Bambus
Category: 04 Award Winners
Pipiwai Trail, Hana, Hawaii
When I hiked up the Pipiwai Trail in the morning and through these incredible groves of bamboo, the contrasting light made it virtually impossible to shoot. Disappointed, I continued on to Waimoku Falls. Later in the day however, a brief shower of rain swept through and by afternoon a soft even light provided me with perfect conditions. The rain had gathered in the joints of the bamboo and pooled into thousands of delicate silver rings, and the sun created a wonderful halo of light, which filtered through the canopy. The effect was magical and I wanted to really capture the mood of this unusual location. It was surreal to be totally surrounded by a sea of swaying, willowy bamboo, and an eerie sound echoed around me as it clinked gently together. Some crisscrossed stalks caught my eye in the sea of uniformity, and using them as my focal point I composed so they draw the eye in and I shot from a low vantage to emphasize the depth and density of the grove.
