Hey there! I decided that since summer is winding down, I would blog about an image shot in sunny Honolulu, Hawaii because I for one am not ready for the upcoming change in season and temperature! I shot “Day’s End” on Waikiki Beach in January 2010. I used an aperture of f/9 and shutter speed of 1/1250, with an ISO of 200.
During my senior year in college, I had the opportunity to spend three weeks in Honolulu as part of a photography travel course offered through my school. I stayed with a Hawaiian family that was kind enough to open their home to a complete stranger, attended class for about three hours a day, and had the rest of the time to spend exploring Oahu. It was a tough three weeks, let me tell you!
As my time in Hawaii was coming to an end, I realized that I had yet to photograph the sun setting from the point of view of the beach. So on my last night, I camped out on Waikiki Beach about a half hour before the sun was supposed to set to capture the end of another gorgeous day in paradise. As the sun drew lower and lower and the sky started to shift from blue to yellow, I began photographing the scene in front of me. After a few minutes, I started turning my attention away from the actual sunset and focused more on the beachgoers as they wrapped up their day of leisure. Don’t get me wrong, the sunset was obviously amazing, but I became completely mesmerized by the ritual of packing up after a day at the beach. Some people were very matter of fact about the process: towel folded and into the bag, shirts and shoes on, and an about face from the ocean. Others fought tooth and nail with the inevitable fact that the day was ending and it was time to exit the water: one last wave and a slow saunter out of the ocean, only to plop down on the shore with one foot still in the surf. It seemed as if wrapping up in a towel to dry off was the final admission that it was in fact time to go home.
This image captures the many facets a day’s end at the beach. The sun is setting in the background while people either pack up their beach equipment, stay to watch the sunset, or ignore the setting sun as they continue with whatever activity they are doing out in the water. While the end of a good day can oftentimes be very unwelcome, it at least comes in a beautiful warm and colorful costume that puts on one final show as the sky changes from day to night. For me, the final sunset on Waikiki Beach was symbolic of the ending of a wonderfully relaxing but exciting three weeks in Hawaii.
Thank you for reading! Have a great holiday weekend and don’t forget to check back next Monday for more photo blogging!
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