Sunday, September 30, 2012

Gotta love the coconut!

I've seen this coconut plant in the backyard for years.  I've actually never had the pleasure of eating its fruit or see it bare fruit at all until this year.  I have to say it's pretty awesome.  This is the few type of coconut tree that does not grow very tall and have normal size fruit.  Easy to cut down and easy to enjoy!

Miniature coconut tree with tons of fruit.
My very first time cutting down coconut. I mean when am I ever going to be eye level with a coconut tree?The coconut is surprisingly heavy, I had a pretty tough time holding on and carrying it inside the houseI think this is a classic photo. Gives me a feeling of what hanging out in paradise is all about.Call him the coconut master, he is quite good at chopping it for consumption. He makes it look very easy cutting through the tough outer skin.
While putting these photos together I realized something.  Usually I like to tell a complete story from beginning to end yet I feel that my photos have not.  I've shown the coconut being cut, carried, and chopped but not the final product or even the aftermath.  I think the same for the photos of 'Trimming the Tree', I had the before and after photos but I was missing the critical middle photo of how much green product we had to dispose of.

I hope that in the future I will think about the whole photo process during my travel photos as I do on my wedding photography where I always try to tell a complete story. I hate the feeling of seeing missing pieces or something lacking after sorting through my images.

Come back again for more amazing coconut photos!

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Maui Fruits

My dad has done a great job of planting fruit trees on the property.  Some of them are more experimental than others but thus far he has been very successful at them.  There are many that has impressed me but some are more interesting than others especially the dragon fruit. 2 years ago it was just a bunch of worn out cactus looking plant but now it's thriving with more fruit than we can eat.  The other is the coconut tree that I shall show in the next post.  For now enjoy the fruit that has been the labor of love from my dad.

Papaya in the front yard Whooa what's that? Dragon fruit? [caption id="attachment_478" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Papaya in the front yard[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_484" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Whooa what's that? Dragon fruit?[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_480" align="aligncenter" width="900"] This used to be an ugly cacti, now it's full of fruits. The flowers are also very beautiful as well![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_481" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Almost ready to eat[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_482" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Getting closer to being ripe[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_483" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Oh yeah it taste just as good as it looks, yeah not that sweet but tasty nonetheless[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_479" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Lilikoi (passion fruit) in an abandoned pineapple field. They don't look like much but amazing.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_485" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Giant Mang Cau![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_474" align="aligncenter" width="900"] I don't like mang cau very much but this tasted very sweet[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_477" align="aligncenter" width="920"] Can't go wrong with Mit and Mango![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_476" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Yeah I like to chop my mango up while it's still hanging on the tree[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_475" align="aligncenter" width="900"] Doesn't that look delicious?[/caption]

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Resize Landscape or Portrait Images in Photoshopt for 4x6 Print

The last part of my workflow is exporting the images out. I usually I either export out the images at full resolution or 8x12 at 300. The tricky part is that if I need to resize to 4x6 I can either re-do the export again in Lightroom which will take a long time or use Photoshop to batch process the already rendered JPEG photos.

Two ways to resize images for both Landscape and Portrait images for 4x6 prints

1) Use Fit Image under File -> Automate -> Fit Image.



The Fit Image screen will show up with Height and Width which is very misleading

It's not clear but the text really means is constrain the image dimension height and width to the longest side.  For this example if an image is landscape the longest Width will be 1800px or if an image is a portrait the longest height will be 1800. It DOES NOT mean to constraint the height and width to 1800 to make a square image.

End result of a Landscape image should be something like this:




End result of a Portrait image should be something like this:




Notice the Maximum Width and Height, they both fall under our constraint of 1800px.

2) To batch job the whole thing Image Processor makes quick work of the images using the same dimension concept as in Fit Image.


Now I can resize all the image I want to print in one folder or open the up in photoshop and batch process the whole thing without having to create my own actions.


You can also save at the same location but it's smart enough to create a new folder so your old images will not be overwritten.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Panoramas

I used to take panoramic photos quite often.  It was much easier when my Canon S30 had the built function to do so.  It was my first camera and it had so many great features that I still miss today.  I even bought an old Russian Horizon 202 that took 160 degree panoramas using film.  I scraped the idea as it was difficult to scan the negatives and make it look crisp and clean.  I however do like that it took the whole view at once.  I know there are various ways to take excellent large landscape but I haven't spent too much time developing that skill or interest yet.  For now enjoy the few that I have taken.  You can click on the images for a bit better view.  The actual versions of these images are HUGE.

On the road to Hana On Piilani Hwy in West Maui past KipahuluNapili Bay during sunset



Monday, September 17, 2012

Working Hard in Paradise

Not always fun and games in paradise, a few days of forced manual labor made us appreciate our visit even more. Despite being on vacation my dad made us work.  He had many crazy ideas of how to make things better and improve his property which we don't agree to but how can you argue with your parent when they are set in their ways?  If you don't help out he will still do it. Usually after our sweat we hurry off to the beach to enjoy the rest of the day.  It's always something nice to look forward to.

We only started with a 'light' trim with this beautiful shade treeSmall twigs became large branches and more cutting. Photo break!oh it's so heavyyyyy ... it's hard work!Yeah messing around when I should be 'trimming' more branches!As you can see we're cutting more and more of the tree. So much for a light trim.Checking out the back yard, hanging with the chickens and ducks.Family photo with the pets.

Friday, September 14, 2012

Honokowai @ Night

I had lot of wonderful ideas of what I wanted to capture but many of them never came to fruition or the right circumstance never materialized. Here are my attempts for sunset with an ND filter and night photos at Honokowai.

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Who loves Honokowai Beach Park?

Lulu the family watch dog.  She is incredibly smart! The only dog I know that could remove her own leash, run to her favorite spot, Honokowai Beach Park, swim in the ocean, and once she is content she would walk back home all on her own.  The most clever part is that she has figured out how to remove her leash even though it's been chained in two different parts.  I'm glad that my father does not have to worry about Lulu running away but she tends to walk down the middle of the street.  It's something I've trained her not to do but she still falters.  Now if I can only teach her to look both ways before crossing the street.

Lulu the smartest dog and sweetest pit bull I've ever met. She is a great family pet and expert escape artist! Lulu playing at Honokowai Beach Park, her paradise. Lulu hanging out with her other buddies. The Chihuahua clan, all 6 of them visible here. The chihuahuas all clamming for food.





I haven't forgotten but I still have more photos of Honokowai after sunset. Come back again for more!