photography – A Darker View

2022 in Photos

With recent history having been a bit bumpy, looking back on 2022 is not too bad in out little part of the world. More than a few good memories.

Kailua Bay on a typical Saturday Morning
PBR’s with Asparagopsis taxiformis
Harvesting algae from the PBR’s at Symbrosia
A raceway pond full of Asparagopsis taxiformis at Symbrosia
Waimea Canyon
Kīlauea lighthouse
Kōloa sugar mill
An air compressor rusts in the abandoned Kōloa sugar mill
Sunset over Lawaʻi Beach
The quintessential Alaskan charter boat anchored to fish halibut in Yakutat Bay
Ben halibut fishing in Yakutat Bay
A nice king salmon from Yakutat Bay
Icebergs on Harlequin Lake
A six inch gun emplacement from World War II at Cannon Beach, Yakutat
Total lunar eclipse on Nov 8th, 2022
Fred and Andrew Cooper at the earth’s equator along the Masaka Road, Uganda
A street in Masaka, Uganda
Line for the ferry at Nakiwogo, Uganda
Kids come to see what we are doing at the fishing village of Kazinga, Uganda
An older male lion (Panthera leo)
Tour vans arrive to view a lion
A Pied Kingfisher (Ceryle rudis) on the shoreline of Lake George, Uganda
A Rüppells starling (Lamprotornis purpuroptera) at the lodge in Katunguru
A Marabou Stork (Leptoptilos crumeniferus)
An elephant visits the Kazinga Safari Lodge at Katunguru, Uganda
A close-up of an elephant’s eye
The Toyota Land Cruiser at Kazinga village
The 2022 Mauna Loa eruption at dawn
The 2022 eruption of Mauna Loa on the second day
The 2022 eruption of Mauna Loa on the second day
Sunset over Lawaʻi Beach

Kids and the Camera

Photographing kids in many less developed countries is just fun.

Girl in Hammok — A young girl in a hammok on her family’s farm

Young children exhibit a certian innocence. Before the cultural and religious baggage of any society forces conformation. Before the struggles of life have ground away the hopes and dreams. Like so many I find this innocence captivating, a feeling that the world would be a better place if we all were a bit more childish.

Alas, we trudge through a world far darker, all we can do is marvel at those who still possess this childish innocence and maybe capture a fleeting glimpse in a photo to remind us of what could be.

This innocence seems to last longer in developing countries. Less exposure to media? Less access to technology? These things have negative aspects, but it is not all negative. Children just seem to remain children for a little while longer.

Students at the GSM near Masaka, Uganda — Students at the GSM school near Masaka, Uganda

And kids usually love to be photographed, in many places around the world they come running whenever a camera appears. Prepare to take a photo of a couple kids… In the first photo there are two… Take the next photo and there are four kids in the pic… Then six… Then twelve…

What? If this continues the 16th photo will have 65,536 kids… It is wise to stop taking photos before geometric progression leads to a massive overpopulation issue, or implodes the local space time continuum.

Shy — A child shyly posing for the camera in Tierra Amarilla, Nicaragua

Rule… You have to show them the resulting photos. Take a few photos then put the camera into preview mode and turn it about to show then the last photo you just took. Better if it is a phone or tablet with a big screen. The result is smiles and giggles all around.

And then there are the poses. Posing for the camera is apparently required. Various hand signs and tilts of the head. Poses obviously learned from whatever media is available, perhaps music videos, or local satellite TV, many appear to be from anime.

Where did you learn that pose? Nevermind, I do not want to know… Modern media has begun the process of stealing away the innocence.

Yet Another Volcano Run

Once was not enough, I had to do it again. The allure of lava too much I planned yet another run across island in the middle of the night to see the lava at Kilauea.

The western vent spilling lava into the lake at Halemaʻumaʻu

This time Deb would come along, mistakenly agreeing to to 0130 alarm clock and possibly regretting it as she climbed out of bed. Thus we drove through the night passing through the park gates a little before 4am.

A larger crowd greeted us this time. The parking lot was lamost half full and there were more folks passing us on the walk out to the viewpoint.

This trip would feature a bit of moonlight over the caldera rather than the dark skies of two weeks ago, a quarter moon in the eastern sky. I had hoped for a few thin moonlit clouds to use in the compositions, but this did not happen. The morning was completely cloud free over the caldera, and nearly calm, the plume rising striaght up from the lava.

Volcano Run

The usual plan… A 2am departure from the house, a 4am arrival at Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, at the lava while it is still full dark, enjoy the show through the dawn, then go find breakfast.

Lava Fountain — A lava fountain at the western vent in Halemaumau, Oct 16, 2021

Exiting the vehicle after the long drive I was greeted by a serene silence and bright stars. Orion and the Pleiades were bright and directly overhead. I had to pause and just breathe in the damp forest smells, gazing upwards to the heavens.

There were another half dozen vehicles in the large parking lot at Devastation Trail. I was not going to be alone at the viewpoint, but it was not going to be crowded either. Reports online have mentioned large crowds in the evening, with even the Park Service recommending a morning visit.

Visiting the New Lake

The lava burst forth from the crater wall just before Christmas. After two years of quiet the volcano has again erupted. Within hours the lake of water that had been slowly growing had been boiled away in a huge plume of steam.

Gazing into creation at Kilauea Caldera with the stars of Crux and Alpha Centauri above

I knew within minutes that an eruption had begun, tapped into the island grapevine. While I considered making a midnight run across island I had to bow to the needs of life and regretfully went to bed.

Now well into the new year I finally had a chance to photograph the new lava lake.

2020 in Photos

It is a bit redundant at this point to remark on how troublesome the year 2020 has been. Looking back at the year in photos I can note that I did not get out much. No big trip, mostly staying home, a few photos taken on local hikes just to get out of the house.

Still, I did take a few photos last year…

Keck and Subaru in the snow atop the summit of Mauna Kea

A waterfalls on Kawainui Stream near Onomea

A stray cat hanging out at the base of one of Hilo's massive banyan trees

A old water tank on Parker Ranch looking like a medieval tower house

Graves in the Japanese cemetery in Holualoa

A pile of old vehicles dumped in a jungle gulch

The entrance to a lava tube named Shangri-La

The brownie mix shelves with gaps of out-of-stock items

The frozen pizza case with empty shelves and a minimal selection

A rough road on the back side of Puʻuwaʻawaʻa

Shooting a comet C/2020 F3 NEOWISE in the Humuʻula Saddle

Comet C/2020 F3 NEOWISE against the dawn

The nebula complex Sharpless 2-54 in Serpens in Hydrogen Alpha

Taking notes in the observing notebook beside the telescope

M8, The Lagoon Nebula taken in H-alpha light at 656nm

An ant raids pollen from a weed in the front yard

Puʻu Hinai sits 200ft above the surrounding plains

Looking north the Waikoloa Resorts along the King's Trail

Looking down one of the passages at Goat House Tube

Pink knotweed (Persicaria capitata) and ferns along the Puʻu Oʻo trail

Looking down the Mauna Loa access road towards Mauna Kea

Flying the Summit

Governor Ige signed the new public access rules, drones would be illegal on the summit in ten more days.

With a deadline looming much sooner than I had contemplated there was a narrow window of opportunity. While I had wanted to fly the summit for a long time, I now had a few short days in which to do so. On January 23, 2020 the new rules would take effect.

The Office of Mauna Kea Management has attempted to restrict drone use on the summit by posting signs that drones are not allowed. Problem, they did this with no legal authority to do so. In conversations with OMKM staff I had pointed this out and received a quiet admission that it was true.

The new public access rules would change this… Flying a drone would be specifically prohibited on the science reserve, a civil offence with steep fines involved. With the governor’s signature those rules would be in force.

Petersburg Harbor at Night

2018 In Photos

The plume of volcanic gasses from Halemaʻumaʻu under the stars

Telescope and Observing Table — A telescope and observing table in the dark at Kaʻohe

8" Cave Astrola — The 8″ Cave Astrola as it arrived

Restored Cave Astrola 8" f/6 — A restored Cave Astrola 8″ f/6 Lightweight Deluxe

The 8" Cave Astrola setup at Kaʻohe — The 8″ Cave Astrola setup at Kaʻohe

Under the Stars — Standing next to the restored Astrola telescope under a dark Mauna Kea sky

Moonset Over Lake Waiau — A nearly full Moon setting over lake Waiau near the summit of Mauna Kea

Moonlight on Snow — Moonlight glistens from the snow on Puʻu Poliʻahu

Pineapple Bud — A pineapple just beginning to bloom with a Carolina anole below, image processed by Prisma

Banyan — The branches of a bayan tree supporting a whole ecosystem

Nene (Branta sandvicensis) — A pair of nene enjoy the ponds at Liliʻuokalani Gardens in Hilo

Puna Glow — The glow of lava in the clouds and vog over Puna. Five image panorama with a 14mm lens from the summit of Mauna Kea.

Riding in an MD500 with our pilot Pete of Paradise Helicopters

Fissure 8 Lava Fountain — The lava fountain at fissure 8 in Leilani Estates throwing lava hundreds of feet in the air on June 3rd, 2018

Burning Farm — A tropical flower farm on Kapoho Beach Road with lava advancing into the shade-cloth structure

Flow Front — The front of the fissure 8 flow approaches Kapoho Bay

Andrew Cooper atop Keck 2 — The author of Darker View atop the Keck 2 dome

Flying the DJI Mavic Air in the saddle at the base of Mauna Kea

Kiholo Bay by Drone — Kiholo Bay taken by the Mavic Air

A first quarter Moon photographed with an 8" telescope and an iPhone 7 — A first quarter Moon photographed with an 8″ telescope and an iPhone 7

UH88 under the Milky Way — The UH88 telescope under the stars of the Milky Way

The Keck 1 AO laser working the sky in the direction of the galactic center

Gemini and CFHT in Moonlight — Gemini and CFHT illuminated by the light of a rising Moon, and some brake lights

A horse stands in the sunset at Kahua Ranch

A moonbow and Venus over the pastures of Kahua Ranch

Mid-Channel Marker — The Wrangell Narrows mid-channel marker with a few sea lions resting

Black Bear and Cub — A black bear and cub at Anan

Grizzly bear and cub eating a salmon at Pavlof River

Vessels shelter from the storm on the dock at Baranof

The launch beached in a small cove of Port Harvey

The Ruins of Namu — The collapsing waterfront of the abandoned cannery at Namu

A stripped and abandoned powerhouse at Namu

The sailboat Passing Cloud at anchor in Khutze Inlet

Fog wisps between the domes in this view from the top of Keck 2

Lifting segment 4-76 out of the Keck 2 primary mirror for re-coating and repair

Drone Hysteria

By now anyone reading the news will know that a drone sighting shut down a major metropolitan airport just days before Christmas. London’s Gatwick airport was intermittently closed to arrivals and departures during the busiest travel season of the year, leaving up to 140,000 travelers stranded and scrambling to make alternate travel arrangements.

Waiting to Board — Waiting to board an Alaskan Airlines flight in Seattle

What you may not have heard is that there may never have been a drone involved. This may have stemmed from one bad sighting and a classic case of mass hysteria leading to further drone sightings.

Even worse, authorities looking for anyone to blame arrested and detained an innocent couple for 36 hours. They were eventually released after no evidence was found and an alibi verified. During that time the couple was vilified by name in some major media outlets. The only saving grace here is that the couple is now likely to receive a substantial sum from those newspapers under British libel laws.