A Photo Chick's Journal in Paradise

11/11: Part 2

The next stop on my 11/11 journey, takes me to a special bamboo forest with three special little kids.  

Yes, it was time for the annual holiday photo with Carlene and Ian's keikis!

  

Last year's shoot was at Diamond Head Beach.  The kids have grown quite a bit and are as cute as ever!

I was sooo impressed with Flora's climbing skills!

  

Here's Ben, Flora's twin brother:

  

And like his sister is a great climber!

  

And then there's our little Matilda...she always makes me smile!!!

 
Again, so glad that they're canine siblings could make it this year to join in on the fun!

  

Despite the rain we were able to capture everyone's smiles and had a great time together.

MAHALO to Carlene, Ian, Bertha and the entire clan for another fun shoot!!!

See you again next year, gang!
  

 
 
 
 

I Love Toby!

Toby is one of my favorite Canine nephews.  He's so handsome!!!

Cinco de Mayo, Crocs and Asagi Hatchery

Happy Cinco de Mayo, everyone!  Another voggy day in Hawai'i nei!

However, that doesn't put a damper on a beautiful, productive day for Hokuli'i Images!

Today I was determined to get through my "To Do" list.  One of the items on that list was to buy my first pair of Crocs!  Many of my peeps know that I've been hemming and hawing about getting  a pair of these things.  Going on and on about "what color should I get", "what style," "will it make my feet look fat??" etc.  Well, I'm proud to say that I finally did it!

I purchased these cool royal purple Beach Crocs from City Mill in Kane'ohe. I just love City Mill! It's locally owned and they have all sorts of cool stuff besides hardware and gardening products.

Crocs are like you either love them or you dislike them.  My BSS in San Diego is most likely thinking, "Ger, what were you thinking???"  And I would counteract in saying, "But Deb! They're so comfy!!!"  I don't know what it is but I've ALWAYS been fascinated by them!

Okay, so I got my Cinco de Mayo Crocs on and headed straight over the hill to Asagi Hatchery in Kalihi. 

I've been helping to care for an abandoned chick by the name of Kapa.  (I think you've seen her in my previous posts.) Well, I've learned from a couple of true chick Chicks (my girlfriends, La and Ilima) that it would be best that Kapa had a companion. So thanks to these two chicken fans, they sent me over to Asagi Hatchery.

I could tell by the weathered signs that this business has been a part of the Kalihi landscape for many, many years.  Actually about 74 years to be exact. They've been here since 1935!

They are the only commercial hatchery in Hawai'i.

OMG!  I totally loved this sign. I can't help it! It's my proud pinay blood that runs through my veins!

So me and my lovely new Crocs stepped into the store with anticipation and enthusiasm! 

I scanned the area with excitement!  My eyes wandered slowly at all the signs that were hanging on the wall and all the various garden items they had for sale.

I love that they sell organic!  And that they're promoting self reliance (sustainability or whatever you want to call it) by selling organic seeds!

I enjoyed looking over the photos that clients have sent to the hatchery. Proud chicken parents who love their fowl and Asagi Hatchery!

And there in the window were the fuzzy little loves all aglow under the warming lamp...

Ahhhh....

I was greeted by Sharene Asagi, the office manager with so much ALOHA!  She and her granddaughter, Chanel, helped me to make my first chick purchase.  

And here we have our first Asagi chick! She is a Rhode Island Red x Leghorn. Which in chicken lingo means that she's a layers chick and will have eggs.  PERFECT!

Isn't she sweet???? She was making quite a fuss which totally concerned me.  All these questions started racing around in my mind!  What if Kapa doesn't like her and then she'd be so lonesome? Why is she chirping so much???  I wonder if I should have a margarita today??  

After much thought, a quick conference call to the team, we decided that yes!  It would be best to get this chick a companion chick as well!  (So the original companion chick for Kapa is now getting her own companion chick...savvy?)

So they are!

Sharene and Chanel even helped me to the car! How is that for sweetness and GREAT Customer Service???

I love family run businesses in Hawai'i.  I think it is extremely important to support local!  To me Asagi Hatchery is very special since:

 1) They've been a part of Hawai'i for decades

 2) It's operated by the 'ohana (Sharene is grandmother to Chanel. I also got to meet one of Sharene's daughter's Maxie who also helps to run the business and who's birthday just happens to be TODAY! Happy birthday, Maxie!)

3) They're promoting something that we all should be looking into if you have the time and space to do it. C'mon, peeps! Our own fresh eggs! There's NOTHING like them!!!

4) They are the sweetest, kindest and patient people ever!!!

MAHALO NUI LOA to Sharene and Chanel for making my chick buying experience so fun. You were both so patient and understanding. I hope to be back to visit with you again!!!

And to my chicken mentors, La and Ilima. You two are such amazing people!! Thank you for teaching me about these beautiful creatures.  They really are a joy and your mana'o, concern, and excitement are soooo appreciated!

So here they are everyone!  Our Cinco de Mayo Chicks!

I'm sure I'll be writing more about them in the near future!  I'll keep you posted on their growth and how Kapa will take to them.  Stay tuned...

Kapa in Flight!

Here we find Kapa Girl stretching her wings and practicing her flight technique.  What a great way to celebrate Earth Day!!!

Go Kapa go!!!

Chicky Hollywood

Here we have little Kapa in her first Hollywood lighting photograph.  Isn't she pretty?

"I'm ready for my close up now, Mr. DeMille."

A very HARSH Reality!!!

This is a very difficult post for me to write however, I am following my na'au (instincts) because I feel it is extremely important to share this with you.

On Dr. Martin Luther King Day I went out to the country to spend some time with my niece and nephew.  As we walked along the beach we found a young sea turtle basking in the sun.

As we carefully approached it (while keeping a respective distance) I was shocked and horrified to find that this poor creature had a tumor attached to it's head!!!

The feeling of anguish, sadness, anger and helplessness hit me all at once!!!  I felt strongly that pollution of our waters played a big part in the toxic growth attached to this innocent sea turtle's head. 

Here is this turtle... born to swim, play, eat and breed in our oceans.  They have NO CONTROL over the conditions of their playground!  And sadly, no voice to let us know that they are in trouble...

As I choked back my tears, I explained to my niece and nephew how important it is that WE help to stop pollution and keep our waters, land, and air CLEAN!!!

It is our kuleana, our responsibility, to take care of this beautiful place we call home! 

Shea Tanigawa turns ONE!

Back in March of 2005, I had the great pleasure of photographing Alison Won and Tyler Tanigawa.  

Fast forward to 2008 and I am now photographing their first born son, Shea who just turned ONE!  

What  a pleasure to see my couple turn into an 'ohana.  

 

I love photographing toddlers on their parent's shoulders.  This is just a snippit of time, folks.  Before you know it, Shea is 16 and won't be riding on anyone's shoulders!!!  

Because it was so windy on the beach front at Kailua Boat Ramp, I decided to move the shoot into the park as infants and toddlers get very fussy after while.  There's only so much one can take of being blasted by salt air!

Ahhhh...that's so much better!

Shea was completely fascinated by the leaves of the Iron Wood trees.  

It made him so happy!!!

He certainly wasn't interested in his Nemo ball...

Another change of clothing for Shea!

Hmmmm...colorful blocks in the park?  

Okay, as long as there's a little bit of Iron Wood leaves to go along with it!

Shea LOVES knocking down his blocks!

Proud papa!

Thank you, Shea, for a wonderful morning!  Happy ONE year!

Diamond Head Beach

I love shooting at Diamond Head Beach (I think that's what it's called) during this time of the year! So I was absolutely thrilled to receive a call from one of my dear clients, Carlene and Ian. 

I've enjoyed shooting Carlene and Ian's three beautiful children through the years.  

Meet Ben:

His twin sister, Flora:

And little sister, Matilda:

They each have their own personality and cuteness!  

Sibling LOVE!!!!

Even their canine family members got in the act!

 

 

I'm glad that we did the shoot during low tide before sunset...

Enough time for exploring!

MAHALO NUI LOA to Carlene and Ian for calling upon me to photograph their 'ohana photos for this year's holiday cards!!!

I had such a great time with all of you!  And it really helped that we had some special people helping out during the shoot.  

Mahalo to Carlene's sister, Ya-ya, for hanging out and helping the kids laugh and smile:

It was so heartwarming to see how much these kids LOVE their auntie!!  And vice versa!!!

Thank you to Sabrina Clark of Balance Obedience who's been training Coogie and Ditchy!  She and her assistant, Danny, were awesome.  Please visit their website for more information. 

Thank you also to Bertha for her helping hands and jumping skills in making the kids laugh!

I look forward to seeing all of you again next year!  

September's Cover Shot!

I'm going to start featuring ONE image every month which I think is THE red carpet shot from my collection of images.

This September, I present to you, Mr. Smoki Cuddle Bugs Wong!

Thank you for your total cuteness, Smoki!  No wonder why you're so loved by your 'ohana!!!

Independent Twins on Independence Day!!!

Ethan and Ren spent their early July 4th morning at a photo shoot with their Mommy Deena, Daddy Reed, Grandma Gloria and Grandpa Taka. 

Meet Bacchus!

This afternoon, I had the pleasure of working with Bacchus the Bull Mastiff and his parents Lauren and Russell.  Today's shoot was actually an engagement session but as you can imagine, this handsome canine took over the show!!!

2008 Buff 'N Blue Grad - Ms. Kalei K.

Another voggy day in Hawai'i nei!!!  But that didn't stop a really fun senior/grad shoot at Nu'uanu Valley Park with Kalei, a 2008 Punahou Graduate!

My talented bro-in-law, Jonathan, did Kalei's makeup right there in the parking lot.  

After, her beauty session was pau we started our photo shoot!

As May Day Queen for her school and not to mention representative for one of Hawai'i's hottest line of clothing, Kealoha Clothing Company, I was not surprised to see the ensemble of attire Kalei had picked out for her graduation portraits. First off we started out with an original Kealoha Clothing Company laua'e print white dress which would actually be great as a wedding dress as well!!!

  

Next up:

Then we proceeded on to another print (which wasn't a Kealoha print) but another local designer:

And then back to Kealoha's orange print.  Okay, I'd just like to reiterate AGAIN how important lighting is in this profession!  Here we find that beautiful soft gold afternoon light.  Totally dramatic!!!

Sometimes I incorporate a little bit of fashion style shooting....

Throughout this shoot, my nephew, little Mr. Mokulele Boy and Na'u were hanging out together.  During my little breaks, while Kalei changed clothing, it was fun to watch Mokulele playing with Na'u Girl. 

I just want to mention that I met Kalei back in 2006 while documenting Kumu Kaleo Trinidad's halau at Merrie Monarch.  She was such a beautiful girl then...

And a beautiful woman now!!!

Big Beach in Kailua!!!

It's my favorite time of the year to walk on Kailua Beach in the mornings because it's...

BIG BEACH time!!!

So this morning, my canine pal along with another friend, decided to start the day with a nice long walk on the beach.

After prying my eyes open and dragging myself out of bed at 5:30am (a challenging feat), Na'u and I hopped into our trusty mobile and headed into Kailua. It was great to be greeted by the the soft rays of the morning sunshine!

We arrived at Kailua Beach to see this beautiful sight...

Na'u was raring to go!!!

Then off we went! Na'u didn't waste any time in making friends...

She LOVES walking at the beach, early in the morning!

She has the most prettiest paw prints!

Now this is what I'm talking about, kids!!! BIG BEACH!!! Isn't this awesome???

I was soooo happy to be able to start my day with the sun, earth, ocean and of course, my bestest pal, Na'u!

We hope you're having an AWESOME DAY!!!

A Mother's Day Message from Hokuli'i Images

"God could not be everywhere, so he created mothers." - Jewish Proverb

The Aki 'Ohana

I spent a couple of hours this afternoon at Nu'uanu Park with yet another lovely family - The Aki 'Ohana. My friend Kahau called me to see if I could photograph her parents with all their mo'opuna (grandchildren) including the canine kids.

Not even a little bit of drizzle could stop the fun!

Here is Puna and her birthday gift, Hoku:

What a joy to see this 'ohana again after seven years! I got to photograph them, I think, back in 2001 at Waimanalo Beach:

Their family has certainly grown!!!

And we can thank these two beautiful Hawaiians for this wonderful 'ohana!!!

Special MAHALO goes out to my faithful assistant and niece, "Kokua." You were such a great help, kiddo! THANK YOU!!!

Dawn Nui

Now here's one of my favorite portraits. This is Dawn Nui, one of my most favorite hens. Isn't she pretty? My friend has all these wild chickens running around her yard. This happens to be one of my most favorite ones because 1) she's so pretty and 2) she's such a tita!!!

Toby Yoga Pose

This is Toby, Na'u's cousin.

His mommy is one of my best friends, Debbie Friedrich.

Toby loves yoga.

This is Toby's favorite yoga move - Sideward Facing Dog.

Thank you for sharing this move with us, Toby.

(TOOLBOX NOTE: This photo was taken by Deb's Verizon LG En-V. We have matching phones. We are best friends.)