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Henry Tieu Photography

Oahu

bride and groom eloped in the lush green Kauai
Planning Resources

How to Elope in Hawaii [Updated for 2026]

ByHenry Tieu October 19, 2023November 17, 2025

Planning a Hawaii elopement? Learn everything you need to know about how to elope in Hawaii including planning steps, legal requirements, tips, and advice for your elopement on these tropical islands.

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About Henry Tieu Photography: We are a Seattle-based team of destination elopement & intimate wedding photographers who specialize in honest storytelling, candid moments, and soulful portraits in breathtaking landscapes whether that's the mountains of Washington State or the wild beauty of faraway places across the world. Published in The New York Times, named Best Wedding Photography (2019 - 2025) and a Rangefinder Magazine Rising Star, we're honored to capture the kind of love that's deeply felt, artfully preserved and intentionally celebrated. As an Asian and LGBTQ-owned business, we believe your love deserves to be seen, respected, and remembered exactly as it is. Inclusivity, trust, and connection guide everything we do.

LGBTQ-friendly

BIPOC Inclusive

All skin colors & body sizes are welcomed

Let's tell your story. Together. All of it.

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Elopement Planning Resources

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@henrysdiary

The elopement world has changed so much since 2020 The elopement world has changed so much since 2020, and part of me grew afraid that all these shifts might change the way I approach storytelling someone’s wedding day It was once a down low experience where people can break away from traditions, feel the courage inside their hearts to go after what they truly feel strongly about, let go of all the societal pressure, and arrive at the level of honesty they feel in their bones. Their truth, Their love, Their story, ….all stripped down to its most honest shape And slowly, somehow, it felt more and more like a glorified photoshoot. I stopped sharing work at a certain locations because it didn’t feel right to have a couple waiting in line…in nature…for photos. Then I found a page in my journal “Just because you understand a piece of thing doesn’t mean you understand the entirety of it” And it hit me. Just because I am an elopement photographer doesn’t mean I know everything about elopements. People have the choice to elope however way they want. The only thing I can fully control is how I show up, how I approach elopements, and how I honor their story, their intention, their. day. For P and C, knowing their family couldn’t be there, although they desperately wanted them to, I wanted to focus on the experience and photos they could take home and show their parents …to show how beautiful Tofino was on a cold September day, where the fog wrapped around the cliffs but never fully hid the sun …to show how they ran on the shoreline, tasted the silty mist on their tongues, and laughed like they were the only two people in the world …to show how quiet the forest became as they walked together…almost like the world softened a bit just enough to make space for them. …to show how they held onto each other, not for a photo, but just because the moment moved them. Because someday, when their parents flip through these photos, I hope they don’t just see what Tofino looked like. I hope they feel what their children felt…and that is more than I could ever hope for being a wedding photographer Thank you P and C for trusting me with your day Film and digitals Photography @henrysdiary on @sonyalpha / @hdpresets
I’m not going to lie. This year, I struggled creat I’m not going to lie. This year, I struggled creatively more than ever before I love creativity I love observing people and sprinkle their joy into each photograph I love being conceptual, playing with light, pushing the limits of what people think wedding photography should be But somewhere along the way, I think I scrolled a little too much. Social media tends to do that. It’s where I found my community, my people…Many of whom I’ve never met (yet)...we all live in different time zones…yet somehow, we all speak the same language of joy, art, small business grit, and that is how we lift each other up But social media is also where the world feels like it’s constantly screaming at you And for me, as a wedding photographer, I felt like I needed to do more…more flash, more editorial, more high end, more, more and more 8 years into photographing weddings yet somehow, the comparison game doesn’t seem to end now does it? And then I received an email from M and A: “We love the moody photos and the lantern photos…The more artistic the better” The night before their wedding, I sat alone in my hotel room going over all the emails we had and all the notes I prepared The one thing I never prepare in advance is what photos I’ll take The thing about creativity in weddings is that you can’t pre-plan everything You have to create space You have to leave room for moments to breathe In that moment, I felt this jolt of energy, almost like a permission to be free, to create, to fail, to go in without really knowing exactly what will happen next, and most importantly, to experience it all. I think that’s the true joy of photography And if we zoom out even further…it’s the true joy of weddings and elopements, too So I brought the lanterns They brought their glow-in-the-dark hair and tattoos And the Oregon coast brought some unexpected sunshine on a late October day. Thank you M and A for this freedom to create and congratulations again on your beautiful marriage Digitals on @sonyalpha and edited with @hdpresets Films developed and scanned by @gelatinlabs
Grateful for this season of life where parenthood Grateful for this season of life where parenthood teaches us that the greatest gift we can offer someone is that feeling of safety and the permission to feel at home in their own skin, to know their worth, to know that simply being who they are is enough. Grateful for my husband and his love language. Grateful for how he cares for all of us, whether we’re at home or a random hotel halfway across the world where I am documenting other people’s love stories. And even though traveling with twin babies isn’t always easy, we still get to be together…as a family. And that’s everything I ever need. Grateful for our family and friends for being the anchor we can lean on. Grateful for all of you, whether you are our clients or simply internet friends who happen to follow along the adventure that is our life, you help us achieve and live this quiet, ordinary-yet-extraordinary dream Grateful for this chapter, this day, this moment, this life! Thank you, thank you, thank you. Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours. 🍂🧡🍁 ——— Photographed on @sonyalpha a7iv, 28-70mm GM Edited with @hdpresets in @lightroom
L and N brought their friends closest people to th L and N brought their friends closest people to the Dolomites for their wedding to introduce everyone to the world of adventures they love Like so many Asians with immigrant parents, L and N grew up in the world where Western and Eastern cultures are so intertwined that they didn’t want to forget their heritage. So they brought a bit of their Chinese culture to the Dolomites as well In so many ways, their wedding feels like the kind of celebration my heart has been quietly longing for: a chance to honor the wild beauty Mother Earth offers us, and a chance to come home to the Asian culture that raised me, held me, and continues to shape the way I tell stories. In a way, it’s like the world outside and the world within finally speak the same language Thank you L and N for bringing me here to celebrate your love Your 2-day wedding in the Dolomites truly was so intentional and so full of love. I love the way you two smiled till your faces ached. It was those real, unfiltered smiles that only happen when you’re surrounded by your favorite people in a place that feels like magic. I love how your dad wandered over to the “vendor table” just to check on us to make sure we were fed, warm, and cared for. I love how your friends all stayed in the same chalet with you so they could be there for you at any moment. No distance, no hesitation, just love wrapped in laughter and in between naps :) And finally, I love how your mom hiked the whole way with us on the adventure day so she could take care of her children and keep them warm during sunset photos Congratulations again and I am so so so grateful ——— A mixture of digital an film 🎞️ Digital on @sonyalpha Edited with @hdpresets Photography: @henrysdiary Planner: @dolomitesweddingplanner Videography: @tunguyenwedding HMUA: @viki_hairandmakeup Catering: @hotelkolfuschgerhof.dolomites Venue: @colpradatrifugio and @chaletroenn
I’m incredibly humbled to share that 2 of my image I’m incredibly humbled to share that 2 of my images were selected as Finalists in the Epic Location category of the 2025 International Wedding Photographer of the Year Awards This is my first time submitting my work to this contest, and I so grateful for my incredible clients If I could be completely transparent: for the longest time (and still), I’ve tried to not use the word “epic” when I write my website or talk to clients. Because while “epic” is meant to compliment, it can also create a kind of hype that makes us chase something isn’t always real, tangle, or purposeful. What if you show up to your wedding day, the fog rolls in and hides everything, and all you’re left with is the sound of your vows echoing into the quiet? What if the wind is so strong that nothing looks “instagram perfect”, but the way your partner looks at you becomes the most beautiful thing in the world? What if story you remember most isn’t the landscape at all, but the way you held each other when everything went differently than you imagined? This happened on J and P’s elopement at Mt. Rainier where we hiked without seeing the mountain until she surprised us at the very end with the sunset you see here This happened to E and R in The Dolomites where thunderstorms surrounded us. And although the final image looks “epic”, you didn’t see the part where we had to pivot, where we took shelters and held on to each other because of wind and rain, where I shared my last hand warmer because the bride needed it more than I did. This happens more than you’d think, and I truly wish every couple knows this when planning their wedding I know it sounds strange coming from a photographer, but: Experience first, photos will always follow Epic is never in the location itself It’s in the way you choose each other again and again no matter what It’s in the tenderness, the resilience, the quiet courage it takes to be fully present in a moment that refuses to be controlled. Thank you to J & P, E & R, and so many of my couples for allowing me to capture images like these Special thanks to @iwpotyawards and judges for celebrating us photographers and elevating our art #iwpotyawards
Roots don’t always grow where tradition tells them Roots don’t always grow where tradition tells them to. Sometimes, they find home in wild soil…in black lace…in ocean air…in the way two souls choose each other without fears and hesitations You don’t have to wear white. You don’t have to follow rules written by someone who’s never known your love You just have to follow your heart because that’s where truth takes root and where love becomes art This year is a the year of reflection for me. Maybe it’s because this is what being in your 30s is all about…identifying what I truly believe in and unearthing my own roots so everyone around me are free to share theirs …without fears …without judgements …without needing to fit into boxes that were never made for us …without shrinking to make others comfortable And most importantly, without apologizing for taking up space in a world that taught us to stay small Maybe that’s what it means to grow roots…not into the ground, but into ourselves Thank you L and D for allowing me to capture your hearts and for sharing your love story. Congratulations again friends Captured on @sonyalpha and edited with @hdpresets Photography @henrysdiary Floral: The bride’s dad Cake: @_darkharvest Dress: @blushbridal_ne Suit: @shannonformalwear

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  • Home
  • Elopement
    • Elopement Experience
    • Planning Resources
    • The Best Places To Elope
    • Washington Elopement Guide
    • Oregon Elopement Guide
    • California Elopement Guide
  • Info
    • About Us
    • Travel Schedule
  • Blog
  • Pricing
  • For Photographers
    • Education / Mentorships
    • HD Presets
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CONTACT US