Return to the North Shore

The North Shore of Oahu is one of my favorite places in the world.

It’s a place of big things. Big waves, big sand dunes, big rocks, big daydreams. There’s a sense of scale to it that I remember vividly from my childhood.

During the summer, my huge family would round up our big 4×4’s  and drive them right up onto the enormous sand dunes of Mokule’ia, to pitch a big-top canopy right smack dab in front of the pacific. We would live on the sand for a week or more under the comfort of our circus tent. We swam all day, ate fresh fish in the evening, and slept under the stars together.

So I was absolutely thrilled when Aaron & Vicky inquired about joining them on the North Shore for a photo session during their honeymoon… more so when Aaron told me that he grew up cruising the North Shore too. It was truly special to return there, not simply for my own sense of nostalgia, but also because I was documenting Aaron & Vicky’s love for one another, as they experienced this big place as husband and wife.

I’ll just come out and say it. Aaron & Vicky defy the laws of physics. Yes they do. Somehow they are both incredibly laid-back AND very thorough in how they plan things. It’s like combining blue and red and getting green instead of purple. Our back and forth emails were the epitome of planning mastery. Talks of “recon” trips. ETA’s and time of sunset. “Favorable line lengths” at Aoki’s Shave Ice.

And yet they were so easy to be with, and so nonchalant about everything. They were focused entirely on each other, on their love for one another and making each other happy. Even I ceased to exist.  The camera wasn’t there. They were just being themselves. Spontaneously. As if they planned it…

Their cool jobs might have something to do with their sweet planning skills. Both Aaron & Vicky are Engineers. Aaron works in the Solar energy industry, and Vicky works in medical technology. Very cool!

All of that said, you can’t plan something like this. 🙂

That last photo is interesting. It was getting really dark and I was already “off the clock”, but I liked the look of the dusk sky and the trees. And to be honest I had seen that spot many times before and had always wanted to go there. The basketball courts and the streetlights, the walking paths and palm trees. It’s just an interesting looking place. So we stopped for a few minutes and made this little moment; one of many, for which I’m so thankful to have created with Aaron and Vicky. 🙂

And one of thousands that I have from a lifetime of visiting the beautiful North Shore of Oahu. I can’t wait to return again.

– Jim

Want to see photos from my own North Shore experiences? I posted some! Click here, it’ll open in a new window. 🙂