Queenstown Heli-Wedding Photographer & Elopement Packages | New Zealand - James Hirata

OUR MOST FAVOURITE DAY. An elopement had never crossed my mind until I came across this once in a life time opportunity. I always thought I would be the girl to have the huge wedding, walk down the isle and do things the traditional way. But the more I thought about it, marrying the man of my dreams was all I ever wanted! Having that special moment, just us, standing on the most spectacular mountain looking out over the crystal blue waters was one of the most unbelievable experiences we have ever had! Amoment weddings organised EVERYTHING, making the whole process stress free! Melina, our wedding planner was so wonderful to work with, so kind and friendly and knew exactly what we were after! Our celebrant Andy was an absolute legend and we felt so lucky to have him officially announce us husband and wife! And I cant forget my MUA, Alarna who made me feel so beautiful! James and Ayaka made us feel so relaxed right from the moment we stepped onto the helipad and captured our personalities, our relationship and the most beautiful day, all in a matter of clicks! We are so grateful to now have so many wonderful photos and a stunning video we can treasure for the rest of our lives. Thank you to the amazing team of people helping us every step of the way!
Feb 10th, 2023

James and his team made our entire wedding experience absolutely perfect, from start to finish. Working with him to set up our helicopter elopement was simple, and probably the easiest choice we could have made. He took care of us at every step, coordinated all the details, and we literally just had to show up with our clothes on, ready to have fun and get married. On the day, James and Josh were friendly, supportive, and we genuinely enjoyed getting to know them. Since we eloped without anyone in attendance, we spent our most special day with these two incredible people, and we loved every minute. We cannot express how stunning and epic the photos are, nor the uniqueness of our experience when we tell others. James and Josh took us to several locations to do photos with interesting and beautiful scenery, they gave direction so well that neither of us felt awkward (as we usually do having our pictures taken), and the outcomes speak for themselves. Aside from the standard photos, James has incredible insight on food options during your stay in New Zealand, as well as direction on awesome things to do. After the wedding, we did most of the things on James list, and not one disappointed. We are so fortunate that we decided to work with James and his team, and we will share from the rooftops to anyone who will listen that this was one of the best choices weve ever made. THANK you to James and his team, for everything.
Apr 29th, 2023

We did a pre-wedding photoshoot with James and it was definitely a worth while experience. Our entire time throughout the day of the photoshoot felt very chill and yet professional at the same time. Their team is also super responsive so that made our bookings and the entire process very easy. Not to say the least, the views of the places we went to were stunning and we absolutely love the sneak peek of the photos. We highly recommend James and his team.
Apr 18th, 2023

Married 06.02.23 with a heli-elopement package up on Roys peak. We had the most amazing experience with James, Ayaka and Tomomi. The team was so easy to work with and they knew what we wanted. They really made us feel comfortable and relaxed during the whole time. The photos and video turned out beautiful and we cant stop looking at them. We would definitely recommend James for wedding/pre-wedding or even casual photoshoot. Thanks James and team for this wonderful experience! J & K
Mar 30th, 2023

For our wedding we wanted to do something unique, meaningful, with a sprinkle of adventure, and some epic photos in the snow. This fit our brief perfectly. Let's face it, planning a wedding is hard, and eloping overseas takes it to a whole new level. But the team took us step-by-step, catered to our requests, and coordinated everything. James has great links to local suppliers which took out a lot of the guesswork so we could focus on other aspects. Helping to lower our stress on the day was a massive tick. Everyone was so engaging, hilarious and kept our spirits up the whole day. I can't begin to describe how much laughter, love and fun we had. Our celebrant Soph rocked the ceremony, our florist had mad amazing skills with the floral arch, and our helicopter pilot was an absolute pro. For the photography, James and Tomomi are solid professionals with an impressive body of work behind them. They gave us great direction and managed their roles with ease so that we barely noticed when they were taking pictures half of the time. And wow, those pictures. Simply stunning! We still get so many compliments about our wedding photos, months later. We can't recommend this team enough. If anyone is considering a heli-elopement in the beautiful wilds of New Zealand, don't walk, RUN to these guys. 100% you won't be disappointed.
Mar 16th, 2023