My friend came to me looking for a photoshoot as her year long stay in Hawaii was coming to an end.

She would tell me how the island makes you look so intensely at yourself you have no where to run. Emerging from this period, she became more inline with herself.

My goal was to capture how sometimes the Island makes you surrender yourself eventhough you are unsure of what you are surrendering yourself to. Which is a lesson that would carry on wherever you go.

It felt very rooted in tradition to craft our own lei for this shoot. Giving Lei is a very Hawaiian thing for celebration or loved ones coming and going from the islands.

Its a labor of love picking and prepping the leaves and flowers about 2 days in advance.

Im looking at you.

No one is going to crush me.

Because I love who I am.