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Articles Tagged with: water

In The Water

In my previous post, I showcased some of my favorite sun-related shots from my recent trip to the Caribbean. Today’s post will feature some shots in and around the water, mostly with my Pentax Optio W80 compact point-and-shoot camera. I bought this camera a few years ago after realizing that a proper underwater DSL housing costs more than a DSLR. I just wanted to play around, so a point-and-shoot was perfect for the job. Nowadays, waterproof point-and-shoots are relatively inexpensive and every major manufacturer has something to offer. I highly suggest picking one up – they make capturing moments like these a lot simpler.

The shot of my wife Amy at the top was taken at Stingray City at Grand Cayman. This is my favorite shot of the whole trip because it tells a very concise and complete story of the day, which is simply that we rode out to Stingray City on jet skis and kissed some ‘rays. The shot just above was from Cozumel. After a long day of riding up and down the coast on dune buggys, I was able to rinse off some of the dust and sand in the sea. Here’s a shot my wife took of me while we took a break during the buggy adventure:

Here’s a shot of Amy snorkeling off the coast of Grand Cayman:

This last shot was taken with my D90 on the coast of Haiti. While I’m not technically in the water, I was right at the shoreline trying to capture the sea-spray. I must have looked like a maniac shuffling back and forth trying to avoid getting doused every time the water broke. But, I got a few shots from it that I like:

Check back again soon for some more Caribbean coverage.

Lovely Reminders

Last night as I was laying in bed, I had this thought in my head about losing touch with photography by getting wrapped up in one of the multitude of aspects surrounding this business. When I first realized that I love this stuff, I was like a teenager head-over-heels over his first real relationship. Those amazing and wondrous emotions in the beginning that consume you as you explore what it is about this person you’re obsessing over that makes your stomach ache at the mere thought of them. Then, the feelings mature and you become more functional and less passionate. Sometimes when the fog of love clears a bit, you find out that she really isn’t all that interesting to you anymore and then you move on.

One of the greatest fears that plagued me when I decided to take the plunge and become a professional photographer was idea that I might find the work less than intriguing over time and become merely functional instead of inspired. Instead of searching for the light, I’d be searching for a compromise. Instead of creating, I’d be replicating. Instead of loving it, I’d be simply going through the motions.

This morning as I walked down the steps of my front porch, something caught my eye. In the center of one of my wife’s little succulent plants that she’s been collecting for a project she’s working on was this giant water droplet. It caught the light and was glowing like a diamond. I was absolutely entranced by it and went back inside to grab my camera. Then I noticed how all of them were retaining water in a similar fashion.

As I moved from plant to plant I realized that I was shooting for the love of it. I saw something interesting and captured it in a way that conveyed what I felt. Like an answer to a wish, I felt a calm come over me as I realized that I’m still in love.