"Eternal Denizens" an image by D. "Bodhi" Smith

Image entitled, "Eternal Denizens"...Since, I am headed off halfway around the globe to the south island of New Zealand tonight for the next 10 days (Woo-Hoo!), and in Dunedin, NZ there is a pier formation similar to this, and one of which I hope to capture an impression this upcoming Sunday or Monday evening...

As a result of this trip, It might be a bit before I release any photos here on FB...So in the meantime, I thought I would re-post this photo here along with the one below...as both images are amazingly similar two compositions I will be seeking in South New Zealand over the next week and a half.

Btw, this is an image I captured in Naples, Florida back in August of 2014...it is one of my own personal favorite images (to me, a classic representation of my style) and appears on the back of many of my business cards

Camera settings: ISO-100, 16mm at f/8 for 180 seconds using 15 stops of ND filters (Lee Proglass Filters - 3.0ND filter a.k.a.Lee Big Stopper, .9ND, and .6ND) to bring down the bright light facing directly into the sun (albeit overcast) since this image was captured about 1.5 hours before sunset - I also used one Lee .75ND Graduated Filter (resin) to bring down the brighter sky 2.5 stops to better balance it with the blue waters and pylons.

I hope this message and image finds you well.

Peace,
D. " Bodhi "

‪#LeeFilters‬ ‪#Dolica #Tripods‬ #LeeFilters ‪#Nikon‬ ‪#D800‬ ‪#Nikkor‬ #Bodhi #Smith‬ ‪#LongExposure‬ ‪#expressionist‬ ‪‪#Surreal‬ ‪#Impressionist #Naples ‪#Florida‬ ‪#Gulf #Coast #Pier #Ruins #Sunset

"I'orana Tongariki" new image release by D. "Bodhi" Smith

Entitled, "I'orana Tongariki" this is my first released in my new series of Easter Island (a.k.a. Rapa Nui or La Isla de Pascua) compositions taken with my Nikon D800. Warning: there is going to be quite a few of these over the next couple of weeks.

The name of this image is derived from the Rapa Nui native language with the word "I'orana" which means hello-goodbye (similar to the word Aloha in Hawaiian) combined with the collective name of these moai (statues) which is "Ahu Tongariki." I chose I'orana because these statues greeted me each morning with stellar sunrises while I was on Easter Island, which made it hard for me to say goodbye to this place...

Btw, this is one of the most magical and transcendent places on the entire earth to enjoy a sunrise. The glory of Ahu Tongariki more than wakes you up-- it brings every essence of existence to life physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I am now one week removed from my last hours spent at this spot, and I miss it dearly.

Some background info here...The Ahu Tongariki is a ceremonial platform with fifteen moai on it, all of various sizes and shapes, and all in a perfect North-to-South formation facing west with their backs to the Pacific Ocean and the rising sun every day. I am sure the alignment and placement of this ahu is not a coincidence. I was lucky enough to be at this location on the east side of the Island every morning (but two) that I was on Easter Island, and I was treated to beautiful sunrises each time.

An interesting note, one of the moai has a pukao (tophat) because when the archeologists raised these fallen statues, they chose not to use a pukao for any of them...but, the locals believed each of the moai here should have a pukao, and made a statement by managing to place one pukao atop of one of the moai (second from the right) with their own efforts. Not sure if there is any sort of a movement to get a pukao placed on top of each of the other fourteen moai on the Ahu Tongariki or not.

Camera settings: ISO-800, 80mm at f/16 for 260 seconds (4 mins, 20 secs). One Lee Proglass 3.0ND Filter (10 stops) was used to achieve for the long exposure, and one Lee .75ND Grad Filter (2.5 stops) was used to balance the brighter sky with the darker foreground. Image was captured at 7:03am about 20 mins before sunrise.

Some of you might be wondering why did I select an ISO-800? Honestly, I was shooting the dimming stars as the sun was rising the whole hour previous to this shot, and I simply forgot to drop my ISO back down to 100 when the light started getting brighter...I have done this about three times now when I have been out in the field, and I kick myself for being stupid and absent-minded sometimes when a I am caught up in the beauty of the scenery.

Luckily, my Nikon D800 handled the extra noise from the higher ISO extremely well, as it always does, which is big reason why I own it since I shoot such long exposures and a by-product of that fact is always dealing with extra noise. However, the extra grain in the image from the higher ISO did alter my perception of how I needed to process this image, so what you see here is something a bit different in color tones and texture than my all of my other compositions...

I hope you enjoy this image and that its message finds you well

Peace,
D. " Bodhi "

New Release, "Poseidon Smiles" by Bodhi Smith

New composition entitled "Poseidon Smiles" for overly obvious reasons...

This is another image taken in Corona del Mar, CA similar to the last one I put here on my blog a week ago...this has a bit of a "shorter exposure" by ten minutes at 1 min, 11 seconds...There is more emotion and movement in this compoistion, so it is quite a nice compliment to the other composition taken just after this one...

Camera Settings: ISO-100, 20mm at f/8 for 71 seconds using one Lee Proglass 3.0ND Filter (10 stops) and one Lee .75ND Grad filter to balance the sky with the foreground (2 stops). Image captured just before sunset.

Peace,
D. "Bodhi"

"The Afterglow" - New Composition by Bodhi Smith

This is a new composition entitled, "The Afterglow." It was captured well after the sunset, but the ambient light was still glowing in the sky and sparkling off the waves...hence, the image's name.

We have been getting some very nice clouds here in Southern California with the numerous weather systems that have been blowing in off the Pacific Ocean the past couple of weeks. For almost every night this week, I have been on the beach at different locations (dependent on the best location for sunset each night based on the tide heights).

On this particular evening a few nights ago, there was a low tide. So, me and my trusty companion, the Dude, headed up to Laguna Beach, CA for sunset. Victoria Beach in Laguna is a spot I often go to as Victoria's Tower located around the north point of the beach can only be reached at tides lower than about 2 feet. Often I can be found here on nights like this, as a stellar composition of the tower itself has repetitively eluded my capture for well over a year now, and I keep going back when the conditions are right trying to finally catch it.

This composition is an example of how sometimes we go after something that we though we really wanted, but something else much better finds us instead. I was on this beach in Laguna on this evening to capture Victoria's Tower, but I instead got this more fascinating composition. Go figure, eh?

For this image, I really ventured deeper into the world of impressionism. I really feel like I am "painting" an impression here with my long exposure techniques combined with my use of selective focus. The long exposure played with objects in fluid motion along with the light to create a unique smooth glow around the rocks in the ocean and the clouds in the sky. My choice of a big aperture at f/2.8 blurs and softens the rocks in the foreground (and thus de-emphasize them) so as to draw your eyes towards the wave glow around the rocks at sea and the sunset. All of this really makes me feel like I truly created a painting here and not a photograph, and I think the results back up that opinion. But do not be overly fooled, this is a photograph...

Btw, Catalina Island (60 miles away) can be seen in the background of this picture on the horizon...this shows how clear this evening was at the beach...

I hope you enjoy this unique perspective of the night's fading light out over the ocean...I really like this one.

Camera settings: ISO-100, 70mm at f/2.8 for 420 seconds (7 mins) using one Lee Proglass .9ND filter (3 stops) and one .75ND Grad to balance the brighter sky. Image was captured at 5:55pm, about 1 hour and 10 minutes after the sun had set

I hope this message and image find you well.

peace,
D."Bodhi"

"Kihei Kiss" ... Newest release 12-11-14 by Bodhi Smith

Wow, with my shows happening last week and next week I have been very busy, it seems like I have not put anything new out here in a while...but ahoy, despair no more! Here is my newest composition, entitled "Kihei Kiss."

This was the best sunset we saw during our week on Maui, so it is my first release (of many more to come ranging from waterfalls to ruins to sunrises and stars)) from my trip to this beautiful Hawaiian Island. Btw, the image gets its name from the Hawaiian town where it was captured (Kihei - pronounced Key-Hay), along with the fact that the solitary rock in the composition looks like a Hershey Kiss.

This long exposure capture (sort of a "short" one for me recently) was taken with my Nikon D800 using a 24-70mm f/2.8 Nikkor lens... Image was captured a few minutes before sunset on the main beach in Kihei while me and the girlfriend enjoyed some local Maui brews together. Really one of the easiest and most relaxing compositions I have taken to date. I truly had to do little to capture this scene other than walk across the street from our condo and just be present on the beach while the sun set. The beer was smooth, the company was phenomenal, and the scenery was exquisite. We were literally in our own little Corona commercial that says "find your beach." Fyi, the two smaller Hawaiian Islands of Kaho'olawe (left) and Lanai (right) can be seen at the edges of the composition.

The only thing really missing from this image was that my muse, The Dude, could not be there with us to share this special and beautiful moment in my life...the Dude does not fly well, but he was extremely well taken care of by the owner of AMC pet services who was house sitting and watching the Dude and our cats for the entire time were were on Maui.

Camera settings: ISO-100, f/8 at 34mm for 111 seconds using one Lee Proglass 3.0ND filter (10 stops overall) and one .75ND Grad filter to bring down the brightness of the sky two and a half stops Image was taken at 5:36pm, about 8 minutes before sunset.

I hope this image and message find you well.

Mahalo and Maluhia,
D."Bodhi"