Elopement on the Big Island of Hawaii

Hawaii Elopement Videography Highlight Film

Beach and Volcano Elopement in Hawaii

Emma + Jeremi

Early in Emma + Jeremi’s relationship, they knew they wanted to elope in Hawaii someday. And on their 8th anniversary, they went on the ultimate adventure to make it happen. They were drawn to the Big Island because of its diverse landscapes, ecosystems, and climates. They loved the idea of visiting the beach, the rainforest, and mountainous volcanoes all on the same day. And that’s exactly what we did, with a little bit of shave ice in the middle!

While Emma and Jeremi decided to elope without any guests, they did a few things before their trip to make sure their families felt included. Emma’s mom did the alterations on her wedding dress and they also sent out leis so that their families would be included in the celebrations. On the morning of their wedding day, Emma’s parents sent them a photo of their pup, Mila, wearing a lei. It was sooo cute!

We started their elopement day at the top of a valley in the complete darkness. With nothing but our headlamps to light the way, we descended down the steep and muddy trail. We carefully made our way through the trees, and as the sun started to rise, we caught our first glimpse of the enormous cliffs and the roaring ocean beneath us. Soon, we made it to the valley floor and emerged from the trees to the most beautiful black sand beach. Emma and Jeremi parted ways to change into their wedding attire. They had their first look shortly after the sunrise, and the sky was a beautiful pink. Right as they hugged each other, it started to rain. But they weren’t phased at all by it, instead, Emma said, “It’s good luck!”

Emma and Jeremy’s ceremony was held on the black sand beach, right next to the ocean. During the planning process, it was important for them to hire an officiant who could perform a traditional Hawaiian wedding ceremony. The ceremony started with their officiant blowing a conch shell, called a pū, which echoed through the valley. Their ceremony also included a lei exchange, which was very important to Emma and Jeremi. Emma wore a pikake lei, which was made of a type of jasmine flower, Jeremi wore a Ti leaf lei. And after Emma and Jeremi exchanged their vows, the officiant did a Hawaiian ring blessing. Typically, the officiant would use ocean water for this, but because of the short burst of rain during the first look, the officiant used rainwater. He blessed their rings using a Ti leaf and then they exchanged rings. And as if the ocean was also sending their approval, a pod of whales passed by during their ceremony! Next, it was time for their first kiss, and finally, Emma and Jeremi were married!

They celebrated with a picnic on the beach, complete with fruit, champagne, and bagels. They intended to make their own cake, but after many trips to the grocery store, and the realization of missing bread flour, it just didn’t happen. Although we dare to think that maybe Jeremi felt a bit of relief when he saw the steep trail that he wouldn’t be carrying a cake up or down it! Once they were refueled with breakfast, we ran down the beach and explored the forest of Ironwood trees. And after a steep hike back to the top of the valley, we were all ready for a nap, but their elopement day was just getting started.

We drove to the opposite side of the island for some delicious Hawaiian shave ice. While we ate, Emma and Jeremi dreamed about opening a shave ice restaurant in Birmingham, Alabama, where they’re from. We sure are hoping that dream comes true one day, we would be their most loyal customers! Next, we drove from sea level to over 9,000 feet above sea level, to Mauna Kea, which is the tallest volcano in Hawaii.

As the sun started to set, we hiked up a rocky trail to the top of a dormant volcano cone. There, we could see Mauna Kea towering above us, Mauna Loa in the distance, and scattered volcanic cones and craters in all directions. In the chilly temperatures and the beautiful golden hour light, Emma and Jeremi had their first dance, or should we say first dances. They couldn’t choose between two songs, so they did both! We watched the sun set and the sky turned into the most incredible pink and blue gradient.

Once the sun went down, we looked up and could see more stars than any of us had ever seen before. And as we started taking star photos, we noticed a strange red glow along the horizon. We were all puzzled until it hit us, the red glow was coming from Kīlauea, which was currently erupting in Volcanoes National Park. It’s pretty common for us to see light pollution from nearby towns and cities, but we had never experienced light pollution from a volcano before!

Giddy with excitement, but also a decent amount of sleepiness, we headed out to our last location of the day. We had seen the glow of Kīlauea from afar, now it was time to see it up close. We drove into Volcanoes National Park and hiked along an old road that was damaged from previous eruptions. In the wind and the cold, we stood at the edge of the crater and could see bright red lava way down below us. It was something that none of us had ever seen before, and it was the most amazing way to end their elopement day! We were all exhausted by the time we parted ways, but we’d venture to say that it was worth the effort!

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Please be aware that the location of Emma + Jeremi’s ceremony is no longer available for elopement ceremonies or professional photography. The community is working hard to protect and conserve this beautiful and sacred place for future generations.

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All locations and activities in this elopement were permitted.

FIPAC #22-194
This elopement took place on Kānaka Maoli Land.

Photographs

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Hi There!

We're Lisa + Alex, the goofballs behind Vow of the Wild. We live in Colorado, but we’re passionate about exploring new places. Being elopement photographers + videographers is a dream for us and we can’t imagine doing anything else (other than being professional dog petters).