08.22.2020

Fujifilm X-T4 + XF16mmF/1.4 R WR: 480s, f/6.4, ISO160

A short time ago I used to work near this location. Everyday when I drove home from work I would admire the cityscape and thought, one of these days I’ll walk over to this overpass photograph the skyline. I never did while I worked here, but now that Hawaii is locked out (not locked down really… I’ll explain in a bit), I figure, now’s a good a time as any to scout this series of overpasses.

When I arrived near the area, I looked for a nearby street parking stall and walked to the nearest of the overpasses and had the happy accident of bumping my aperture ring to Auto while getting the camera situated on the tripod. My first test exposure would’ve ended up being 1.3 stops darker (f/11). I decided to make the exposure time much longer this go-round than last week to ensure that the car light trails extended all the way through to the horizon and to give the impression that traffic was denser than it was. I was excited to also try the Natural Night Sky filter included with my Nisi Optics USA filter kit as I’ve never had one like this in my kit before. Ultimately I decided against using it today because the street lights in this area have been upgraded from the older sodium vapor lights to LEDs (that still give off a slightly greenish tint…). After getting this shot, I ventured toward the next overpass to make the skyline more prominent in the photo and to hopefully see a less obstructed view on the left side of the image. By this time, the sky had brightened enough to where the red car lights were no longer bright enough to streak. The colors in the sky were a beautiful purple-to-pink-to-orange gradient so I made a mental note that the next time I try this shot, I’ll test my compositing skills by attempting to merge the colorful sky with the light streaks.

Fujifilm X-T4 + XF16mmF/1.4 R WR: 120s, f/11, ISO160

The left side of the image is less obstructed, but the skyline still isn’t quite the focal point I was hoping to feature. There is ANOTHER pedestrian overpass further into the photo but the highway veers in the opposing direction to the skyline, but that scout will have to happen on another day because breakfast.

So as I alluded to earlier… Hawaii has instituted a lock-out that has caused many a resident to raise an eyebrow. No one can have guests over to their homes, no matter how large the dwelling or few the number of guests. BUT people can gather with strangers in groups of five or less to patronize restaurants, theaters, gyms, schools, retail establishments, hair salons, the zoo, and other businesses 🤨. Still parks, tennis courts, beaches and hiking trails, remain off-limits. So… get out of your houses and spend that money that you don’t have!