Today is my last day in Hawaii. After time spent on Kauai and Maui, my gear is all packed and ready for the red-eye flight back to the cold and freezing rain of Maryland.
In terms of photography, I felt it was a mixed bag (see my previous blogs from Hawaii). I managed to have some really good days, with outstanding images, but other days were a struggle. There were the typical weather issues (I don’t mind rain, but rain mixed with blustery winds drives me nuts!). Then on my last few days …

Maui, Hawaii in February can mean only one thing- the whales are in town. Specifically, this is the time that thousands of humpbacks are in full force in Maui, frolicking in the protected area between Maui and the nearby islands of Lanai and Molokai (as well as others). And what a sight they are to behold.
Stand on any beach from Kapalua to Wailea for more than five minutes and if you don’t see at least a dozen blows, fin slaps, and breeches you are facing away from the ocean. This …

I found a really sweet stream on Maui, about an hour from my hotel. But when I visited it this morning, it started to rain just as I got set up, so I’ll return at least once more to try again. The challenge is that this stream is in a generally wet part of the island and today the stream was swollen. I had to wade into it to get the shot, but if it’s much higher on my next visit I’m not sure I’ll be able to access the …

Most people know the route as the Road to Hana. But what about the return trip, what I call the Road From Hana? Sure, many people simply turn around at Hana and drive back as they came, and there’s nothing wrong with that. The views are magnificent as I described in yesterday’s blog.
But there is another way to return from a visit to glorious Hana. Just keep driving clockwise, following the shore road. At first your journey is familiar, passing through deep foliage and waterfalls. But then the vistas open …

It’s probably an impossibility for a photographer to come all the way to Kauai and not hike the Kalalau Trail along the famed Na Pali coast. And with good reason. The coast is one of the most spectacular scenics on Earth. I imagine that every adult in North America has seen at least one image of Na Pali.
There are three ways to see the Na Pali coast; helicopter, boat and hiking. Each has its advantages and disadvantages for photographers. Helicopters, for example, are expensive, last a short time and you …

I recall cruising on board a small ship in the Galapagos on one of my trips there. Each morning our wonderful tour guide, a local, would waken the 16 passengers with the following announcement: “Good morning everyone. Welcome to another beautiful day in paradise.” And to an ecologist like myself, the Galapagos islands are truly a paradise.
But, make no mistake about it. The Galapagos islands are hardly tropical paradises. For that, you have to go to the Hawaiian Islands and, more specifically, Kauai, the Garden Island. Next to the Arctic …

Histograms! Sounds like a medical procedure or, worse yet, mathematics.
Well, if you’re a photographer, histograms are your friends. Don’t be intimidated by them. Learn how to use a histogram and your images will dramatically improve.
What Is a Histogram?
In digital photography a histogram is an electronic display of all the pixels, light-to-dark, recorded on the sensor when you press the shutter release. It appears as a graph on the rear LCD screen in DSLR cameras and even on many point-and-shoots, such as the Canon G12.
There is really no such thing as …

I’m not sure what it is with old, junk cars. As photographers we seem to be drawn to them like flies to…
Okay, let’s start again. I spend a good amount of time in the woods and fields taking photographs and every so often I come across a great old junk car, peacefully rusting away. It’s irresistible. Snap, snap, hmmmn, maybe that angle or this one. Is it a metaphor for our own creaking, degenerating bodies? Is it the triumph of nature over machine? If you actually take the time to …

Don’t say I didn’t warn you!  If you’re shooting landscapes, one of the most effective means of adding interest and impact is to include a foreground element. I know we hear this a lot nowadays, but what I find is that this is usually mentioned as a given, an aside, without providing enough detail for the photographer looking to improve his or her skills. I’m hoping to add flesh to the bones here, so please bear with me.
I believe it was George Lepp who said that there is no such …

[This article originally appeared in Interval International Magazine. Please confirm details.]
Maui
by Lester Picker
I love Hawaii. Few destinations in the world offer as much variety, as much depth and breadth of experience, as much visual pleasure, as do the Hawaiian islands. Born of cataclysm in the middle of the Pacific Ocean a million or so years ago, the islands today offer so many options, I always threaten to stay. When my vacations there wind down, I find my To-Do list already growing for the next visit. There are the hikes near …