Henry Tieu Photography, Seattle, WA (2026)

08/10/2026

The most stressful part of A and J’s elopement in the Dolomites wasn’t planning or hiking.

It was trying to book the iconic rowboats at Lago di Braies 😅

I’ve been lucky enough to return here every year to document love stories, so when A and J told me they wanted to exchange vows at the boathouse and have a private experience on the lake, there was one thing I kept reminding them:

WE NEED THAT RESERVATION 😂

All of us marked our calendars.
We all had alarms set.

Then the website crashed and none of us got the private booking we wanted.

So…we went anyway.

A and J still woke up early for sunrise.

The mountains didn’t seem to care whether we were on a boat or standing on the shoreline.

And having more people around also meant random strangers walking by yelling “Auguri!” to A and J, which honestly made the morning even more fun.

Then a few days before flying to Italy, A’s grandma became too sick to make the trip.

And yes, she was going to fly ALL the way to Italy to watch her granddaughter marry her new grandson-in-law 🥹

So when it was time for family photos, grandma was there too.

On FaceTime.
Held up between everyone.
Smiling from thousands of miles away.

The next day, we wandered around Cortina.

We drank coffee.
Walked through little streets.
Talked about life.
Took photos whenever something felt right.

And I think somewhere in those two days, I was reminded why I never want an elopement to feel like a checklist of beautiful places.

Because years from now, I don’t think A and J will talk about the boat reservation we couldn’t get.

They’ll talk about strangers yelling “Auguri!”
They’ll remember grandma smiling through a phone.
They’ll remember walking around Cortina as newlyweds with nowhere they needed to rush off to.

Life will keep changing the plans.
Marriage probably will too.

But I hope when it does, they keep doing exactly what they did here…find each other in the middle of it and keep going.

Thank you A and J for trusting me with the plans we made, the ones we had to change, and everything beautiful we found in between.

Digitals on Sony | Alpha
Film on Kodak

08/03/2026

It was my first time on a seaplane.
It wasn’t for A & D.

In fact, the reason we ended up at this hidden corner of the Sunshine Coast, British Columbia, was because their first seaplane adventure never happened.

Bad weather canceled that trip for them so A joked, “You owe me a seaplane adventure.”

In the world of Google and AI, they opened a paper map.
That’s how they found this place.

I think that’s what I adore most about these two.

They’re curious.
About the world.
About each other.
About who they’re becoming.

Years before this day, we crossed paths in the wilderness while photographing different couples. (A is also an incredible elopement photographer himself)

That was when he told me“When I get married, you’ll be my photographer.”

Their wedding was supposed to happen in 2025.
Life asked them to wait.

Funny how a postponed wedding, a canceled seaplane, and an old paper map all pointed us to the same place.

I guess some promises don’t need the shortest route.
Just the right one.

As much as I love the seaplane, the waterfall, and every adventure we shared that day, my favorite photographs happened quietly
I love the moments of A & D sitting together, reading the letters they wrote for one another
I love the portrait of A and his scar

Some love stories are written in letters.
Others are written in scars.
Both deserve to be held gently.

A mix of digitals, 35mm & medium format Kodak film from one unforgettable day on the Sunshine Coast, BC

Photography Henry Tieu | Washington Wedding & Elopement Photographer
Venue / Florals / Food: West Coast Wilderness Lodge
Suit: Sew Generously Bespoke
Rings: Tiffany & Co.
Boots: Thursday Boot Company

07/14/2026

I have a whole post planned for V and T. I picked all the photos. Wrote a long caption (like if any of my caption is ever short lol)

Then these film scans came back…and I threw everything out the window
Okay, maybe not everything. :)

I still can’t wait to share the digital story of these two, their people, and the beautiful, intentional two-day wedding experience they created together.

But these felt like they deserved their own little chapter.
A collection of 35mm and medium format photographs from the Southern Oregon Coast.

It rained the entire day before
It rained the entire day after.
And somehow, life left us with two days of sunshine, wind, and the kind of light you spend years hoping to stumble upon.

People often ask why I keep shooting film when digital is faster, easier, and far more reliable.

I think maybe because film constantly asks me to trust

Every roll feels like I’m borrowing confidence I haven’t quite earned yet.

There isn’t a screen to check.
No second chances.
No “let’s try that again.”

Just light.
Instinct.
And hope that somewhere between what I imagined and what actually happened…there will be something worth remembering…like the double exposure you see here that I hoped would turn out but wouldn’t see until weeks later.

Maybe that’s why I’ve fallen so deeply in love with it.
Because the uncertainty become part of the art

Because film reminds me so much of marriage.

You walk into both without guarantees.

You make decisions before knowing how they’ll turn out.
You trust the person standing beside you.
You trust yourself.

Maybe that’s the lesson film keeps trying to teach me.

The best things in life usually ask for our trust long before they give us proof.

Thank you V and T for all the trust you have for me to create these images

——

Photographed on Kodak Ektacolor Pro 400
Dev/Scan by PhotoVision
Venue: Crook Point
Florals: Carrie Crook Floral & Events
HMUA: Adventure Elopement Hair & Makeup Artist | Meaghan
Dress: Azazie
Suit: StudioSuits
Catering: Black Trumpet Bistro

07/11/2026

12 years of calling you home.

Sometimes I wonder whether the younger version of us could have even imagined the life we have now.

We quit our day jobs.
Chased after our dreams.
Followed our clients to different corners of the world.

I thought traveling would teach me about the world.
Instead, it taught me who I am when I get to experience it beside you.

12 years.
Two little humans.
Endless adventures.
A love that somehow keeps getting quieter…
and deeper.

For families like ours, the world often tells us to dream smaller.

Instead, we built a life bigger than either of us ever imagined.

Thank you for making home a person instead of a place.

Maybe that’s why every time I photograph two people in love, I’m not looking for a perfect photograph.
I’m looking for the feeling of coming home.

You’re forever the quiet inspiration behind my art.
Every time I witness two people choosing each other, I can’t help but think of us.

Happy anniversary, my love.

06/28/2026

Pride is in the surgeries.
…the consultations.
…the waiting rooms.
…the fear of going under anesthesia and not knowing what happens next.
The scars you carry because feeling at home in your own body was worth the risk.

Pride is in being told you’re wrong.
…being shamed.
…being abandoned.
…being kicked out of the places that were supposed to keep you safe.
And somehow finding the strength to keep going when the world feels cruel, lonely, and impossibly heavy.

Pride is grieving people who are still alive.
…the family members who stopped calling.
…the friends who disappeared.
…the realization that some people would rather lose you than learn who you truly are.
Then you realize that family isn’t always the people who raised you. Sometimes it’s the people who stayed.

Pride is the glance across a restaurant.
…the second look at the airport.
…the silent question hiding behind a stranger’s smile, “How can you have kids?”
…the awareness that for some people, your family still doesn’t make sense.
And because of that, your guard never fully comes down.
Because your children deserve to feel safe in your arms.

Pride is the first time someone calls you by the right name.
The first time you see yourself in the mirror and recognize the person looking back.
The first kiss, the first dance, the first “I love you.”
And the first time hearing someone say it back

Pride is the first time you realize you’re no longer surviving.
You’re finally living.

Pride is just a month for some
Pride is a lifetime for people like us

A lifetime of choosing authenticity over approval.
Love over fear.
Hope over shame.

And if you’re reading this while wondering whether you belong here…
You do.

I may be just one account on the internet.
But I’ll always be a safe place for you.

Photos of q***r love from our whole team (Henry, Sergio, and Nick)
Happy Pride from your q***r wedding & elopement photographers

Photographed on Sony | Alpha edited with HD Presets

06/21/2026

It’s your 2nd birthday and also Father’s Day.

The next time this happens again will be more than a decade from now, and I hope you still find dad and I your best friends… no matter how cringey we might become.

This past year, we blinked and your tiny toes became tiny steps and somehow turned into big dinosaur stomps and wild dance moves
Your giggles became full-blown laughter.
Your little babbles became words that somehow only the four of us can understand.

Fatherhood has truly been a humbling experience.

Hard.
Definitely hard.

It has taught me more about love than any book, movie, or photograph ever could.

It’s also easy because loving you has never required effort.

The moment dad and I came out to ourselves, and then to each other, we also accepted that even in our wildest dreams, a life like this might never happen.

A future where we’d carry you on our shoulders down a trail…
…where we’d watch you discover glaciers, alpine lakes, bugs, rocks, puddles, and all the ordinary little wonders that make up a childhood.

And yet, here we are.

The life we once wished for has somehow become the life we’re living.

Today you’re no longer the babies we spent years waiting for.
You’re little explorers.
Little adventurers.
Little humans with so so so much personalities, and a growing curiosity about the world around you.

And watching you discover that world has become one of the greatest joys of ours.

Happy Birthday, Alpine and Glacier.

Love,

The luckiest dads in the world.

06/15/2026

This photograph took 3 years to make and a few days ago, I found out this image was selected as one of Junebug Weddings’ 2026 Best of the Best Destination Photos.

This is the 3rd year my work has been recognized in this category, and somehow the feeling is always the same.

Gratitude, yes
Disbelief, oh so much more

M & A first inquired in 2022
Planned a wedding for 2024
Then we postponed it until 2025

Plans changed. Dates shifted. We pivoted, then pivoted again

Social media and the wedding world only shows the sunshine and rainbows. The part where life happens in mysterious ways and the only thing we can do is keep going.

This image was taken along the Southern Oregon Coast, near Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor, after three years of dreaming, planning, waiting, and trusting.

This day and the winning image reminded me that sometimes you have to believe there’s light in the darkness.

I’m overwhelmed with gratitude that M and & had to believe I’d see something they couldn’t yet see…And all of us had to walk into the unknown together.

Over the years, I’ve learned that the most meaningful photographs rarely come from following a formula…
…they come from curiosity.
…from staying a little longer.
…from walking a little farther.
…from trying something that might not work.

Every photograph requires a leap of faith.
And for me, personally, a photograph doesn’t need to win anything to remind me the enormous amount of trust my clients give me.

Thank you to M + A, Junebug Weddings , and the judges for this incredible honor.

And thank you to every couple who has trusted me to witness a chapter of their lives. I know how much trust that requires. I don’t take it lightly.

Captured on Sony | Alpha a7IV edited with HD Presets
Film on Kodak Portra 400

06/10/2026

I held on to these images for months, even though I probably looked through this gallery every day.

Not because I didn’t want to share them.
I just didn’t know how.

Some stories aren’t meant to happen all at once.
They unfold in chapters.

A courthouse in the city.
A cabin in the woods.
…and a few more, actually.

One chapter filled with bright lights, signatures, and the feeling that everything is about to begin.

The next filled with quiet, warmth, and the kind of intimacy that only exists when the rest of the world falls away.

I know I’ve said this before, but I feel incredibly lucky to be invited into someone’s life
…to witness.
…to photograph
…to stand quietly at the edge of moments that will become part of their story forever.

I know that requires a level of trust that’s difficult to put into words.
To let someone stand close enough to witness a chapter while it’s still being written.

And for that, A & A, thank you for trusting me with your 2-day elopement experience.

These first two chapters are only the beginning.

The story gets even better from here.

See you in Chapter 3?

——

Captured on and edited with
Film photos with Kodak Portra 400

—

Seattle courthouse elopement, Pacific Northwest Cabin Elopement

05/13/2026

Detail photos are just scavenger hunts with a camera.
This gecko absolutely earned a spot in the wedding gallery.

05/13/2026

Three different times, everyone sat down for the ceremony.
Three different times, the rain rolled in right as B and O were about to walk out.

And each time, their family quietly stood back up, grabbed towels, wiped down every soaking chair, laughed, and waited for the sky to settle.

Nobody complained.
Nobody spiraled.
Nobody cared that the day wasn’t going “according to plan.”

Later, when we sat down for reception and the rain came back AGAIN, everyone just stood up, moved the table inside, and kept going. Like it was the most normal thing in the world.

“It was more vacation than wedding.”

That’s how B and O described their week in Kauai. And I haven’t stopped thinking about that sentence since.

Maybe I’ve been reading too many wedding horror stories in photographer Facebook groups.
Maybe I’ve been seeing too many blogs telling couples what their day is supposed to look like.

But this one was a reminder that weddings can and should just feel human.

A week spent slowly with the people you love.
Rain storms interrupting the timeline.
Everyone adapting together.
Nobody trying to force perfection.

Just presence.
Just community.
Just people choosing each other over and over again throughout the day.

And honestly, I think that’s way more beautiful than a perfectly curated wedding could ever be.

B and O, thank you for letting me wander into your circle, for the coconut, for the creative freedom, and for allowing me to capture it all

P.S. The gecko crashed the detail shot and honestly? Best photobomb of my career. He didn’t even ask for a tip.

Captured on and film

Photography:
Florals:
HMUA:
Catering:

Kauai Intimate Wedding, Hawaii Wedding Photographer, Cinematic Wedding

Henry Tieu Photography

08/10/2026

08/03/2026

07/14/2026

07/11/2026

06/28/2026

06/21/2026

06/15/2026

06/10/2026

05/13/2026

05/13/2026

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