Reviews of Kai-Photo Hawaii (Photo Studio)

Tracie Black

Kyler and his staff were very professional, from our first meeting at the Wedding Cafe all the way through helping us order our thank you cards. It was very easy to keep in touch with him and his staff over email, and they were very quick to respond. Kyler was very easygoing and flexible on wedding day, yet kept us on schedule. I would not hesitate to recommend his services to my friends and family.

Bailey Field

We had a destination wedding in Hawaii and we had Kyler as our photographer as part of a packaged deal with the venue. I was nervous since we didn't pick who our vendors would be, but we were assured we were in great hands and that all would be fantastic even planned sight unseen. The venue was exactly as we had hoped and Kyler did a fantastic job at getting so much of our special day with photos we can cherish for a lifetime. I really appreciate that he got so many of my husband’s family before I arrived (I am late for everything and this day was no exception) and I adore the attention to detail in his photos, he focused on things I would have never thought to ask for but would have missed not seeing later, best example is my flowers, im so glad he took as many shots as he did, because i didn't get to take my flowers home or preserve them before i flew out. I also appreciated the way he handled our family, its like herding cats but he made sure to accommodate. With me and my husband during the private photos is when i really thought he was great as I’m not the most publicly affectionate and my husband is not the most photogenic, but he got us shots we love. If you are in the market for a creative photographer, you can't go wrong by hiring Kai Photo!

Catherine Chang

We met Kyler a few years ago when we hired Kai Photo for our wedding in 2015. We loved his work and were very pleased with the photos that came out. Fast forward 3 years later, we decided to do a family photoshoot/maternity mini session with him, before the arrival of baby #2. We would’ve asked him to do our maternity photos for baby #1 in 2016, but we ended up going with a photographer on Kauai while we were on our babymoon there. Kyler is very easygoing and gave us his honest recommendations on what he thought would be best for our photoshoot. He recommended several spots and went with a beautiful location on the east side of the island. He had suggestions on different poses for us that captured different parts of the landscape, which I really liked. He was also very good with our super active almost 2 year old boy, who was uncooperative for most of the session. (Kyler has two little daughters himself so he knows how it is to work with the kiddos/toddlers). It is usually a struggle for us to even get a smile out of our son for photos, and I’m surprised Kyler was able to capture several shots of him smiling for the camera. He also was very patient with our son and receptive to his needs, such as giving him time to explore his surroundings or suggesting he take a snack break, etc. Lastly, I like that Kyler is attentive to details so if my hair wasn’t in the right spot or the flower in my hair wasn’t showing, he would have me fix/adjust it. We are soooo happy with the photos that came out for this photoshoot and will definitely use Kai Photo again in the future!

Stanford Lauren

My fiance and I always knew that we wanted to work with Kai Photo for our wedding photos. Kyler's photos were so unique, and because we wanted a very modern touch, we knew that we wanted to work with him. We decided on downtown Honolulu for our engagement session and loved it! Kyler made us feel comfortable (since we're not used to taking professional photos), and provided helpful hints throughout the session to ensure that our photos turned our great! Kyler was also quick to edit and share the photos with us, so we could use them for the wedding. Such a great experience!

Jason Shanker

We had the good fortune to find Kai-Photo while planning a trip to Hawaii. From the first contact there's literally nothing I can think of that would have improved the experience. I'm sure we've all had the experience of filling out an online form and then getting a response back days later from someone who clearly skipped most of what we entered.. Not here -- Kyler responded to our initial web inquiry quickly and with all the right details. That initial reply included a link to a quote with exactly what we wanted including a specific time and location. What could have taken a half dozen back and forth emails was instead accomplished with one very efficient interaction. Exactly as he promised, we received a confirmation a couple of days beforehand with day-of contact information and an invoice for the balance due. On the day of we used Kyler's excellent directions to find the location with no problems and we found ourselves well-prepared based again on his detailed instructions. The location itself was the most beautiful stretch of beach we'd seen on Oahu but secluded enough that we pretty much had it to ourselves for pictures. Of course the most important thing is the photos themselves and Kyler was kind enough to share them regularly with us on the large bright beautiful display on the back of his camera so we could give any feedback and make sure we liked what he was shooting (we did!). Since we'd of course be back home before everything was wrapped up and delivered and therefore there are no "re-do's", this little touch was very reassuring. I've been an avid photographer for 30 years and I was still blown away by the quality and colors in what he was capturing. Really beautiful! I passed along to Kyler afterwards that my kids shared with me what I consider the holy grail of teen/pre-teen compliments -- that it wasn't nearly as boring as they expected it to be. That too is a reflection of Kyler's attitude and professionalism. He did things like make time for the kids to beach-comb while he took some grownup pictures and then offered them some opportunities to pick their own poses including goofy phases, sword battles and jumping in the air. If Kyler called me desperate for feedback on how he could have made the experience better for us I'd literally have nothing to offer. I can't say enough good things about our decision to use Kai-Photo.

Yuri C

Kyler and the team at Kai-Photo were super awesome people to work with. From the initial consultation, the day of events, the post event communications, all the way until delivery of photos, Kyler was first class in everything he did. We were lucky to have such an easy going professional utilize his experience to capture such outstanding photos that we will enjoy for many many years to come. Kai Photo delivered a 5 star experience and we highly recommend them!

Brittany Beckwith

We used kai photo for our ceremony in Oahu and Kyler was so easygoing and professional. The most important thing is he delivered beautiful photos! Also had a very quick turnaround for delivery of photos. Highly recommend.

Dolores Cruz

Hawaii has lots of photography and we chose Kai photos because his pictures look amazing and he didn’t disappoint. Our pictures were amazing and he was so easy to work with and we got everything we asked for and more. Would definitely recommend Kyler!

Ariel Kretchmer

We absolutely love our photos! We had a lot of fun taking photos on the beach and at our resort for our wedding day. Pictures turned out better than I ever imagined! Kyler was our photographer and he was very good and creative and was able to capture many amazing shots! Grace did the administrative portion and she was very quick to respond our inquiry as well as emailing me back very quickly with details as our wedding day got closer. Overall we are very very happy with the entire Kai-Photo group and will definitely recommend them to anyone who needs amazing wedding pictures! Thanks again for making our special day so awesome and giving us some gorgeous photos!

Malia Alley

My family and I wanted some nice Christmas cards this year and decided to sign up for a family portrait session. We are so happy that we went with Kai-Photo as the pictures turned out great, the price was very reasonable and Kyler and Grace were so wonderful to work with. I think taking great photographs is largely dependent on the subject's level of comfort with their photographer. Kyler does an outstanding job at this, through his friendly and calm demeanor, he is able to direct the shot while making sure everyone is at ease and having a good time. The photo shoot was a lot of fun for my family and I (and they even let our dog be a part of the session as well!) that we recommend Kai-Photo to others who want to capture their special family moments as well.

Rui Guan

OVERVIEW: Kyler and Grace of Kai-Photo offered a great value for service. They were prompt, thorough, and professional with all of their communications. And the photos looked amazing - we still looked quite natural and like ourselves, but more polished. Thank you for making my wedding a success and capturing so many album worthy moments. DETAILS: We found Kai-Photo via the web, and this company was highly recommended by several venues and other vendors. Grace, the booking manager, replied to all my emails within the same day (though usually within the same hour); she was very organized and pleasant. We also communicated with Kyler since the planning stages; he was not only helpful with advice for photos but also for planning our wedding in the early stages to fill in where our wedding planner was a bit amiss. Not at all part of his job, but he was the consummate professional and was quite helpful anyway. Grace arranged for us to video-chat with Kyler so we could discuss specifics. After hearing his recommendations, we emailed Kyler a list of photos (with lists of specific family members and friends & certain preferred shots). He was very accommodating and offered his valuable expertise on what would work logistically. And then on the day of the wedding, my groom had to change hotels; Kyler's team came through yet again with a creative plan to best utilize our time to get the groom's shots in along with all the other wedding shots he suggested and we planned. Kyler and his second shooter that day (unfortunately I don't remember the man's name) helped us and our guests look our best. And our photos came back even sooner than expected. BOTTOM LINE: Wedding photos are in general expensive; Kai-photo delivers a high quality service at a competitive price. This is an investment that I'll enjoy for times to come. I recommend to book Kai-Photo while they are still available for your event!

Janet Kaneshiro

Kai-Photo was one of our favorite vendors for our wedding! Kyler took our engagement photos and the photos of our wedding. We loved our photos so much! Grace was also very quick to respond to any emails I sent. I would highly recommend Kai-Photo for any photos. They are creative, professional, and great people to work with!

Taryn Shoda

We recently got married at Haiku Gardens in Kaneohe. Kyler was our photographer and we were very pleased with all of the photos he took. He captured so many moments of our ceremony and reception, which will be wonderful memories for us in the future. When we took our photos after the ceremony, Kyler was very helpful in directing us how to pose, as we did not know anything about posing and taking photos. For our reception, we just had a simple lunch celebration without the speeches, cake, and dancing. Kyler was still able to capture photos of our centerpieces, favors, group shots of friends and family. We had originally booked him for an extra hour but realized we did not need him for the full amount of time. He was very nice and offered to reschedule an after wedding photoshoot to make up the time. He was very quick to respond, and we were able to fit in a 30 min. photoshoot with family at the beach the following week. Overall we had a great experience working with Kyler.

Hannah Phillips

As almost any [married] couple will tell you, this very special day will fly by! Thus it's VERY important to have photos and/or video to capture every beautiful moment so that you can treasure it forever. Working with Kyler from Kai-Photo was probably the best decision we made when planning our destination wedding on Oahu! My husband and I were definitely a bit anxious planning our wedding from 4500 miles away (East Coast), but working with Kyler made us feel so much better about everything. He helped us plan our family and friends list for specific shots and even met with us shortly after we landed in Honolulu to go over our timeline and make us feel at ease. When the BIG day came we ran into a few obstacles, as most couples do on their wedding day, but Kyler was very flexible and, even though we had to start our ceremony a bit later than expected, he made the most out of our time with him and we even got an unexpected first look photo shoot in which turned into some amazing shots! After the ceremony, we traveled to different locations around the coast and Kyler truly made us feel like celebrities while taking some absolutely stunning photographs! I didn't know we could look so good (lol)! My husband and I are so unbelievably happy that we chose Kai-Photo for our photographs and wedding video as he truly captured the love and happiness we felt on that beautiful day!

Jennifer P. Asato

Kyler, Grace and their Amazing team did such an awesome job from beginning to glorious end. As I started my search for a wedding photographer, Kai-Photo came up on top of my list and I looked no further. They never sounded bothered by my questions and always responded quickly to my emails. On wedding day: they were on time, friendly and put everyone at ease. They totally helped make my wedding day as stress free as possible! Kai-Photo was such a pleasure to work with - I am very pleased with my photos and love the high quality of my photo album. You won't regret it - book them!

Kristy Imada

Kai-Photo was our photographer for our daughter's first birthday party. Everything went so smoothy from the time we started emailing 7 months prior, to after the event. Our emails were responded to so promptly, and Grace was SO helpful with answering our questions. And boy, did we have a lot! She's always so patient and willing to help with any concerns we had for our daughter's special day. Kyler did an amazing job with our photos! We were more than happy with how all the pictures came out. We really wanted to capture a lot of memories of our daughter's birthday, so we had a few special requests, and Kyler had no problem with it! Thank you again Grace and Kyler!!! You guys are amazing!

Jay Chantel

Kai-Photo recently did my maternity photos. I wanted a location near the water and Kai offered many different beach/park options plus sent me a link to different sample photos at those locations. The morning of the shoot was rainy and they were so nice about giving me options to reschedule if I wanted to (I ended up not canceling). My photographer, Kyler was very professional, easy to work with, friendly and helpful in creating poses with the props we brought. He took our ideas (some of which were a little weird) and made it look great. We felt at ease and had a lot of fun. Although photos usually take 2-3 weeks to process, Kyler sent it to us quicker! Overall, I would highly recommend Kai-Photo because they were easy to work with, were professional as well as friendly, quick with communication/responses, never made me feel stupid when I asked questions or wanted a certain type of pose, and the photos were BEAUTIFUL! I've worked with many photographers in the U.S. (personally and professionally) and Kai-Photo was one of the best experiences I've had. Thank you Kyler & Kai-Photo!

Josselyn Moore

We had two photographers on our wedding day and we couldn't have asked for better photographers! Not only did our pictures come incredible (they captured moments and reactions of the wedding not just pictures - as well as knowing exactly where to be and how to pose us to capture the best photos ever!) but they were just genuinely kind people. They helped to keep me calm when things got a little bumpy, gave me a Cliff bar when I was starving because I was too nervous to eat (hehe), and had bobby pins for me to help with my veil. They were just wonderful and every one of our guests commented on that! They were wonderful to work with and produced BEAUTIFUL photos that we will cherish forever!

Maureen Chang

Kai-Photo was my photographer for a destination wedding in Oahu recently. If there was anything important to me about a wedding, it was going to be the photography. After researching a number of photographers available on the island, I chose Kai-Photo for a few reasons. First, their photos are gorgeous. There are a lot of colors, the framing is artistic, but best of all, their use of LIGHT is amazing. It was apparent in their photos during research as well as during the shooting of the actual wedding that light was one of their most important components. They were always aware of which way the sun was, how shadows were impacting the photos, and how to orient and use their flash strategically. Second, they are transparent about their pricing. One of the most annoying things during wedding planning is the habit of vendors to hide their prices from a potential consumer. It never made sense to me because wouldn't you then be inundated with requests from people who might know right off the bat after one communication that they could not afford you? In any case, I loved how transparent they were and it made decision making a lot easier because then I only needed to worry about the last thing... Chemistry! I contacted Kai-Photo and got a response very quickly thereafter from Kyler. We chatted on the phone about what we were looking for and agreed on many things. He helped a lot with figuring out the schedule and timing when I was trying to finalize it with my coordinator, and overall worked really well with all the other vendors. He had a good balance of giving direction for poses and actions while also keeping it natural. Overall, working with Kai was amazing and I cannot wait to get the rest of our photos back. We have absolutely loved the snippets and sneak peeks he has given us so far.

purvi patel

Absolutely Amazing !! For a destination wedding than is a less then month , I came across Kia photo via multiple searching from many search engines . Kyler was the first person to respond within an hour and not mention how detailed and accommodating he was to our goal and budget. He truly takes the time and answers all your questions in a very polite and sophisticated manner. He delivers what he promises and more ! If ever had the option to come back to Hawaii we definitely will take him up on more sessions. Thank you for all your hard work!!

Darlene Nepp-Rockwood

We spent a week over Spring Break 2015 with our family and met Kai-Photo for family pictures. What an amazing experience...fun pics, fun photographer and the end result was more than we could have asked for...would you definitely recommend them.

J O

Kyler of Kai Photos worked with us through phone and email consultation to help us select the service that would best suit our family. On the day of the wedding, Kyler arrived on time. He was pleasant and professional, and created beautiful images of a wonderful day. He sent an email with a link to view the photographs very soon after we returned home. We are very pleased with the quality of the photographs and the variety of images he captured. We highly recommend Kai Photo as a company to trust with special moments of your life.

Yingchan Zhang

I highly recommend Kai-Photo! It was our first time working with Kyler and it was a great experience overall. We especially like the communication process and the quality of the photos. Communication: my husband and I decided sort of last minute to find a local photographer for our honeymoon in Oahu in late October, 2017. I found Kai-Photo online and got in touch with Kyler. He was very responsive (via email and on the phone) in providing us a quote and his availability, and we quickly decided on a date that worked for both parties (in less than two weeks). He was very patient in communicating with us about what we hoped to do in the session and offering his professional advice. There was some back and forth between us about some details in the contract, and Kyler handled that with professionalism and thoughtfulness. He also recommended a hair/make-up artist who was very professional and we had fun working with, which saved us time and stress (considering how stressful it was to plan for a 2-wk honeymoon in Hawaii and the photo session). On the day of the session, he was accessible all the time even though we had unexpected bad weather and difficulty in finding the location. We really like how the photos turned out and how quickly Kyler edited them and made them available to us afterwards. Even though the weather wasn't perfect that day (it was cloudy and started to rain heavily towards the end of the session), Kyler captured the sweet moments for us and did his best to finish the session before the downpour. We now put up some pictures from the session in our home and are always happily reminded of the occasion. Thanks again, Kyler!

Stacy Lax [Heckethorn ES]

Our family was taking a trip to Hawaii and we wanted to have family pictures taken. Since we are in Vegas I didn't know how I was going to find a reliable photographer. I ended up relying on yelp for recommendations. After reading other great reviews I decided on Kai-Photography. We were scheduled for a morning session, however Kyler contacted us early to suggest rescheduling for later in the afternoon due to the weather. With the rain moving in and out all day I was really hoping the weather would clear up by the afternoon. It turned out to be a blue sky afternoon and the Portlock beach was absolutely gorgeous. Kyler was very accommodating and patient as we were moving people in and out of pictures to make sure we got pictures with 2 sets of grandparents. I love our pictures and appreciate Kyler's work and how he was able to capture our memories in photos.

Jessica Morikone

Kai photo is truly as good as it gets - professional, talented, and so easy to work with. We used them before for our wedding and son's first birthday, and most recently used them for our daughter's first birthday - and I couldn't be happier with the results. I knew when we decided to do photography for her party that we wouldn't trust anyone else with this important day for our family. Kyler has an amazing eye, and gave us fantastic candids that really captured the special moments of the day. They have always been dependable, on time, and they follow up to make sure they know exactly what kind of shots we want to capture ahead of time. Thank you Kai photo!

Ashlee Gersaba-Agtarap

For almost the whole year of 2009, we have worked with Kai-Photo in their many aspects of photography. In February 2009, Kyler and Grace shot our engagement photos at the ever so crowded Punahou Carnival. It was definitely a daunting task for my husband and I because we've never been photographed before in such a public event. However, Kyler made us feel so comfortable by just having us talk to each other and focus on just one another. Quickly, the tension of the crowd watching went away!! He also joined us on the Music Express and took pictures from the seat in front. DEDICATED!! We just loved the way the shots came out because it was so colorful and vibrant! In June 2009, Kyler and Will shot our wedding. They were very punctual and actually came a little earlier than scheduled, so they were able to get all of the necessary pre-bridal shots without having to rush. I'm so glad that they were able to adjust to the small amount of space that we had to get ready. They just seemed to always find the perfect shots in the small space they had, which we were so grateful for! There are so many shots that they were able to get that I didn't get to see, such as guest reactions, "special" moments, and a play by play run down of literally everything that happened!! In a few weeks we were able to view all of the photos shot from the wedding and in a few months we received the beautiful euro-crystal photo album! We always get compliments on the photos and especially how beautiful the cover of the album looks! Then Kyler shot our trash the dress session in dirt/grass and in the ocean, which of course turned out beautiful and thank goodness my dress survived with no scratches!! And lastly, we met up one last time in the year to shoot our Christmas pictures with the newest addition to our family, our dog...Mochi! He really captured great moments of "family" time!! Also, Grace was such a pleasure to work with! She was so prompt in responding to emails and answering any type of questions I had. The instructions she gave were so easy to follow, she never missed a beat! Thank you again Kai-Photo for a really memorable year in 2009! We hope to work with you all again very soon!! Ashlee and Alvin Agtarap

Rosa Salomon Pool

Amazing Experience! Kyler had to deal with two very cranky 5 year old, and he did it like a Pro! Thank you

Caroline Nonaka

I can't say and speak enough about Kai Photo! Planning a destination wedding from California was nerve wrecking and phone calls was a must. Kyler was patient and answered all my questions - he was thorough and most importantly RESPONSIVE. It was an easy decision for us to have Kyler and his team capture our wedding day. Kai Photo was actually one of the first vendors we chose and from there every vendor after that when asked who was our photographer it was no surprise to any of our A Team of Vendors that we chose Kai Photo. The dynamic duo team Kyler and Grace made the days leading up to our wedding stress free! The questions they asked only help give us peace of mind. Our photo booth was a hit and our pictures speak volumes of the kind of talent that Kai and his team bring to the table! I said this to Kyler and without a doubt still believe "He is a natural and one of the best at what he does!"

Catherine Pham

When I contacted Kai Photo initially to inquire about their services, they responded shortly after. They were really good with emailing and I would oftentimes get responses from them within minutes of my messages. And trust me, when you're planning a wedding and you have a gazillion things on your mind that you need to take care of, it is a freaking blessing when your vendors respond back to you promptly, haha. Also, their prices were very reasonably priced for what they offer, so I was very happy with that. When I met Kyler on wedding day, he was very relaxed and chill. He looked like someone that I could totally get along with so I knew it was going to be a good day! He was also super prompt and tried to cue us if we needed to be somewhere or move to the next location, per our timeline. I was actually very surprised that even though we were busy throughout the entire day taking pictures and so forth, we still had plenty of time to relax and we were actually running ahead of schedule for several of the events! Now when does that ever happen during a wedding?!! =) Anyway, throughout the day, Kyler and his assistant were super professional and took pictures any chance they got. They didn't seem to waste any time. Even when we had downtime they were taking candid shots of our guests, etc, which I really appreciated because I feel like during the wedding everything happens so fast and I don't get to see all that's happening. Another thing that impressed me about Kyler and his assistant is that they were well prepared. When my maid of honor was buttoning up my dress in the back, he asked if we had a crochet needle and i was like, "huh? Why the hell would I have that?" and he said, "no worries, I've got one here." So he showed us how to use it and this made the process sooo much faster. I'm thankful for that crochet needle b/c it probably saved us a good 5 minutes while trying to put on my dress, haha. Also, later, when we were taking pictures outside by the beach, the wind was blowing my hair all sorts of ways and his assistant kept pulling out different combs from his camera bag to help fix my hair, haha. I really appreciated that too! When the wedding was over and done with, I didn't expect to get pictures for quite some time, since I've heard horror stories of people waiting several months to receive their photos! Kyler sent me some sneak peek photos the day after, and reassured me that the team was working hard on getting the rest of them back to me ASAP. And guess what? Less than 1.5 months later, we received all of the pics! I was pleasantly surprised with all of the amazing shots that they got! You don't realize how much that you miss when the day is going by so fast. So it was really great to go through all the photos and feel like you're reliving the wedding, and also seeing parts of the wedding that you had no idea were going on, such as certain guests getting down on the dance floor and finding out which guests were racking up your bar tab! =) I also thought that they did an outstanding job capturing all the important parts of the wedding, during the ceremony and especially during the reception. The only thing that I was a bit sad about is that I wish we got better bride/groom photos while we took pictures out at the beach. Our venue was Waialae Country Club so we took our pictures in the afternoon right by the water. However, because of the location and time of day, the sun was glaring in our eyes so in most of the pictures my husband's eyes are super small and squinty. I understand that this is totally not the photographer's fault, but I kind of wish we could've moved to another location or had taken the pictures from a different angle, etc. Oh well, not the end of the world...the pictures still turned out great so I really can't complain! Anyway, all in all we had a wonderful experience with Kai Photo! They were so super professional, easy-going, and they produce excellent results in a timely manner! I would sooo recommend them to anyone looking for photography services here on Oahu!

Brook Maxwell

Kai-Photo were so amazing! Grace and Kyler were so helpful with any questions I had when looking for a photographer. They responded to emails right away and everything went very smoothly from start to finish. We only had a mini session for our wedding pictures with Kyler but it was amazing and we loved all the pictures! Kyler is a really fun, easy going photographer and he makes it very easy to relax and be comfortable. We received our pictures a week after our session with Kyler. They are all so very beautiful. We will most definitely be hiring Kai-Photos the next time we come back to Hawaii for our anniversary!

Jasmine Nip

My husband is very easy going and allowed me to make most of the decisions for our wedding. The one thing he really wanted say in was when it came to choosing a photographer. I sent an inquiry to set up a meeting and see if they had our date available. Grace emailed us back immediately. We met with Kyler at their office and were able to see samples of their work. Kyler is really nice and was easy to work with from the beginning. I think that’s important when deciding on a photographer. He was able to answer all our questions and assured he would be one of our two photographers on that day. Kyler asked if we had a timeline in mind and I had no idea. He was nice enough to help us put something together and we hadn’t even selected him yet. It’s the customer service and going the extra mile that I really appreciated. Leading up to the wedding they send us some things to think about and helped us set up a shot list so that we would get all the pictures we wanted. On that day Kyler and our second photographer were there early and jumped right in taking pictures to maximize the time. He helped us set up our first look photos, scoped our areas to take family pictures, and helped us stay on track. Kyler asked me what my best side was and made sure I always looked good. He made us feel comfortable and you can really tell by the photos. I wanted to make sure we had table pictures and he gave great suggestions for that and helped us save time to get other shots. He took shots that I never would have thought to take and those are some of my favorites. My only problem is I have a hard time choosing which photos to put in our album. There are just too many awesome photos it’s hard to just choose 50. If you’re looking for a professional who is customer service and detail oriented then you have to take a look at Kyler and Kai-photo. You won’t regret them. I hope to work with them again in the future.

Lisa Miz

Kai-Photo Hawaii did an awesome job with my engagement pictures at Diamond Head Beach. Our photographer Kyler made my fiancé and I feel really comfortable and kept coming up with creative ideas within our session. I can't wait to see what creative ideas Kyler comes up with when he takes our wedding pictures in January 2017!

Aniruddha Deshmukh

We had arranged a mini-photo session with Kai-Photo in Hawaii and we loved Kyler's photography and our photos. It was easy to setup the session via email with Kyler and team. Kyler was right on time for our session and was very patient and open to reschedule due to bad weather conditions. Kyler is very professional and had multiple cameras to capture beautiful moments for us. Kyler gave us lot of tips and suggestions to get that perfect click and even though weather was bad, we do think that Kyler didn't let it affect our session. Kyler also made sure to involve us in choosing different poses for our photos. We needed some photos quickly and Kyler was able to provide them to us within a day of the photo session; which we feel was pretty flexible of him. The quality of service was above par and the photo session was definitely value for money. We would definitely book Kai-Photo for our next trip in Hawaii and would recommend him to everyone.

Rhonda Wong

My husband and I did not have a big wedding 14 years ago when we got married. So when we decided it was time for a vow renewal, we had a lot already planned in our minds (at least I did :-)). From the start Grace and Kyler were both quick to respond to emails and answered all of our questions. They were more than willing to accommodate an additional sunset photo session with a 2.5 hour delay after the ceremony. They are professional, kind, and personable. Kyler's artistic vision really shined through, everything we envisioned was captured in the timeless photos. He is truly talented! We highly recommend Kai Photo for a wedding, vow renewal, or any special event.

Tiare K

There is so much to know and decide on when it comes to your wedding but the first thing I knew for sure I wanted once Gary proposed was Kai-Photo. I remember first looking through their pictures online a few years ago and being amazed at how they captured every detail and moment of the event. You can literally feel the emotions of the people who are in the picture, and that is exactly what we wanted! Being able to look back years from now through our wedding pictures and still being able to feel the excitement and joy from our day. The first thing we did was our engagement photos. Now our theme was very unique (apple meets droid) but Kyler and Grace were so excited over it and even gave amazing suggestions to go along with the theme! We had so much fun just being ourselves throughout the entire photoshoot with Kyler! Once the pictures came out and the invitations were sent, our family and friends were very impressed! Leading up to the wedding I began to appreciate them even more! Their customer service is amazing especially since anytime I had any questions, they got back to me ASAP. Not many vendors do that! Grace is so organized in what she does that you feel safe knowing that everything will turn out perfect! On the day of the wedding everything went very smooth which I know is hard to believe! I would sometimes hear other horror stories about different vendors not showing up on time or not knowing what’s going to happen next… but this was definitely not the case with Kai-Photo! They came prepared with their timeline knowing exactly what should happen so that it didn’t stress me out at all. Plus they prepared me for what pictures were going to happen next which was awesome because with everything going on, it was so hard to remember! They even came up with amazing ideas to capture Gary and my quirky personalities in the photos! There was so much detail to capture with our wedding and they captured it ALL! Everyone deserves to know how great Kai-Photo is from their professionalism, dedication, passion, and talent! Thank you so much for allowing us to relive the memories that will last us a lifetime!

Erin Kim

Kai-Photo is AMAZING! Our entire wedding was planned very last minute, and we had tons of unanswered questions. Luckly, Kyler to the rescue! He helped us on a lot of aspects out side the scope of his photography work, such as feedback on venues & food, recommendations for vendors, and even helping with our timeline! His responses were always prompt and professional. After looking at his previous work, we knew that our shots were going to be epic! During our big day, he did an outstanding job making us feel comfortable. You can tell he's been a professional in the business for a long time. All of his shots were well thought out and creative. We received our photos in less than a month after our wedding day and we were extremely happy with the results. I would highly recommend Kai-Photo for your big wedding day. You won't regret it! Thank you Kyler & Grace!

Jiena Marquez

We recently took advantage of Kai-Photo's client appreciation promo. It was our 1st ever professionally-done family photos. We have 2 children, 6 and 2 yrs old, and I kinda worried about if our 2 yr old would be ready to smile and be comfortable taking pics with a stranger. Kyler was super patient with our 2 yr old and I appreciate that he took multiple shots of her since she kept moving around or making silly faces. While being patient, he was also quick and the photo session went by really quickly; quick enough for my little ones short attention span. It was a windy day but Kyler set us up perfectly so that our hair wasn't in our faces and our eyes were open for the pics. =) We received our pics in less than a week and we absolutely LOVE them and can't wait to share them in our Christmas cards! We first heard of Kai-Photo from my cousin, as she used them for her wedding. We loved their pics so we had them at the our wedding in 2008. We love the quality of their photos and the promptness in when they were delivered. They were very accommodating. We set up a schedule for the day in advance but on the day of the wedding, my grandma was ill and could not attend both the ceremony and reception. Kai-Photo came with us on our impromptu visit to mama's house and took heartfelt, memorable pics there. She is no longer with us but I'm glad that Kai-Photo was able to capture those moments. There are even some cute pics with family pets. I love how they captured ALL aspects of our the ceremony and reception. The photos are so comprehensive, I feel like I can pretty much relive our wedding day each time I open my photo album.

Matt Dean

As a photographer myself, I was very picky about who shot my wedding. I was looking for technical expertise, of course, but I also wanted personality and emotion as well. We were so happy we chose Kai-Photo. They were so easy to work with and we were very comfortable, which translated into better photos! During the ceremony, we didn't even notice they were there, but the emotion they captured was amazing. All our requests were handled without hassle and they were quicker than we expected to get us our pictures. I feel Kyler went above and beyond to make sure we were happy. I highly recommend Kyler and his company for any event!

Karen

Kai-Photo Hawaii was just wonderful to work with. Kai-Photo helped us with scheduling and was extremely flexible, especially since this wedding had such a short timeframe to prepare/finalize all the details. (Planning to wedding date was just 6 weeks!) Kai-Photo captured not just the day but the emotions of the bride, groom and family. I highly recommend Kai-Photo Hawaii. They are the BEST!

Michelle L

My fiance and I recently had our engagement photos done and the whole experience from email consultation to the actual session was extremely pleasant. Kyler and his team are always quick to reply to our concerns and questions despite our time zone differences. Our photographer, Aaron, is EXTREMELY awesome and super talented as well! I definitely recommend Kai-Photo and I absolutely can not wait for them to photograph my wedding! :)

Yefim Novozhenets

Kai-Photo has created the most amazing memories from our wedding at the Ocean Crystal Chapel. They were very attentive and accommodating during the entire photo shoot. We had a few special requests, and our Kai-Photo photographers staged them exactly the way we wanted. The photos came out amazing. Kai-Photo photographers are highly professional and very pleasant people to work with. We would recommend Kai-Photo to friends and family without a moment’s hesitation.

Katherine Pyles

Kyler was extremely easy to work with from the start. He was quick to respond to emails and questions that we had (which was reassuring from so many miles away!!!), and the beach location he suggested for our family of 9 was beautiful. Our group doesn't *love* having our photos taken, and he made the process easy and painless. And most importantly, the photos turned out beautifully!!!!! We are thrilled with them. Thank you!!!!!

M Wong

Getting engaged and planning a wedding is one of the most exciting and chaotic times in your life. And as a couple planning your own wedding, you want to be able to enjoy this special time and spend as little of it being stressed. Kai Photo was one of those vendors who were super easy to work with and allowed for us to enjoy our engagement and our special day. Once we got engaged we knew that Kai Photo was the company we wanted to photograph and capture our special day. We had been doing our research and one of the things that stood out to us about Kai Photo was not only the beautiful and amazing quality of their photos but also as I read reviews that other brides posted, every single one of them commented on how great Kai Photo is at communicating and responding to emails and phone calls. We quickly booked them and ended up adding an engagement session to our package. Grace and Kyler were amazing to work with and sure enough responded to all of our emails and questions ASAP (which was really important to us since we were planning our Hawaii wedding from the mainland). They helped us think about different logistical issues that could potentially come up and proposed solutions and plan Bs so that we could be prepared and have our special day go as smoothly as possible. Our engagement session was a great way to see Kai Photo at work and get to know them and have them get to know us. Our engagement shoot went amazing and the photos turned out perfectly! On our wedding day, the Kai Photo team worked hard and was there every step of the way. They arrived earlier than when they were scheduled to be there, and we really appreciated that they were set up and ready to go at their scheduled start time. They came prepared and helped us stick to our timeline and really helped our wedding day be something that we could just enjoy! They captured all of the special moments and details of our wedding day and many of our guests and bridal party commented on how impressed they were with the way that Kai Photo worked. We highly recommend Kai Photo. They are not only super talented in what they do, but they are also dedicated to each couple that they work with, passionate about their work, they have amazing customer service, and truly a pleasure to work with! We will treasure our engagement and wedding photos for the rest of our lives and we are truly thankful to have these mementos from this special time in our lives!

Stacie Chang

Truly enjoyed working with Kyler and Grace in 2014. They were extremely professional and very responsive to all of my questions. Given their experience in the industry, they even offered tips to make everything go smoother. Kyler is so talented in capturing unique and memorable shots. The pictures came out perfect! I look forward to working with Kyler and Grace again. I highly recommend them!!! I hired Kai-Photo again this past December 2017 for a family photo session. This is the third time working with them. As always, they are super responsive, which is something I struggled with when I used other vendors in Hawaii. Kyler really takes the time to listen to what I'm envisioning balance with his recommendations to ensure what I'm imagining in my head is captured in the photos. At the actual photo session, he is so patient and great at making everyone feel comfortable and relax. I wanted photos that felt like Hawaii, while not being the typical beach photos and the photos came out perfect! He is great at making slight adjustments to capture unique perspectives and making sure everyone looks their best. I look forward to working with Kai-Photo again.

Annette Albright

Kyler was our photographer for our July 2018 wedding, and we could not have been more pleased! He was very professional and friendly throughout the entire process, from the planning stages before the wedding, to the actual day, and afterwards as we chose our wedding album photos. I was nervous about planning our wedding from afar as we live in Australia, but Kyler was very receptive and quick to return my emails. We even had a facetime meeting, which gave me a good feel of what it would be like to work with Kyler. We worked together on making a timeline for the day and everything went smoothly. The photos Kyler took were fantastic, and we had many compliments from friends and family about them! Thank you, Kyler, for being part of our big day and helping capture special memories that we will have forever.

Victoria Wakasa

My biggest concern about hiring Kai-Photo was the fact that it might not live up to its expectation of a five star rating... But during the wonderful and helpful photo shoot session, and after receiving the amazing photos, Kai-Photos truly lived up to its reputation of a five star rating!! One of my favorite parts of working with Kyler was that he was not the kind of guy that talks nonsense, but got straight to the point and was very helpful during the whole shoot. Even my fiancé who hates getting his photos taken complimented on how easy Kyler made everything for us! And the photos? Wow. Just, WOW! The amount of compliments we received were crazy!! Some people even said that it looks like we came straight out of a commercial! Overall, I would definitely recommend Kai-Photo. If you pick any other place you’re nuts!

Erika Molyneux

I teach photography. As such, choosing a photographer that I felt confident in was important. I didn't want to hire someone that did work that was not as good as what I myself could do; however, I obviously cannot photograph my own wedding. Herein lay my conundrum. After meeting with Kyler Kwock, we hired Kai-Photo for our wedding at Moli‘i Gardens at Kualoa Ranch on Oahu in December, 2008. The aesthetic of his images was refreshingly different than everything else I had seen - using interesting perspectives, with attention to details and quality. The wedding site was tiered with banyan trees, beautiful flora and fauna, several building structures, and a fish pond. We started the day without electricity (lighting had hit a generator the night before), but luckily, the lights came on when we needed them. At the time, we were able to hire just one photographer for something like eight hours. Kyler attended himself and wore two different cameras, a wide-angle and a telephoto one, that he seamlessly alternated to get a variety of shots throughout the event. His style of journalistic photography was perfect! We didn't even notice him throughout much of the ceremony and reception, yet he captured some of the most amazing photographs! We couldn't have been happier! Kyler was also very attentive about taking planned shots that were important to us, and he always approached his work with a fresh perspective and immense professionalism. His images are stunning and are still my most treasured memorabilia from our wedding (well, other than the ring and groom). He was well prepared, being familiar with the setting and well-prepared with memory cards, batteries, and lighting accessories for use during the various parts of the day.

connie moribe

Kai Photo and his team have always been a pleasure to work with. I have been referring all my friends and family to have Kyler and his team be apart of their special day, so with that being said when it was finally my turn I was sooo excited to have Kyler and his team to be apart of my day. Kyler was extremely helpful and very prompt on answering all my questions whether if it was through email, text message, and even through phone calls. Kyler did our engagement shoot and was very flexible and listened to detail in what was important to my husband and I, which was having our dogs in it. His creativity and eye for photography is amazing and we couldn't have been happier with our engagement picture. All of our friends and family memebers loved them for our save the date cards. Fast forward to the big day, Kyler and his team arrived early and made sure to ask if there was anything in particular we wanted pictured when we were getting ready. He also wasn't feeling well but as hard working as he is he knew how important my big day was to me. His team made sure to capture all the photos of us getting ready along side with our videographer and never once got in the way. Kyler calm personality makes the process go by so smooth and he even reminds you of how you are doing on time which is very important! His team made sure to capture all my family photos and table photos throughout the wedding night and I never once felt like his team was in the way. After the wedding I received a email from Kyler with sneak peak photos from our wedding and was blown away how amazing they turned out. The details from the cathedral and the flexibility of stopping at a destination so we could allow our dog to be in one of the pictures. We got Married on July 9th and within a month all 700 pictures from Kai Photo had been edited and mailed to be on USB. I wish I could give Kai Photo and his team more than a 5 start rating for the quick turn over and we couldn't be any happier with all of our pictures!

Stephanie Mignon Brooker

Six years later, these guys were able to provide me with a download link to the GORGEOUS wedding photos they took for me. Six years later, the photos are still stunning. The Kai team managed to capture all of the amazing moments! Every single picture is perfection. No joke. Plus they got the coolest pics of the fireworks display at the Hilton while my new husband and I looked on. Truly incredible! I wish I could have Kai photo take all my family's pictures!

Michael Xu

Very creative photographer. The quality of his photos are stunning (even under low lighting) and very detail oriented. The poses he suggested were nice and "post-worthy". He's very easy to work with, takes care of everything (very instructive), and very accommodating. There was never any moments of frustration, only fun and laughter. Thank you for documenting our important day. We would definitely come back for future photo engagements.

Kris C

Kai Photo is awesome! From the very beginning they made us feel comfortable. They are very professional and easy to work with. And of course our pictures came out amazing! They captured the perfect moments for us to cherish forever. Kyler, Kayoko, and Grace were excellent! We've been married for over two years now and I still love looking at the beautiful photos from Kai Photo. We've always gotten many compliments for our wedding pictures. Thanks again Kai Photo!

Jen Koide

As a local girl born and raised on O'ahu but living in Colorado, it can be difficult to plan a wedding from a distance. Luckily my mom was there to help coordinate with the various vendors like Kai Photo. Kyler and his team of photographers are very professional, efficient, organized, friendly, supportive and helpful. They answered all of our emails and voicemails promptly and met with my mom on several occasions, including teleconferencing with me to ensure we covered all the details. I personally appreciate Kyler's attention to detail and true love and passion for his craft, all of which are evident in his photos. Kai Photo has exceeded all of my expectations in capturing EVERY moment of our special day. You will definitely want him at your next event!!!

Jessie L.

My fiance and I wanted to get engagement photos in Hawaii while we were there but we are both camera shy. We were intrigued by Kai-Photo's high review status plus amazing website set up. I was able to easily find all the information I needed online and on yelp! The actual experience was amazing. We met with Kyler at Sandy Beach and he gave us a prep email that was SUPER helpful before our shoot such as "don't wear sun glasses on the way to the shoot" bc it would make our eye sensitive during the actual shoot. He provided the leis for us that we ordered and got straight to business when we got there explaining everything we needed to know. A few weeks later we got photos available for download and order (if we wanted) on a website. THE PHOTOS ARE AMAZING!!!! I want to go back every year now to get family photos. The scenery chosen was amazing and our posture wasn't forced or odd looking. We actually look really good!!! I am nothing but beyond the moon on how great the photos look. Definitely get your photos here while you're in Hawaii or in the area. TOTALLY WORTH IT!

Clayton L

Kai-Photo was the absolute best! They have done 3 weddings for our family. They knew where to get all the best shots at each venue and how to cue us into the perfect pose. They were friendly, flexible, and professional. Would absolutely recommend to everyone.

Addison C

Kai-Photo were an absolute pleasure to work with. My wife Gina and I were always comfortable both for our engagement photos and on the big day. While both our ceremony venue and reception presented some interested challenges Kyler and Hiko did an excellent job at capturing the mood of our wedding day, behind the scenes and during all our special moments. From the day of the wedding to the day we received our first prints, Grace was in constant contact with us letting us know where things were and stepping us through the proofs. I would heartily recommend Kai-Photo to anyone looking for a great wedding photography team.

Brian Fong

Awesome experience taking family portraits during our week long vacation to Hawaii! Being a tourist and not knowing the area, just loved how Kyler was so thoughtful in recommending to us the perfect backdrop that was also very family friendly for my three young kids. And our pictures turned out great - the touch up, the lighting - were all fantastic.

Stella Gurreri

We really enjoyed working with our photographer. He was really professional and nice. He made us feel really comfortable and he was really creative too. The results (the photos) are fantastic! We have now high quality photos memories of our wedding day. We received the photos and album and everything was beyond our expectations! The album is really nice and the CD design is really great.