Hawai’i

My first trip to Hawai’i. We were unable to explore the islands, but we covered all of Oahu.

Waikiki

Two of these are phone pics, and a bit over processed if you ask me. I remain hopeful that someday we’ll be able to shoot raw on our phones. The night shot is an 8-second exposure and contains an impressive number of stars for a shot captured in Honolulu. Orion is partially covered by the palm in the foreground.

Halona Cove

This cove and its micro beach are on the southeastern tip of Oahu. The surf is pretty rough, and the abruptness of the terrain is due to the Koko Crater, whose outer slope steeply intersects with the water here.

North Shore

We hit a few beaches on the North Shore. Saw a number of chickens too. This one below with its fiery neck feathers is quote beautiful.

Keawaula Beach (a.k.a. Yokohama Bay)

This may be the most beautiful beach I’ve ever visited. For one, it’s relatively deserted. Two, there are few signs of humanity—no boardwalks, no Burger King, no buildings. I love the appearance of isolation, even if I know it’s not real.

The surf is pretty rough here, which is why this beach is not too crowded. It’s also all the way out toward the western tip of the island on a dead end road.

This first shot of the cove I took with a 10-stop ND filter. I wanted to see if this would make the water nice and glassy. I was moderately happy with this shot… I didn't think it was amazing, but the colors seemed to be amped up with the longer exposure, and the water did smooth out, though it’s too clear to really see that.