chao + qiushuo | fairmont orchid resort big island coastal wedding weekend | hawaii destination wedding photographer

Where do I even begin? Gorgeous Big Island views. Incredible friends. Loving family. And lots of Hawaii fun. All these things describe Chao and Qiushuo’s incredible Big Island wedding weekend on March 1-3, 2018. These two planned a destination wedding in Hawaii in a total of 3 months and pulled it off flawlessly. Here’s a little glimpse into their love story as told by the bride, Qiushuo:

“Our love story began on a rainy night in Chengdu, China: a kind-hearted senior-year college girl shared her umbrella with a boy after class. To show his gratitude, the boy sent a photography introduction book to her, since he remembered she wanted to learn how to use a DSLR in the coming year. Photography then became their common language and brought their hearts even closer together. A couple of months later, both of them left their sweet homes and flew to the United States to continue their graduate study, one in Nuclear Engineering at Purdue University, Indiana, and one in Agricultural Economics at the University of Connecticut. They supported each other during those 2.5 years of long-distance relationship, and firmly believed they were meant to be together. In 2017 they settled down in Seattle; the girl became an Amazonian as a data engineer, and the boy became a software developer at Microsoft. They proved that a good relationship will lead you to be a better man and woman.”

Their love story is the sweetest, and really shows how much love these two have for each other. Not only do they love and support one another so well, but they also showed all their family, friends, and vendors such love over their wedding weekend. They hired me for all 3 days of their wedding extravaganza, provided all the vendors multiple meals, their hotel stay, and were one of the most generous and kindhearted couples I’ve ever had the pleasure of photographing.

We started off the weekend by photographing a mini engagement session the day before their wedding. As I photographed them around the grounds of the Fairmont Orchid, I learned how goofy and in love they are with each other. 

After the engagement session was over, they quickly changed for their rehearsal dinner. They invited their closest friends and family for a beautiful, intimate dinner at Brown’s Beachhouse at the Fairmont Orchid. Hawaii definitely did not disappoint with the most incredible sunset as they enjoyed each other’s company.

The next day, March 2nd, Chao and Qiushuo were giddy nervous and excited to see each other as they got ready for their first look.

They chose to do a first look in the gardens of the Fairmont. As we were waiting for Qiushuo to come down, I looked over to Chao and asked him if he was nervous to see her.

“I’m excited,” He said with a grin on his face. 

Chao and Qiushuo made time in their day to do a tea ceremony, a Chinese tradition where the bride and groom present tea to both sets of parents as a sign of respect for their families coming together.

The remainder of their day went by in a magical, beautiful blur. There was lots of laughter, music, dancing, rejoicing, and even an epic whale breach. But don’t take my word for it. 😉 I’ll let you see it for yourself… 

The day after Chao & Qiushuo’s wedding day, they took all of their guests (as well as me and Kent and Darlene from Ohana Films) on a boat excursion off the coast of the Big Island for a snorkelling adventure. They accidentally forgot their swimsuits at the hotel, but Chao and Qiushuo were champs and decided to hop in the water in their normal clothes anyway, haha. We all had so much fun.

Chao & Qiushuo, thank you two for trusting me to capture your love story. Thank you for flying me to the Big Island, taking me along on your wedding weekend adventure, and being so gracious and thoughtful the entire time. I’m so blessed to have gotten to know you. You guys were a blast to hang out with and photograph, and I pray your marriage blossoms to become better than you ever could have dreamed.

Cheers to you two! <3

Vendors – Photography: Lindsey Roman // Second Shooter: Anela Benavides // Wedding Planner + Floral Designer: Bloomingirls Wedding // Venue & Caterer: Fairmont Orchid // Officiant: AJ Dimauro // Videographer: Ohana Films // DJ: Hawaii Sound & Vision // Ceremony Musicians: Magic Strings of Fairmont Orchid // Rentals: Hawaii Island Events // Hair & Makeup Artist: Joyce Zhou Designs // 

Lindsey Roman is an adventurous, destination wedding and intimate elopement photographer based out of Oahu, Hawaii but travels worldwide. She lives for outdoor adventures, intimate moments, and candid images. Her style is raw, passionate, and authentic. She believes in chasing sunsets, laughing too hard, and most importantly: capturing genuine moments that evoke feeling over perfectly posed photographs.