HawaiiFunshine

If you’ve never been to the Portlock region of Oahu, it’s definitely worth a detour.

The Portlock area is renown for its expensive coastal real estate, which seems completely justified when you get a glimpse of the residents’ view. Spitting caves is one of the few spots accessible to the public in this neighborhood. It is popular amongst the locals for fishing and the adrenaline junkies for cliff jumping. The cliffs also provide a beautiful setting to take in the sun accompanied by pacifying sound of the waves crashing below.

Spitting caves also has a lot of potential for photography. I thought it would be fun to experiment with this new “orange and teal” style that the kids seem to love these days. I also figured I could take advantage of the setting sun (diminishing light) to play around with some long exposure shots. The above image was shot at ISO 100, f/25, 0.8sec.

In an attempt to soften the water of the ocean, I used a longer exposure. By adding a variable neutral density filter to the lens, I was able to increase the shutter speed to 15sec, while maintaining an ISO 100 and f/25. Unfortunately, I’m not certain what number of stops the neutral density filter was able to bring the exposure down, as the markings on the side do not represent the actual number of stops that the exposure was dropped by.

By waiting for the sun to drop a little lower and the sky to darken a bit more, I was able to get a bit more saturation in the sky. I also was able to increase the shutter duration to 20sec, ISO 100 and f/22. Unfortunately the smooth ocean and vibrant sky came at the cost of the foreground becoming completely dark. These Orange and teal colors were achieved by playing around with the “camera calibration” sliders, especially the blue one.

I’m not too sure if I can pull off the orange and teal vibe yet. The above shot illustrates a much more natural representation of the colors of the sunset that night. This shot was achieved using a 30sec exposure at ISO 100 and f/25.

I’m still practicing with these long exposures shots and am very new to the “orange/teal” color hue. I’m not sure if I will continue with this style but it’s fun to experiment. I know these shots could still use a lot of work and I’m open to feedback and tips if you have any.