Some locations take multiple visits, Hanalei Valley is one of those locations on the Island of Kauai. I found myself drawn back to this location time and time again while Shelley and I were on the island. Part of the draw may have been every time we drove to the town of Hanalei. We had to pass the valley overlook twice a trip.
Sunset at Hanalei Valley
For my first attempt at a sunset photograph of the Valley Shelley and I arrived about 40 minutes before sunset. I planned our arrival in part because I was worried about the small parking area being full. If this happened, I would have had to circle into a spot opened.
As Shelley and I were arriving at the location, it became clear that parking was not too be the issue in the late afternoon. It was the weather. A thick layer of clouds was moving and across the valley and any compositions from the overlook. Even with this turn in events, I still set up my tripod and waited.
While Shelley and I were waiting on sunset, I was able to capture a video time-lapse on my OSMO pocket. See that video over on my YouTube channel.
I made this photograph with my Nikon D600 – ISO 100 – 14mm – f/9 – 1/200 sec
Hanalei Valley
Shelley and I’s final attempt at photographing the Hanalei Valley was on our last morning on Kauai. After eating “second breakfast” at Holey Grail Donuts. Mmm…Donuts! We pulled off of the road and into the parking lot for the scenic overlook.
Both compositions that I made on the last morning on the island were from the same point at the overlook. They were both panoramic photographs. The first is very close to a 16×9 aspect ratio and includes the top of the palm tree on the left side of the frame.
I made this photograph with my Nikon D600 – ISO 100 – 24mm – f/18 – 1/40 sec
Ultra-wide – Hanalei Valley
For the second photograph that morning, I wanted to create an ultra-wide pano. To create this photograph, I switched to my 70-300mm lens and kept at 70mm and took multiple images. Once I was back at the computer, I stitched them together in Lightroom.
I made this photograph with my Nikon D600 – ISO 100 – 70mm – f/11 – 1/10 sec
To read more about Shelley and I’s Photographing Kauai 2019 trip click here.
To view the video series on our YouTube Channel click here.
