and tomorrow I’ll post the second part of this series with Shana and Jesse’s day-after photos. Kia Orana!
