Hawai'i

[NTP66]

I just got back from two weeks in Hawai'i, and figured I'd throw a few shots on here. I took about 1400 photos, so it's going to take me a while to go through them all and finish processing them, but I did manage to run through some of them earlier today. I'll add more as I process them.

The Peppermint Angel at the Waikiki Aquarium:

Juvenile humpback whale breaching (three times in a row!):

Another whale just hanging out:

Another one diving:

Hanauma Bay, Oahu:

Shot of Honolulu from the top of Diamond Head:

Whale watching was fantastic, and the sole reason why we went to Maui in February. Overall, I'd say we saw nearly 100 whales during our time there, and that's no exaggeration. Unfortunately, some of my photos of them breaching didn't turn out too well because we just happened to be facing the sun nearly every single time I had the chance. I did what I could, though, and seeing them in person is good enough for me.

 

[BiggsTheGoalie]

Great pics! I like the fact that the beach has regular old brown sand instead of bright white. Hoping to make a trip to HI one of these days/years, but for now Hawaii 5-0 is as close as I get.

 

[kevinl]

Great Shots! Thanks for sharing.

 

[igot2gats]

The jumping whale is outrageous! Great timing on that one.

Were you using a P&S or DSLR?

 

[NTP66]

I was using my Nikon D5200 with my Tamron 70-300 for the whale shots. I wish I was able to get them on the other side of the boat because the lighting would have been much better and less washed out (as you can see with the tail shot). Ah well - a reason to go back and try again, I say.

95% of the shots I took were with the D5200 and my Nikon 16-85, though I did use my P&S Canon G11 for the underwater shots. I'll likely be posting more pictures on Thursday.

 

[mbingha]

I remember snorkeling in hunauma bay back in December of '04. Man was that a blast! Underwater photography isn't worth a crap with those disposable units... doh.

 

[NTP66]

I've been using Dicapac's for years, and they have worked very well for me - the only issue ever being that you need to zoom in a bit to get the end of the lens frame out of the frame.

We honestly didn't spend much time at Hanauma Bay. The tide was a little low, so the reef was close to the surface, and my wife panicked while navigating everything. I basically pulled her through the maze of coral and back into the beach, so that was the end of that little adventure. Glad the wife's still around, though.

 

[Larz_1]

We are going back to Kauai in July.
We always go during the summer months because of wife/kids school schedule, but I really want to go during whale watching season sometime.

Thanks for feeding my Hawaiian fever .... come on July!!!!

 

[snorvich]

Nice images. Probably the only way for me to ever see that angelfish. Love the whale shots.

 

[mbingha]

Nice images. Probably the only way for me to ever see that angelfish. Love the whale shots.

Lol sadly that trip to Hawaii was probably a quarter the cost of that fish. It is a beauty though.

 

[NTP66]

Well, here are some more shots from Oahu and Maui. Please keep in mind that photography is just a hobby for me, so they won't compare to what a trained photographer can do.

Whale breaching (animaged GIF):
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7359/12975999274_90daf6b1b1_o.gif

Nakalele Point (animated GIF):
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7352/12973000465_8b3ec028a8_o.gif

View from our room at Ka'anapali Beach:

Black Rock @ Ka'anapali Beach:

Po'olenalena Beach, where my wife and I were married:

Sunrise in Oahu:

Nakalele Blowhole (the water was well over 50' high that day):

 

[NTP66]

...and, the final six.

Rainbow over Maui:

Ko'olau Mountains in Oahu:

The Oheo Gulch (Seven Sacred Pools) on the Road to Hana:

One of the many orb weavers in Hawai'i:

Maui Ocean Center, because I thought the rays of sun looked pretty cool:

I'm including this underwater shot because I have always read that yellow tangs max out at 8". I have no idea where this came from, but I can tell you with absolute certainty that either this is wrong of the tangs in Maui are on HGH, because this one, along with dozens of others, was AT LEAST 12" long - and I'm being a bit liberal:

 

[Sugar Magnolia]

Beautiful !

 

[snorvich]

You do realize that posting these pictures for those of us who are trying to endure winter will make us totally crazy. And if you need help with your luggage next time, I am available.

 

[NTP66]

LOL...

The weeks before we left, our area (just outside of Philly) was seeing three snowstorms per week, and wound up with 6" of snow on the ground 12 hours before our flight. The first day that we returned? 12 degrees outside with light snow. We had a great reprieve from the weather, but trust me, we're back in the "miserable zone".

 

[tidus10]

Great shots! Some day I'll make it to Hawaii

 

[NTP66]

Thank you all, and silly me for not posting a few pictures of the many gorgeous flowers that you'll find all over the islands.

Plumeria:

Hibiscus:

Hawai'i is, and always will be, my favorite place on Earth.

 

[OutsideBrian]

I went in my honeymoon on Oahu/Maui/big island two years ago and really want to go again.

Waikiki beach, looking at Diamond head from the rainbow tower in Hilton Hawaiian village resort.

 

[NatureNerd]

Nice photographs! I love the whale shots. I also saw some pretty big yellow tangs out there. It really made me wonder about seeing these fish in small reef tanks.

If you are interested, check out my Hawaii marine life, snorkeling, video in the scuba snorkeling section.