A couple of days late...

Koko Head Crater as seen from Hanauma Bay  Overlook March 2007

Aloha! I'd intended to post YESTERDAY but was involved in organizing the photos that I hope to use on my blog (and believe me there are LOTS of them) that I lost track of time and by the time I did think about the blog it was late and my bed was calling me; so I decided to post today.

One thing I've decided is that my blog will include every photo that I took while visiting Hawaii. I absolutely love the place and hope to go back again, to stay this next time. I am sure there are other lovely places in the world but to me Hawaii is really paradise. Despite the expense, despite the crowds in Waikiki, I find solace there that I can't find any where else. It also calls to the artist in me. I want to paint and draw the beauty there so badly. I know there are beautiful areas in Arizona, but for me Hawaii is so vibrant it almost overwhelms my senses. I want to get out daily and just walk down a Honolulu street to view the clouds cover the Koo'lau range and even listen to the traffic whizzing by as I walk down the street. Strange I know but that is what the islands do for me. Not even a typical traffic jam can annoy me when I'm there.   

The above photo was taken across the highway from Koko Head Crater. This particular photo was taken in 2003. I wish I'd taken the time to date all my photos. I'm sure somewhere on my Kodak digital camera I have the option to date each photo, I've just not found it yet.  In 2007 I made it a point to have lunch at each Beach Park around the island. On this day I bought a toasted cheese sandwich (one of the BEST I've ever tasted which includes those made by my Mother and myself) with some juice and a cookie (I think) at the little restaurant that was above the bay and sat and ate it in the park. I do have photos (naturally) which I will share at a future date. After my repast I took a walk along the overlook and took photos of the Bay below (I will also share these too at a future date) and turned to see Koko Head  behind me. It's not as impressive as Diamond Head but it is a dormant volcano and to me that is impressive enough. I was standing in front of what was once a force of nature. :)

The photo is not the original however. I actually doctored it in Photoshop. The only thing I really changed was the sky and darkened the lower portion a little bit. The day I was there it was overcast but in the original photo the sky was 'white' not blue; but by using the contrast feature in Photoshop I was able to make the blue of the sky come out. I had to first separate the two portions then darken the sky in order for the blue to appear. It made a tremendous difference in the picture. I also had to soften the edge between sky and crater so that there wasn't so much of a division between the two plains. I'm extremely pleased with how it finally came out. 

This is the before and after photos. Ever since my graphic design class I use any opportunity to
set any thing I've done in Photoshop up like this so that people can see what I've done. You have my permission to use any of my Hawaii photos that I post. I'd consider it a compliment. I'm including one more photo of the same shot...cropped without the parking lot. You can't see it but the Highway is where the volcano and the trees meet. I love how the roads don't impact (to much any way) the environment. At least in later years...I suppose Honolulu and surrounding suburbs could be considered a scar on the island but there are places where man hasn't imposed his architecture so much that it makes a garish statement. The H-3 is an example of this. When you look up from the Windward side to where the highway is supposed to be, the foliage covers the concrete pillars holding up the road. Except for the occasional flash from the speeding car windows you wouldn't even know it was there. It took years for the Government and the environmentalists to come to an agreement but, in my opinion, it was worth the wait. As freeways go, it is one of the prettiest drives even if it is a rather short one. (It only crosses the middle of the island from Honolulu to Kaneohe)

As promised here is another of the Star Wars Character paper dolls. I still need to darken him a bit and rearrange the outfits before I put him up for sale. Like Luke, I'm not going to revamp him as I do like how the original looks.

Next time, the last of the trio...Leia.

Til then...MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU!