More Than Landmarks: Why the Best Overseas Pre-Wedding Shoots Happen Off the Beaten Path

And look, those places are stunning. No question. But love doesn’t always live in the landmarks.

Sometimes, it lives in the small, quiet places you thought no one else remembered.

In the corner ramen shop where you once shared a meal at midnight. In the FamilyMart bench where you split a famichiki and laughed about nothing. In the silent morning walks through sleepy neighbourhoods — just you, them, and the sound of belonging.

That’s where the real story is.

Real Places. Real Stories.

The truth is, I’m not drawn to perfection.I’m drawn to meaning. And while the big touristy backdrops have their charm, they often miss the point: Your story is what makes the location magic — not the other way around.

Some of the most powerful overseas shoots I’ve done? Not at the famous temples or skyline views. But in the back alley café where they had their first real fight — and made up. At the train platform where they always said goodbye. In front of a vending machine in Osaka where they’d wait out the rain.

Those spots hit different. Because they’re theirs.

Rewriting Memory With Light

Photography, for me, isn’t about posing in front of something iconic. It’s about revisiting the places that shaped you. Reclaiming memory through movement. Filling old corners with new light.

When we shoot overseas, I ask questions like:

• Where did you laugh the most on that trip?

• What tiny place makes your heart swell, even if it’s not on Google Maps?

• Where do your memories sit quietly — waiting to be acknowledged?

And then we go there. No tourists. No crowds. Just space to feel.

Intimacy > Instagram

I get it — the pressure to get “the shot” in front of a landmark is real. It’s easy to fall into the checklist mentality.

But here’s the truth: everyone has that same shot.

What they don’t have?

• A frame of you two sharing a bento box at the same bench you sat on 5 years ago.

• A photo that smells like nostalgia and convenience store yakitori.

• A scene that’s not just about where you are — but who you’ve been to each other over time.

That’s the kind of photo that gives you goosebumps later.

Love Lives in the In-Betweens

Just like with weddings, I don’t stage your story. I follow it. I feel it. I let it unfold — naturally, imperfectly, honestly.

Whether we’re in Tokyo, Paris, Seoul, or some random fishing town you stumbled into once, I shoot the heartbeat of the place — not just the aesthetics.

Because at the end of the day, love isn’t found in the frame. It’s found in the feeling the frame holds.

So if you’re planning an overseas pre-wedding shoot…

Ask yourself: Do you want photos that look good? Or photos that mean something?

If it’s the latter, then you’re my kind of couple.

Let’s skip the crowds. Let’s go where the memories live.

Let’s shoot the story behind the love — not just the location.