pinnacles at poipu-- high risk, high return
aloha!
long time no blog.
i hope you have all been well and that your new year is off to a pleasant start.
in this blog, i want to introduce you to the pinnacles that run all along the heritage trail from poipu to mahaulepu-- on the south side of kauai.
pinnacles and time
the picture above is one of my favorite places to shoot on the south shore and on the day of this shoot, naomi and i woke up early so that we could get a few sunrise shots either on or in the pinnacles. this day was gonna be all about high risk-high return.
we arrived at shipwrecks early-- well before sunrise-- and affixed our headlamps and began our little hike to my favorite pinnacles.
although i knew where i wanted to shoot, and how to get there, i wasn't quite sure how i was going to get the sunrise and the pinnacles in the same shot. so when we arrived at the location i had to scout around a bit-- climbing up and down, over and in the pinnacle formations all the while keeping an eye on the horizon for signs of where exactly the sun would appear. climbing into the pinnacles was a bit tricky. and once when i thought i had a good spot i took out the camera and tripod only to have a big wave splash all over me.
um, this spots not gonna work.
now, how to get down safely!?
without injuring camera or body.
while the sun's beginning rise!?
this is what i call "high risk-high return photography." high risk because of the location-- proximity to heights and drop-offs, water and waves, strange or unfamiliar angles, and other compositional challenges. basically when shooting high risk-high return you're taking a chance that while some of your photos may turn out interesting or spectacularly unique, you are also risking the light, the gear, and pretty much the entire shoot.
i finally found a cramped little corner that would provide a glimpse of the sun, but the angle wasn't that great for the pinnacles. not too great of a return, but the adventure and challenge was fun. after getting a couple of shots here, i decided to climb down and approach the subject from another angle.
sun on the pinnacles (bw)
i like this one. the sun just off the lens, giving a hint of the warmth and light in the day. like the guru.
macbeth
the reason why i look shooting here so much is because of the mysterious quality of this specific section of the heritage trail. it's like another world. one from a different place and time. it reminds me of macbeth, where the time seems out of sync and the loose ends are frayed.
and continuously changing.
aloha,
lee
new year's day on the nualolo
whatever you do on new year's day you'll do a lot of that year: so make it fun and meaningful. last year i did 108 sun salutations and ended up spending three months in india practicing yoga. this year-- with a peruvian adventure planned for april-- i decided to do a little hiking on new year's day.
i decided to go to koke'e state park and chose to hike the nualolo trail. naomi and i hiked it two years ago and i really enjoyed it then. i remember it being relatively long (about 8 miles) and a steep climb all the way back. last time it was hot and we ran out of water so this time i took 2 liters with me, lots of new year's mochi and my camera gear-- 5d mark iii, 70-200, 16-34, 100 macro and tripod. hey, i figure if i am going to hike the andeas then i better start getting in shape!
a beautiful blue sky greeted me at koke'e and since it was so clear i decided to drive up to the kalalau lookout. it's rare to get such cloudless view of kalalau, and this spot is one of my favorite places on island. it's always good to see.
peaceful and quiet and full of the view i drove back to koke'e lodge and set out with the intention of having a safe hike and taking pictures with each lens i packed into my bag.
the nualolo trail starts out in a koa wood forrest and winds its way down the ridge toward the nualolo valley and the napali coast. last time on the trail we walked through beautiful groves of wild ginger, but this time the ginger were few and harder to find. i did see a few banana poka flowers hanging upside down like cute little lights or vampire bunnies.
alright. so far so good and it just gets better. i emerge from the forrest and get this amazing view:
from this point on the scenery becomes more expansive as you slowly descend toward the napali coast. the trail continues in and out of green shrub-brush and it's along this area where the slope becomes rather steep. but soon enough you get your first glimpse of the nualolo valley and champagne flute cliffs like this:
and this:
the trail now runs along the side of the cliff, and although it may look scary, it's not. there's plenty of room to walk and only one or two areas show signs of significant erosion. the cliff trail-- connecting the nualalo to the awaawapuhi trail-- is still closed so i continued on to the nualolo vista, where the views are quite simply, awesome!
behold, the napali coast:
not a bad way to spend new year's day-- a little walking in nature, breathing fresh air and taking some pics. i think it's gonna be a good year.
happy new year everyone!
aloha,
lee
lessons learned
aloha! thanksgiving has come and gone and with it another defeat to mississippi state (shame on you ole miss!), an amazing iron bowl win for auburn over alabama (war eagle!), and the maui classic saw a new acc champion-- syracuse (syracuse is in the acc? what?).
this morning i went over last month's sales and compiled a list of the gallery's top three sellers for november. and here they are:
1. in the light of lightning, kilauea lighthouse. web gallery: 2012 limited edition
2. dreamworld, lumahai, kauai. web gallery: 2012 limited edition
3. can't count 'em all, kalalau, kauai. web gallery: full time
each of these photographs are special to me, and i am glad that they have been well received. over time, all of my pictures take on a special meaning to me-- beyond the beauty of the location displayed in the image-- and often the images come to teach me little lessons about life and myself.
in the light of lightning has taught me patience. dreamworld reminds me to be open to the possibility and truths of which i am ignorant. you see, when the morning i took the picture, i was planning on shooting the lumahai river, it's reflections and floating hao (a tropical flower). but when i looked up and saw the sky, i knew i had to change my plans-- and the lens! so be open ideas of others and to things beyond our control. and can't count 'em all has encouraged me to explore the world through night photography, and to be thankful for the moments of work and effort and safe travels. also when i look up at the milky way over kalalau i am reminded of the wisdom of the past (cultures and worlds) and know that it is different from the knowledge of the present (modern society and life). and i think this has inspired me in my recent readings on the arctic and eskimo teachings; zen and dogen.
mahalo for all of your support!
aloha,
lee
the depth of a dew-drop
dewdrop in the grass, kilauea, kauai
recently, i purchased two books about zen. the first is by peter matthiessen, titled nine-headed dragon river: zen journals. the second, i am saving for christmas, but it's a collection of eihei dogen's writings on zen. i started zen journals last week and have unwittingly stumbled upon some wonderful passages by dogen. i guess it's unavoidable in a book about zen, but it's definitely been a pleasant surprise to read inspiring verses by the old japanese zen master, and one that has me looking forward to opening my self-purchased christmas present! i'm still being a good boy and leaving the book by dogen on the shelf until the 25th (or maybe the 24th!), but i want to share a thought from dogen about the depth and potential of the everyday.
dew drop in the grass 2, kilauea, kauai
in the actualization of the koan (a koan is a zen riddle that cannot be solved by the intellect alone) dogen writes:
The whole moon and the whole sky are reflected
in a dew-drop in the grass, in one drop of water.
Enlightenment does not disturb the person,
just as the moon does not disturb the water.
first of all, i love the imagery of the dewdrop reflecting the moon and the sky. i also love the concept of the great and vast enclosed in the tiny and fragile. it's like an affirmation of life everywhere. and everywhere-- no matter how big and seemingly important or how small and seemingly insignificant-- has the potential for everything. there are no limits with this mindset. anything is possible. and all past ways of thought are null and void. it's a classic zen flip. it reminds me, too, of looking back to earth from outer space. have you ever seen that? it's amazing how small the earth appears, and by relationship, us too. so tiny. so small in the grand scheme of things. enlightenment, happiness and peace are there are here for us to awaken to. it's just a matter of seeing it. of feeling it. of living it.
drop in, limahuli gardens, kauai
dogen continues:
A person does not hinder enlightenment, just as a dew-drop
does not hinder the moon in the sky.
The depth of the dewdrop is the height of the moon.
i love that last line--the depth of the dew drop is the height of the moon. every time i read i get chicken skin. the words together make me high. i can't explain it any other way. they just send me soaring. the depth of the dew-drop is the height of the moon all things are equal. there is nothing insignificant. there is nothing more important than anything else. enlightenment is not an exalted status. it's just enlightenment. it's just happiness. it's just seeing. it's just breathing. it's just being. no more, no less. it's not the moon, it's the humble dew-drop. it's not the dew-drop, it's the high moon. it's everything. it's all things. it's work. it's play. it's life. it's death. they are all the same. so beautiful! can't wait till christmas! :-)
like stars in the sky, kilauea, kauai
have a great day.
aloha,
lee
light
tiki, poipu, kauai
i have been reading arctic dreams by barry lopez off and on for the last month or so. i've learned about muskox and polar bears. icebergs and eskimos. but what i have found most interesting is lopez's thoughts about how the landscape and light shape the individual consciousness. Writing about the luminist painters of the 19th century he says that in their successful paintings there was a "loss of ego" where "the artist disappears. The authority of the work lies, instead, with the land. And the light in them is like a creature, a living, integral part of the scene."
as a landscape photographer i found this thought appealing. Light as life. Not only a source of energy but energy itself. As you may know, my photographer's name is 光 (hikari). It's taken from the japanese kanji for light. I find the shape of the kanji to be incredibly energetic, dynamic, and yes, positive-- all concepts that i wish to portray in my photography. but i am not sure if i ever considering light to be a living force in the image. i think rather i just felt it to be the communicator, or the conductor of energy between the scene and the viewer, the image and me, nature and us.
good morning sunshine, kealia, kauai
mystics of all religions seek to experience the spiritual. faith, study, and practice may all lead to an understanding of the divine, but it's the transcendent experience of the divine that is nature's blessing. i often tell people who come into the gallery that all i do is choose a time and a perspective, but everything else is god, kauai, nature. i can't make a cloud pink or a sky blue. all of that is light. it ain't me. i ain't the one that can turn the ocean green and jump up in a wave or make a lotus bloom. that's all nature , and that's all a mystical experience of the divine. and if i don't communicate that then i've failed as a photographer and what i want to do with my photography. well, i don't say all of that every time, but you get the idea. :-)
the mystical kealia, kauai
thus concludes thoughts on light.
aloha!
lee