When Tu and Tara (of Tu Nguyen Destination Wedding Photography + Film) put up an announcement on their Facebook page earlier this year, it was in search of an adventurous ready-to-be married couple that was up for a crazy elopement in Kon Tum in Central Vietnam, in the middle of a protected national reserve for their four-day wedding photography retreat. “Looking for a couple seeking adventure off the grid, not afraid of getting cold, sunburn or muscle sores while doing it,” they wrote.

“We promised to make the chosen couple’s elopement an unforgettable memory in their life,” explains Tu. “The only catch was the 20 attendees following Tara and I to learn and photograph the couple, so there would be a bit more production than at a typical elopement!” (The larger team of 40 total also included caterers, porters, a makeup artist, designer and stylist, as well as three local guides and two park rangers.)

Enter bride Hoang Anh and groom Nghia. “From almost 30 emails we received, they came across as very down to earth, sympathetic human beings who seemed to be a good fit,” Tu says. “People who love analog photography and appreciate art. And after all being said and done, we’re so glad that we met and the universe somehow had a way to bring us together. We’ve done so many trips in our life, but this, hands down, was to be one of the funniest, mesmerizing and amazing [experiences].” And intense…

“It was a 4-hour car drive from the closest airport,” Tu explains, “then 3-and-a-half hours tagging along a tractor off-road and almost 4 more hours trekking through untouched jungle, going up and down, crossing six streams, creeks and rivers, and climbing a 60-meter-high waterfall just to get to the ceremony location.”

While Tu says March is the best time of the year to undertake a trip of this magnitude in his homeland of Vietnam—”because that’s when it’s pretty sunny, warm weather and with so little rain,” he says—there were still endless muddy sections up to their knees and crossing rivers that ran up to the hip. It all culminated to “an accidental flipping of the ceremony bamboo raft at the foot of the waterfall at the last minute during the ceremony!” Tu recalls.

But at the end of the day, the photo duo says it all paid off. “When the whole crew of 40 people camped on the top of the most amazing waterfall, watching the majestic scenery of the mountains and forests in mist, that’s when we knew it was worth it.”

See the slideshow highlights here.

GEAR
Camera: Sony a7R III
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm

VENDOR CREDITS
Concept and photographer: Tu Nguyen Wedding
Wedding planner and floral designer: Hands Heart Wedding
Bride’s apparel: Colorized Bridal
Groom’s apparel: The Manner’s Tailor
Hair, makeup and celebrant: Thu Thao 
Invitation and map: Thiep cuoi Flocat 
Guides: Kon Chu Rang National Reserve’s Rangers

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