A photo session with Farnaz and her family

Mid-March 2026, the Kona low weather system had been dousing the Hawaiian islands for days. I had several family photography sessions booked right in the middle of it all. My client Farnaz and I had spoken several times about possible cancellation. The day of our sunset shoot, the rain was not heavy but it was off and on, all day long. Being a longtime Kauai photographer, I’d seen rainy skies clear in a heartbeat as well as the heavens opening in a blink.  So we went for it. I had umbrellas in the car including two decorative ones for Farnaz’s two daughters.  Indeed it did rain, not a downpour, so the umbrellas were really appreciated. Did the weather downgrade the photos? Not at all. Moody skies are fantastic for photography. We did much of the session  by the Hanalei river, where there's tons of tree cover and greenery. Later into the shoot, when we stepped onto the beach, the sky looked amazing. The photos speak for themselves.  

Jen and her family didn’t book a photo session with me purely to have Kauai photos to look back at one day. They booked a session as an activity—an afternoon to go wild and have as much fun as humanely possible playing hams for the camera. Sure there’s some classical shots thrown into the mix, as you can see in the gallery. So...if you’re thinking of booking a Kauai vacation photoshoot, here’s my take. Going wild and wacky can absolutely turn out to be one of the highlights of your family vacation; to boot, you’ll get that fun time in photos! I’m a lucky Kauai photographer to get more than my fair share of super families who are into big fun times. For sure I encourage it. I always say go wild for the photo album, then demure and classical for the frame on the wall.