Mauka to Makai Maternity Session

A babymoon in Hawaii is such a great way to celebrate an amazing milestone in your lives, but also to enjoy some of the last beautiful moments before you become a new family. So it goes for Amit and Charlene, who came to Hawaii and wanted to document some lasting memories. Now being pregnant and going on adventures must be difficult enough, but these two had wanted to go on a full-day, multi-location shoot to showcase two very different Hawaiian environments-- the lush forest and a tropical beach-- or mauka (mountains) to makai (sea). 

Fortunately, we know a handful of pretty forest spots, which don’t require too much hiking to access (a surprisingly difficult task if you’re familiar with the rugged, muddy, and steep trails that are considered normal here). So we met Amit and Charlene at the trailhead in the back of a dense, tropical valley on O’ahu. With the sun still high in the sky, the canopy of tall trees filtered our afternoon light, with beams coming down between the leaves. We made our way along a quiet stream, with smooth and mossy rocks making a soft backdrop. After playing around in the shallow river pools and by the massive trees covered in vines, it was time to move on to our second location before the sun went down.

For a quintessentially Hawaiian beach experience, we headed to the south shore to play in the water at Sandy’s Beach, which is easily accessible and affords picture-perfect sunsets! With the waves gently lapping at their feet, Amit and Charlene played and danced in the surf. Holding each other under the fading light of late summer, I have no doubts that these two will look fondly back on their maternity adventure in Hawaii.