The Big Island

This was taken on the north side of the Big Island in Hawaii just a few weeks ago. My friend is in helicopter training and asked myself and another along on one of his training flight in a R-44. Our trip took us from one side of the island to the other, following the shoreline the whole way. It was an amazing flight, filled with about a dozen whale sightings, and a short trip up into Waipio Valley, with tons of tall waterfalls towering above us as we ventured into the deep folds of the giant tropical hills.

This scene came and passed by quickly as we traveled the shoreline, our direction directly into the morning sun. Photography was difficult, though, in a low-and-fast aircraft, trying to find scenes and take a photo through the glass doors keeping us protected from the chilly morning air. That said, I did have a filter on the camera, but one I would not choose in the first place.

The flight lasted about an hour, and I snapped quite a few photos, but this one made it on my favorite list of the trip fairly quickly. God must have enjoyed crafting this scene!

Canon 60d 10-22mm @ 116mm
ISO 1000 (helicopters sure to vibrate a lot ), f/5.6, 1/2500sec