A man I met the other day....

Continuing her series on people who cross her path, Danielle Lancaster introduces us to another side of down town Honolulu.

‘If you’re interested in photography you may like this,’ he said handing me a plastic sleeve his veins bulging blue down his muscled arms. I removed the contents and a family, appearing rather solemn, stared back at me from the surface of a shiny tin photograph.

‘Is it for sale?’ I enquired holding it up to the light and inspecting its surface.

Image by Danielle Lancaster

Just give me one piece of paper, that will do’, he replied before ducking out the back and returning with an old video camera. One piece of paper I clarified meant a ten dollar bill and for that I also got the video camera (it accidently got left somewhere between there and my return home).

It was an unusual little shop, down a back lane, complete with resident cat. The counter was littered with tobacco from countless rollies being prepared, cans of glue and paint, a skull and all sorts of bits and pieces. Around every wall, on every surface the shop was jammed with weird, wonderful and bizarre paraphernalia.

Image by Danielle Lancaster 

He was just one of the characters I met this night. There was Darlene and her friends. Darlene lives on the street. I offered her some bandaids for her swollen and blistered feet – a new pair of 3” heels had not been kind to her on the street tonight. We chatted under the amber street lights till a drizzle of rain had us all scurrying for cover.

The tin type did make it home along with plenty of other images from a fantastic part of the world. All images taken on Nikon D3, 24-70mm 2.8 lens, ISO 10,000

A little about Tin type photographs

Also called ferrotypes and sometimes referred to as Melainotype, they were popular from the 1850s to the 1930s. They were generally thin and a silver-based positive image affixed to a painted metal plate (not tin). Popular name is tintype because the thin metal sheets were cut to shape with tin shears. Easy to make, and cheaper than glass they greatly reduced the cost of photography compared to using glass negatives.

The Tintype process was invented in 1852 by a Frenchman Adolphe Alexander Martin. The Melainotype process was developed in America in 1854 by Hamilton Smith, a chemistry professor at Kenyon college in Ohio and then sold the patent rights to Peter Neff Jr., one of Smith's students. They are monochrome, black and white or dark brown and white, though there may not be many true white areas left due to aging. 

Did you know
In the Hawaiian language, Honolulu means "sheltered bay" or "place of shelter". Honolulu has been the capital of the Hawaiian Islands since 1845 and gained historical recognition following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor near the city on December 7, 1941. It is also the birthplace of Barack Obama, the forty-fourth President of the United States.

Click here to view more images from the evening
For more info on Hawaii visit: www.gohawaii.com

Photographing a Hawaiian Monk Seal

Today I had an amazing experience. Right outside my motel on the beach was a Hawaiian monk seal!

The Hawaiian monk seal is one of the most endangered animal species on Earth and this earless seal is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. Less than 1000 are surviving today.

This one is K13, an 11 year old pregnant female who is having a little rest on our beach here on the island of Kauai, the oldest of the Hawaiian islands. K13 is blind in one eye and has a few scars most probably from sharks or mating.

K13 rests peacefully on the beach.

Image by Danielle Lancaster

The scientific name for these beautiful marine mammals is Monachus schauinslandi. The Hawaiian name is `ilio-holo-i-ka-uaua or "dog that runs in rough water". Hawaiian monk seals are the most primitive living members of the Family Phocidae, having separated from other true seals perhaps 15 million years ago.

K13’s gestation period is 11 months and she will return to Niihau Island where she was born to give birth. She will have one pup and nurse that pup for about 6 weeks in that time she will not feed while the pup grows and grows on her nutritious milk. Pups average 14 to 18 kg at birth and 1 metre in length. They get much larger, weighing in between 68 – 91 kilos before they stop nursing. Life expectancies are 25 to 30 years.

K13 stirs for a scratch. Image by Danielle Lancaster

And of course the biggest reason they are so rare is us humans once again. If you get the chance to see one and photograph them don’t use flash. I found underexposing two thirds of a stop exposed best in camera. How privileged I am today, thank you K13 you have made my day!

By late afternoon there had been many visit K13 to photograph her.
Barriers erected by volunteers ensure K13 has a peaceful rest before she ventures back out to the sea.
Image by Danielle Lancaster



The advancing lava flows and photographing panoramas for stitching

There is something humbling about standing next to lava flowing across the land. As it crackles announcing its advancement in a victorious way, the glow beneath the black bulge hints at the devastation this molten rock can cause.

Yet watching new land being formed on the youngest of all the Hawaiian Islands is a memory I will not soon loose.

Red hot lava crackles as it flows. Image by Danielle Lancaster

One house sits spared from the flow, almost as if Pele has seen a reason to allow Peggy, the owner another day of reprieve and a house down the road with the for sale sign erected seems not to be gaining a lot of attention. Next door the twisted lava now has the land at least 8 metres higher than it was the day before.

A house for sale on the lava fields Image by Danielle Lancaster

Charred utensils covered in lava are just some of the reminders of human habitation.
Image by Danielle Lancaster

Nearby, the beach township of Kalapana was once an icon of Hawaii. It’s sweeping black sand beach fringed by swaying palm trees is still seen today plastered across postcards and tourist brochures beckoning you. The reality is Kalapana Beach is now covered in deep black lava with not a grain of sand in sight.

A tip for you when visiting these fields: keep an eye on your shoes - when they start to smoke it’s time to move.

Smokin' Shoes Image by Danielle Lancaster

The coastal drive from Kalapana to Hilo is one of the most scenic I have done. To do the whole route a 4WD is required. Hilo itself I found an unimpressive town.

Our accommodation at the Hilo Hawaiian was well below standard for the price paid. My rating 3/10 and I would not bother booking here again. Polystyrene cups in my room, one serving of coffee for your stay, dirty and stained linen, a smell in the restaurant and bar that had me gagging were just a few of the points I disliked.

From Hilo we continued north to Honokaa, a small town based on plantations most now past, with a stop at the impressive 135 metre Akaka Falls. We stayed overnight at the Hotel Honokaa Club – budget accommodation but well worth the $40.00 US we paid for the night. Annelle our hostess had a great sense of humour. For Aussies the word Hotel does not necessary mean it serves alcohol, however the local patrons at the sports bar next door readily welcomed us Aussies and before long had us joining them swigging shots of Patrón tequila.

Thankfully our heads were fine the next morning for our adventure into the stunning Waipio Valley – Sacred Valley of the Kings and the revered home of Hawaii’s powerful rulers and once considered the centre of Hawaiian civilisation and politics.

The valley is surrounded by 610 metre high cliffs draped by waterfalls and finishes at a beautiful black sand beach. See wild horses and meet friendly locals who farm this fertile valley most continuing the ancient practice of kalo cultivation. Again hire a 4WD to do this drive – if you prefer to use you own horse power, this is a steep walk in and out (25% incline) so allow plenty of time.

Waipio Valley Image by Danielle Lancaster

The most common disappointment I heard from visitors while on the Big Island was not being able to capture the entire splendour in front of their eyes. A wide angle lens is a must here and if you don’t have one then consider shooting images for stitching later on.

A couple of tips for shooting images to stitch:

Take the images from the same point of view – a tripod is best to use. After you take each image recompose the image by moving the camera either vertically or horizontally no more than 70%. This should allow a 30% overlap. More overlap is better than less.

Don’t change the exposure between shots – this includes white balance and focus distance.

Avoid shooting images to stitch when your scene lighting is changing dramatically such as at sunset and sunrise.

Don’t include moving objects.
Most times it is best to take off your polarising filter or your image will look unnatural.

Shoot in RAW.

Landscapes in wide allow more of the scene we see with our own eyes to be captured.
Image by Danielle Lancaster

Is this the face of Pele?

Image by Danielle Lancaster

Kīlauea, the youngest and most south-eastern volcano on the Big Island of Hawaii, is the home of Pele, the Hawaiian volcano goddess.

Kīlauea’s magma-plumbing system extends to the surface from more than 60km deep in the earth. This week I have had the fortune to photograph this massive volcano that has been erupting constantly since 3rd January 1983 though this is not when she started her fiery fury.

In fact, yesterday while on the volcano, more than 100 earthquakes were recorded. Hawaiian chants and oral traditions tell in veiled form of many eruptions fomented by an angry Pele before the first European, the missionary Rev. William Ellis, saw the summit in 1823. The caldera was the site of nearly continuous activity during the 19th century and the early part of this century. Since 1952 there have been 34 eruptions.

Kīlauea ranks among the world's most active and accessible volcanoes with many saying she tops the list. Lives and houses have been lost and this is a site where you can truly see the landscape change before your eyes.

Fast Facts about Kīlauea
The Hawaiian name "Kīlauea" means "spewing" or "much spreading".
Type: A Shield volcano
Elevation: 1,277 m
Area: 1,430 km2 and growing.
Located around 48km southwest of Hilo in the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
Currently produces 250,000-650,000 cubic yards of lava per day! That’s enough to resurface a 32km, two-lane road daily.
By January 1994, 491 acres of new land have been created on Hawaii's Big Island – much more than that now.

Image by Danielle Lancaster

Where we stayed:
Kilauea Lodge, located in the quiet village of Volcano around 2.5km from Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

The Lodge was originally built as a YMCA camp in 1938. Owned and operated by chef Albert and his wife Lorna Jeyte it also has a great restaurant and hot tub! Their cats, Meatloaf and Lamb Chop, patrol the grounds and during your stay you are sure to meet them.

Rooms were nice and clean. Ours had a fabulous fire place which kept us very warm as the cool night air came in. All rooms decorated with art works and feature stained glass windows. Rooms start from $170.00 US and include a full breakfast. We got our room for $120.00 through Bookit.com\

Free Wi-fi available. Common room with DVD’s, games and books. Beautiful gardens.

Our rating: 8/10 and we’d stay here again.

More: http://www.kilauealodge.com/

Image by Danielle Lancaster

Tips for photographing lava fields

Do a search on the internet for ‘why use a polariser filter’ and you’ll get great tips on this fantastic filter that should be in everyone’s camera bag. There is information on why to use it for landscapes, reflections and colour saturation. However there is one landscape that does not get any mention – lava landscapes! I found a circular polariser invaluable during my shoot this week at the most active volcano on Earth – Kilauea – and its expansive lava fields.


Lava contains high levels of silicone and silicone reflects light. So my advice: when visiting lava fields be sure to use a polariser.

The Mauna Ulu Lava Flow of 1974 from Kilauea with a polariser filter.

The Mauna Ulu Lava Flow of 1974 from Kilauea without a polariser filter.