You are currently browsing the monthly archive for December 2012.
“In order to succeed, we must first believe that we can.” Nikos Kasantzakis
I have heard about Polihale Beach on the south west side of the Island – at the end of the road. Everything I read held so many warnings about driving on the road out there – that it was very dangerous and rough and not to attempt it unless you had a good 4WD, or with a Local with good transportaion. Despite all the warnings however, we had to attempt the drive because of all the positive things we’ve heard about the beach at the end of the road. It just sounded too spectacular to pass up. So off we went – on a day of exploring.
We were detoured with a stop at Glass Beach in Port Allan where we found an old Cemetery on a hill above the beach – very old with what looks like old Chinese headstones and very neglected and overgrown.
We ate lunch at a spot we found last year called The Grind – excellent food!
We then drove out to where the pavement ends just past the Missile Base and started the drive on the five mile dirt road out to Polihale Beach State Park. Another car (similar to our Rental) was coming from that direction so we stopped them to ask how the road was. They indicated that it was no worse than what we were on – so off we went. Sure enough – the road was not bad at all and we arrived at this amazing sand beach that was surprisingly busy! You can even take your 4WD vehicle out on the beach and drive for miles – so we’ll save that for our next trip to Kauai. In fact, there were several people camping right on the beach – very tempting indeed! We wandered on the beach most of the afternoon and didn’t head back out until after sunset. Amazing Sunset shots let me tell you! I would love to have stayed even longer to get some good star trails and night sky shots but it was a 2+ hour drive back to our Condo on the North Shore.
We have decided that we’ll come back next time prepared to spend a few nights out on the beach, and with a 4WD vehicle.
Yet one more amazing discovery for us on this truly amazing Island!
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“A mind at peace, a mind centered and not focused on harming others, is stronger than any physical force in the universe.” Wayne Dyer
It’s pretty tough not to feel at peace and centered in my own strength in a place like this.
I am humbled by the beauty and power of Mother Nature.
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“No man has the right to dictate what other men should perceive, create or produce, but all should be encouraged to reveal themselves, their perceptions and emotions, and to build confidence in the creative spirit.” Ansel Adams
I’ve become fascinated by the whole concept of long exposure photography. We’ve bought some ND filters, so now I can explore this medium in daylight whereas before I could only do it at night. It’s a whole new learning curve, and is teaching me even more about the requirements of a good photograph and about how light affects everything – whether there is lack of it or not. Today I played around with creating a silky effect of the ocean waves washing ashore over the lava rocks on the beach. Longer exposures (2 seconds up to 30 seconds seem to create a whispy, dreamy effect while faster shutter speeds (1/4 or 1/2 second) create the long, silky ribbon effect. These are all done with a .4 and .8 ND filter stacked on my 70-200mm VRII lens). I even stacked a polarizer for the longer exposures.
The composite below is of my walking shoe impression in the sand (can’t climb the lava rocks in bare feet), and one of the long exposure shots I did. This one was at 3 seconds.
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“Be miserable. Or motivate yourself. Whatever has to be done, it’s always your choice.” Wayne Dyer
I choose to motivate myself. There’s no fun in being miserable!
Today we went hiking down one of the local beaches that we’d not explored before. We happened upon this awesome tree that obviously has been rooted in this spot for awhile! I enjoyed crawling though the huge root system to see what I could find. No surprises . . . so I enjoyed the view of the ocean from the safety and shade of it’s arms.
Processed in LR4 and Photoshop CS6.
330-365
“The most effective way to do it, is to do it.” Emelia Earhart
We’re hiking around the north shore rocky beaches of Kauai today. I had my 105mm macro lens on the camera taking shots of rock crabs and whatever else caught my fancy. Then I sat down to just take a little break and this caught my fancy! Sand on my shoes. The story here is that I really hate getting my shoes mucked up – with mud or sand or anything else. Usually I would take my shoes off to walk in the sand . . . but the beach we’re on today is just too rocky and I would cut my feet if I climbed on them in bare feet. So – here are my sandy shoes soaked with salty Pacific Ocean water . . . but so what! I’m having a great time and getting some really great shots . . .
I can always buy another pair of shoes!
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“Learn from the past, set vivid, detailed goals for the future, and live in the only moment of time over which you have any control: now.” Denis Waitley
I took this shot from the beach at Hanalei Pier as the sun was setting over the Bali Hai Mountains (taken from the movie South Pacific which was filmed just north of here). Such a beautiful and serene shot. I had been playing around most of the afternoon with slow shutter speed shots under the pier. When I finally popped out to see what Glen was up to – this is the scene I captured.
Kind of takes your breath away eh? And gives a person pause to think about where you are in life, where you’ve come from, where you are going . . . I have huge respect for the fact that the answer to those questions is different for each and every one of us. For me what I know for sure is that every experience I’ve had in my life has created the person I am today.
I am grateful for every one of those moments, good or bad. I am determined going forward that in my experience of life . . . I am leaving positive footprints for others to follow, and leaving a trail of positive energy for others to be inspired as well.
328-365
“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” C.S. Lewis
I am 60 years young. I’ve had some pretty great experiences in my life, as well as some not so great. But that’s life . . . and I create in my life the experience I want from it . . . no matter what “happens” to me.
Right now . . . I’m sure enjoying this Hawaiian Experience!
We were in Hanalei today just snooping around for some good photo opportunities. I saw this old snag out in the middle of the mouth of the Hanalei River and thought it looked like a great 365 photo op. I carefully set my camera up on the tripod, dialed in the settings I wanted, set the self-timer and away I went to get in position. I had Glen standing out there to set my focal point. However, I just couldn’t get out there fast enough. The current was strong enough that it was hard walking against it. So this was the best I got. We did have the pocket wizards with us, but they were in the car at the other end of the beach. By time we were done running back and forth here . . . I was just kinda done with the whole process. Time to move on to something else! I kind like this shot anyway . . . Glen waiting so patiently for me while he is watching the camera take the shots . . . and it’s a lovely view back to Hanalei and the mountains.
Just another beautiful day in Paradise!
327-365
“I get my best ideas in a thunderstorm. I have the power and majesty of nature on my side.” Ralph Steadman
The Island of Kauai was enveloped by a huge storm front with rain and thunderstorms. Interestingly enough, the storms skirted around the eastern side of the Island and left the North Shore virtually untouched. However, we could see the storm off in the distance as it ventured it’s way east over the ocean. Headed for the mainland I guess! The lightening lit up the sky like it was daylight – even from our vantage point. We quickly gathered our tripod, camera and Neutral Density filters to try and get some lightning bolts. It took quite a few attempts and long exposures but we were finally successful.
Another shot I wanted to try was using the pop-flash technique. Glen held an off camera flash unit, as did I. I set the self timer, and during a long exposure (almost 7 seconds) each one of us popped the flash at a different time. When I was editing the photos I realized I only had one good lightening shot, and it wasn’t in any of the pop-flash shots. So – Photoshop here I come! I combined two of the best photographs, created a layer mask and masked in the lightening bolt.
Love the magic of Photoshop!
326-365
“Sensual pleasures have the fleeting brilliance of a comet; a happy marriage has the tranquility of a lovely sunset.”
I love this particular photo because, as the above quote states, a happy marriage has the tranquility of a lovely sunset. I feel like that is where we are in our relationship these days – tranquil and happy. Not to say that we don’t have a few issues crop up now and then, but we know it’s safe to work through the issues without worry that one of us is going to walk away.
I love the feeling of walking hand in hand, side by side, with my best friend – exploring, adventuring, loving, living and sharing.
This photo was taken at sunset on Ke’e Beach at The End of The Road, Kauai, HI.
325-365
“There is no abstract art. You must always start with something. Afterward you can remove all traces of reality.” Pablo Picasso
We bought a GoProHero 2 just before we came to Hawaii, thinking that it would be a great toy to have in the water when we are snorkeling. We took it out of the box to pack it for the trip, but otherwise knew nothing about using it. There actually is quite a process to go through preparing to use it the first time . . . which involves connecting to the Internet and updating it’s software and setting up the wi-fi back pack on it so we can use the iPad or iPhone to control it . . . which of course involved finding the app and downloading it and figuring out how to make it work with the camera . . . all in all quite the process but so cool that we can take pics and video with it thru the iPhone/iPad. Technology is getting so insane . . .
After all that we were ready for a soak in the hot tub! By then it was 8pm-ish so we took the little guy with us just to see what we came up with. I put the camera under water and aimed it at us. This shot is the result. Kinda cool eh? Of course it’s no where near the amazing shots I’ve been seeing people post on-line . . . but kinda cool none-the-less.
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Nurture Self 365 