The Humans Behind the Cameras
A small team of Hawaii photographers, storytellers, and creatives connected by the same way of seeing people, places, and the stories in between.
Vanessa
Kiana
Why Our Photography Sessions Are Different
What you’re hiring us for goes beyond the photos. It’s the experience of being present with each other, in this particular chapter of your story, celebrating life. We’re there to “freeze” some of that joy in photos and videos. More than photographers, we’re a team of passionate humans helping you plan a personalized experience, connecting you with trusted vendors, and guiding you into moments that feel real.
Maui and the Hawaiian Islands are full of hidden trails, scenic beaches, mountains, forests, and landscapes that can feel completely different from each other. If you’re here for just a few days, you shouldn’t have to spend them scouting maps or trying to figure out where to go. Tell us what you’re celebrating, whether it’s a destination wedding or elopement in Hawaii, a Maui surprise proposal, a family portrait session, a solo trip, or a long-awaited getaway, and we’ll help you plan around it.
When you reach out and share your story, we tailor the experience around it. We consider the light, the time of day, the tides, the landscape, and the kind of experience you want to have. No matter which photographer you work with, the experience, care, and quality behind your images remain the same.
Weddings and elopements call for a different level of involvement. Vanessa personally plans and photographs every one, so the person getting to know your story along the way is also the one standing beside you when the day arrives.
Every session is designed as an adventure first and a photography session second. You’ll explore, slow down, laugh, wander, and have space to actually be with the people you came here with. Somewhere along the way, we’ll make photographs that preserve a little piece of what this chapter of your life felt like.
You bring the people you love; we bring the plan, the local know-how, and the cameras.
Client Love
"We got our surprise engagement pictures done by Gabi and all of them came out flawless! It occurred on a Thursday night and we received proofs of all photos over the weekend. Super quick, easy and accomodating. I originally planned on Wednesday night, but it turned out to be a rainy day when the day finally came. Gabi texted me and offered to move it a day to make it perfect, free of charge or hassle. Highly, highly recommend. Excellent experience!"
"My family and I had the pleasure of working with Vanessa and Troy for our family and maternity photo shoot, and the experience was amazing. They were both great communicators and made the entire process easy and enjoyable. Troy was fantastic with our 4-year-old son, helping him feel comfortable and engaged, and he had a great eye for finding the perfect angles and backdrops. We absolutely love how the photos turned out. We highly recommend Vanessa Aries Photography."
"Truly have no words for how amazing Vanessa and her team were on our wedding day. From start to finish they were always attentive and kind. Of all the things I scheduled, organized, booked and created for my wedding day.. hands down Vanessa and her team were the best decision I made. The romantic aesthetic she gave us while dealing with chaotic weather and keeping us calm was everything we needed. Also, the sneak peek of our session a few days after the wedding had me in tears. It was so kind and she took the random things we told her about us during the shoot and made our love story come to life. We plan on visiting Maui in the next year or so and will be reaching out to do another shoot 🩵"
"We want to share how grateful we both feel to have met Vanessa, Wai Phungpradet, Kahu Kelii, and their professional, resourceful and caring team look after our wedding day. From the very beginning we both felt all the details of our special day were given the utmost priority. From the the very beginning of the day we enjoyed the kindness, laughter and joyful tears. Everyone was so friendly and helpful. The locations for our wedding day for truly awe-inspiring and beautiful. We very much appreciated the blending of our Indigenous traditional ways and the beautiful Hawaiian traditions in the our wedding ceremony. We can't say enough about their attention to detail and all the extra special surprises included to make our day so memorable. We both felt that everyone involved really brought their most heartfelt energy into our wedding. Thank you so much to everyone. We were truly blessed to have met each and everyone one of you."
"We truly cannot say enough amazing things about Vanessa and her assistant Gabi. From the very beginning, Vanessa’s knowledge, professionalism, and calming presence made us feel completely at ease throughout the entire wedding process. Wedding days can be overwhelming, but she has such a reassuring and kind energy that made everything feel seamless and stress-free.
The teamwork between Vanessa and Gabi was incredible to watch. They worked together so effortlessly and captured every meaningful moment so intentionally—from the big emotional moments to the small details and candid interactions we didn’t even realize were happening at the time. They made us feel comfortable, confident, and genuinely cared for the entire day.
And the TALENT. Absolutely unreal. Our gallery completely blew us away. Every photo feels emotional, authentic, and beautifully artistic while still capturing us so naturally. Looking through the gallery truly felt like reliving our wedding day all over again.
We were also beyond impressed with the amount of photos we received. We expected a few hundred images at most, but Vanessa and Gabi delivered nearly 800 photos, and somehow every single one felt meaningful and intentional. The amount of care, effort, and attention to detail they put into our gallery is so evident.
If you are looking for a photographer who is incredibly talented, organized, professional, kind, calming, and genuinely passionate about what she does, Vanessa is absolutely the person you want capturing your wedding day. We feel so lucky to have had both her and Gabi be part of ours 🤍"