A cardinal rule of photography is that lens flare must be avoided at all costs.... I have always had a thing about it though! Although owning lens hoods in various sizes, I very rarely use them. I like the random patterns and colours of light formed by the refraction in the camera lens, and rarely edit them out or try to avoid them. They also remind me of how it feels to actually stand in the sun and look at the scene as they are the same as the flashes of light you get in the corner of your eyes when you are (unwisely) looking at the sun askance :) I've played around with these in editing too to make them even more ethereal / alien landscape looking.
These were taken in Iceland, already good scope there for lunar landscapes with all the black sand, lava and white outs.
These two of course in Hawaii last month, the second one taken at 10,000 feet overlooking a volcanic crater.
And these last two in Crete, I love the dramatic effect of the low viewpoint plus silhouette at the Palace of Knossos. So there you have it! The number one photographic rule I like to break, I feel this could easily become a series... not that I am a rebel you know......erm......
Since getting back from Hawaii it has a) rained non stop (erm we are supposed to be having a DROUGHT here in the UK??) and b) I have terrible jet lag.. luckily being awake since 2am and then up since 5am gave me plenty of time to try out some "arty" shots of said rain, using my new set of close up filters (birthday present from my wonderful fiance) I could have done with a tripod but that seemed like too much work at 5am, so although not as crisp as they could be, I am pretty pleased for my first play with the filters.
But who can blame me when they are as stunning as this? All this from the lanai (balcony) or our condo (apartment!) If only I could come back after a stressful day of work to this every evening... work would be forgotten in a heartbeat!
The road to Hana is a famous driving day trip here in Maui, you get to drive all the way through the rainforest region (the third wettest place on earth!) And then on through to the south of the island where the surf pounds black volcanic rock beaches. One review said "prepare to see all your favourite house plants on steroids!" and it was true! Huge great tropical trees and plants, and every mile of so a stall selling fresh fruit, coconut ice cream and banana bread. It's a totally different vibe yet again from Upcountry Maui and Beach Maui, for such a small island it has alot to say. Tomorrow is our last day and I will miss it, there's definitely a part of me that resonates to Hawaii energy.
