Milky Way over Maui, Hawaii

[Richard Peters]

Hey all, been a while since I've had anything worth posting!!

Taken on my week on the Hawaiian island of Maui last week. I spent the whole week trying to get a decent shot of this but cloud cover kept me at bay right up until the final night, when I managed to get the kind of shot I was after, which was one including some foreground interest. In this instance it was the shoreline with the waves crashing on the rocks, which I painted over with a torch during the exposure.

I also did a write up on my blog about my efforts to photograph the Milky Way, along with more images, including one taken in total darkness with the D3s, hand held for 2 seconds at ISO 102,400 - crazy stuff. Check it out here (http://www.richardpeters.co.uk/blog/2010/10/09/milky-way-over-maui-hawaii/).

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4147/5065277846_fa7e5e8da0_o.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardpeters/5065277846/)

D3, 14-24, F2.8, ISO 6400, 30 seconds

[Robert Amoruso]

Richard,

Nice to see you here. Very ingenious on the shoreline inclusion - for me that really sets this image apart. The diagonal of the Milky Way makes the upper part of the image strong and dynamic. I will check out you link next.

"Thanks for posting. I am looking forward to seeing more of your images. And if you have not done so, please lend a hand and tell our other forum participants what you think about their work. We are all here to learn and the more the merrier. Thanks for helping out.:cool:"

[denise ippolito]

Richard, I really like the way you composed this. The waves at the shoreline add interest. Nicely done.

[Dave Mills]

Hi Richard, I'm impressed with the image. Well handled technically and compositionally. Love the diagonal MW emanating from a cloud bank . Even the soft light on the rt horizon is appealing.
Finally the lit wave base adds another element which I find most interesting and doesn't take away from the whole. Truly an image I could gaze at for quite awhile...

[Roman Kurywczak]

Hey Richard,
The milky way and the clouds look fantastic! I am slightly bothered by the crashing waves being lit that brightly....(what did you use to illuminate it?)......but just personal preference and overall.....glad you were rewarded with one clear night to capture this image!

[Arthur Morris]

I love the waves (and of course the Milky Way.) It's the dark ocean that bugs me :)

[Richard Peters]

Thanks for the comments, appreciated :)

A couple of people have said the waves are distracting, and I can see the argument. I like that element though as the shot would be slightly boring without IMO. Well not boring, but just the same as the other shots on my blog. I do have one with less water on the rocks, which I may process up too. Rocks were lit with a torch btw :)

Not much I can do about the ocean being black though. My torch didn't reach out to the horizon :D

[Andrew Merwin]

A very impressive image. I think the lit waves anchor the image & give the viewer a reference point.