Charity Headshots

Jun 2, 2020 | Photography

Professional headshots for my dear friend, Charity.

She recently got accepted to a new job doing Education Policy for a non-profit in the city of Memphis, Tennessee! Somehow during this crazy COVID pandemic, Charity found the job listing, applied and interviewed, and won them over. Charity is a hardworking Samoan woman who is driven to make positive change, and her new employers are lucky to have her. If you know Charity at all, you’d know that education policy is where her passion lies, and I’m so excited to see her going for it. I’ll miss our lunch dates and beach hangs when she eventually flies off to Memphis, but till then, we’ll cheers and celebrate with some aulelei headshots we did with my amateur studio setup in the living room!

Earth Day every day

Apr 22, 2020 | Lifestyle, Sustainable Living

A beautiful reminder that every day is Earth Day!

Snapped these moments here at home right before Ian and I did a quick beach cleanup as our act of service to Mama Earth today. I was sad to see all the trash that washed ashore as we filled up three buckets of garbage in just half an hour… but it felt good to do our part, to keep our island clean and pristine, then jump into the warm crystal clear water that’s been like home to us. Immersed in nature. We love our home so much–inside and outside–it is our place of sanctuary. I know that no matter where in the world we travel, or move to, and call home… I know that we will always love each other, and our home, environment, this planet Earth.

Hope you’re all having a wonderful day, and getting a little bit of sunshine where you can!

xoxo, Nerelle

The prettiest moonset

Apr 13, 2020 | Photo Diaries, Photography

I nearly forgot to share this photo here.

It’s a recent favorite I snapped late one night in early March.

I was standing in the hallway of my little apartment and saw out of the living room window, a bright moon just about to make contact with the mountain. I walked out the front door and stood there watching Masina‘s slow descent.

It was the prettiest moonset I’d seen in a very long time. Not one I’d planned to see either… It was there for a moment, and then it wasn’t. I realized I didn’t have my camera only once the mountain had eclipsed the moon, leaving a faint glow of the moon’s halo. I rushed to my room to grab my Sony A7iii camera and 50mm F/1.8 lens, quickly fiddled with the manual settings, fired some test shots, and clicked this memorable night scene.

Reasons why I need to wake up early more often

Mar 14, 2020 | Photo Diaries

Reasons why I need to wake up early more often.

The way the mist envelopes Matafao.

The reflection of the mountain on the lagoon.

The fiery vibes in the sky that sets a soul on fire.

The ripples of life teeming below.

The shroud of cloud cast afar.

The wondering what life could be.

The flutter of the birds we wished we were.

The lights showing off in powder hues.

The birds playing tag with their shadows.

The puppy cuddles on the pier.

The sun coming up out of the ocean horizon.

Sessions: Kelley’s Maternity + Family

Dec 10, 2019 | Photography

Another maternity session with Kelley and her baby bump, Alden, and this time with little J-Ro in tow.

Oh, and their dog Avey joined too!

For this shoot, Kelley chose the off-the-beaten-path location in our backyard lagoon.

Altogether, we took 3 paddle boards, 1 kayak, 4 adults, 2 dogs, 1 toddler, and of course, Kelley’s 9-month baby bump!

Ian came with me and was super helpful in making her maternity dress look like it was blowing in the wind,

when in fact it was so hot and muggy, and we were all sweating bullets when we got to the location even before we started the shoot.

Luckily we got in the water for most of the shoot, and made some mama-magic!

The last time I took photos of Kelley was her first maternity shoot back in 2017.

It’s always so neat to follow a specific family’s growth over the years.

Check out my first maternity photo shoot from with Kelley that we did in her front yard here,

and another session we had done when she got her ‘preggo dress’ here.

Sessions: Mareike [moana/azul] – Part 3

Oct 1, 2019 | Photography

Part 3 of the session with Mareike.

[ moana / azul ]

Snapped these on the same morning as part 1 and part 2 of this session, using Mareike’s Canon G12 camera and underwater housing. It was such a dream to shoot Mareike in this setting… the beach is our home. I think I met her for the first time at this very beach. I’d been meaning to take her photos for the longest time, so for it to finally happen makes me so happy. And the photos came out awesome too! She actually gifted me with the camera that I used for this shoot, and I feel so lucky to have a friend like her in my life.

Sessions: Mareike (island style) – Part 2

Sep 30, 2019 | Photography

Part 2 of the sunrise session with Mareike.

This beautiful woman is a scientist. Her love for the ocean has taken her all over the world, drifting to American Samoa about 5 years ago. She is art–she embraces the ink of the islands etched on her skin to tell her story. Since we’ve met, we’ve gone on many adventures, shared many conversations, and laughed and danced together more times than I can even remember. She has become a neighbor and a friend, and I’m stoked to capture her essence on this beautiful morning just as the sun kisses the ocean and we thrive on another beautiful day in the islands.

There were SO MANY shots that I absolutely loved from this session, so here’s a good chunk of it.

Even more photos!

PART 1: Georgia + Mareike at sunrise | PART 2: Mareike (island style) | PART 3: Mareike [ moana/azul ]

Sessions: Georgia and Mareike at sunrise

Sep 29, 2019 | Photography

Part 1 of a sunrise session with these two beautiful women, flat mates, and friends

Georgia and Mareike

This shoot was actually on Mareike’s last month in American Samoa. We woke up super early, before the sunrise, and met up by the beach in front of our houses. It didn’t seem like it was going to be a good sunrise at first, but we shot anyways, and something like an hour later, the sun shone magnificently, sending light flickering on the ocean’s ripples. I had Georgia and Mareike take turns doing portraits and shot them together too, so here’s just a few of them. I love all of these!

Candid scenes on the Samoan streetside

Sep 9, 2019 | Culture, Moments, Travel

Candid snaps around the coast of Upolu, Samoa.

From our trip last weekend.

Auckland Travel Journal

Jun 26, 2019 | Lifestyle, Travel

Three days of misadventures in Auckland, New Zealand.

Flying into New Zealand.

I forget it’s made up of a bunch of islands. And it’s so green.

Accidentally booked our AirBnB for next month instead of this month, so we first devoured a hot bowl of ramen from Tanpopo restaurant, where we got on the nearby McDonald’s free WiFi, and booked another last minute AirBnB.

This was in the elevator of the second AirBnB.

Walking around the harbor, and Ian of course headed straight for the sailboats.

We spent the rest of our first afternoon here coveting these sailboats.

And talked about how excited we were to be going on a sailing adventure in Tahiti next week.

The sun set early so we walked through the bustling city, ate sushi, bought some snacks, got back to our AirBnB, got cozy, and fell asleep while watching Isn’t It Romantic on Netflix.

Light and view outside the window the next morning.

Hey fiyonce. My bedder half. I love you a latte.

In bed pre-caffeine, and later coffee and brunch at Sierra Cafe.

Didn’t visit the Sky Tower this time around, even though the last time we went we had the best meal with Rick and Polly.

But it really gives the cityscape pizzazz, so I can’t not take a photo of it.

Freeze frame while at a red light, waiting to cross.

Taking the scenic route back to our place.

Where: Albert Park.

Why: These crazy tree trunks.

Met up with friends from back home who recently relocated to New Zealand.

Lauren and Gideon came over with their perfect little creation, baby Codie. It was my first time meeting her after her departure from the womb. And I must say, she’s one of the prettiest babies ever. Just look at her sweet face.

Lauren grew up in Auckland so she took us to see the sights. First off, Mt. Eden.

It was so cute seeing Ian walking baby Codie in her pram.

Ian and Gideon at the top.

The huge green crater.

Is it just me or are pigeons chubbier in New Zealand? They look so well-fed.

Aw, love this beautiful little family!

Next stop, Mission Bay beach.

Lauren convinced us to take this cute photo by the fountain.

It is really cute actually lol

Beautiful mother daughter moments. Lauren and Codie.

Our last day in NZ was mostly relaxing, walking around the city again, and packing up again for our flight to Tahiti the next morning.

Until next time!

xoxo

SESSIONS: Kate & Taylor / Sunrise besties

Jun 16, 2019 | Photography

Life is better with friends.

What are your friendships like?

This one is silly, loving, and adventurous!

This session was from a few weekends ago…

Early 6am wakeup call to capture the friendship of these two dedicated teachers turned island sisters. We were greeted by warm sunbeams and a cool zephyr. Playing music on an iPhone. Dancing on the beach. Making silly faces. Reenacting my proposal from just a couple days ago. Laughing a lot. Climbing coconut trees. Falling off of coconut trees. Laying in the grass. Laughing some more.

I’ve gotten to know these beautiful women over the years, and they’ve been nothing but sweetness and kindness. Kate and Taylor are true gems, and I had so much shooting these with them.

Sessions: Monica and Setefano

Jun 5, 2019 | Photography

A memorable photo session with Monica and Setefano for their senior prom.

This was my first ‘official’ shoot with my new camera–a Sony A7III (I’ve named it “Three”!)–and I was so nervous because I still wasn’t fully accustomed to the Sony system after switching from Canon. I’m still getting the hang of it. But I love love loved how all the photos turned out! Monica and Setefano were dressed to the nines and should have automatically been voted cutest couple and prom king and queen! Monica was absolutely stunning in her perfectly paired outfit and accessories, and Setefano was slick and cool in his complementing maroon two piece suit. I shot and directed for a little over an hour while we swayed to the music blaring from my little speakers, and we created some magic and called it a wrap as the sun fully set behind us.

Thanks to Charmaine, for asking me to capture these special moments, and to Aunty Ula and the fam for your fun and positive energy.

xoxo