The Whales of Maui

It had to happen, and this is the post where it finally does.  Here, in the middle of all my 3D photos is a post completely in "normal" 2D.

Given the great distance between us and the whales and the sudden appearance and disappearance of the stars of the show, the taking of 3D photos became impossible.  Rather than have nothing I decided to "lower" my standards (LOL) and shoot 2D photos so I would at least have something to share.

To experience the whales for the first time is an experience beyond words.  Our day was over and we were back on board Golden Princess before we saw our first whale and to see them was to realize what we had really missed.  We missed the opportunity of a lifetime going out on an expedition amoungst these fantastic creatures and feel their presence and peace.

All the photos below were taken from the top deck of Golden Princess as we departed Maui.  As we were enjoying this encounter, we had the pleasure of having our naturalist Racheal on a loud speaker explaining what was happening, where to look and what it was that we were actually seeing.

What amazed me most was that the whole event of a sighting would happen and be over before you would even realize what you were seeing.  What I mean by this is that a whale would appear, spout water out its blowhole and disappear from view all while your mind is coming to terms with the fact that you were actually seeing this.  All this meaning that for every shot I took with my camera there were, easily 10 that I missed, and of course, really wish I had, now that I am at home.

Just so you understand.  If ever given the opportunity to take an excursion to go out and visit whales, DROP EVERYTHING and take the trip.  No matter the time, no matter the price no matter what... GO or you will regret it as we do.

For us, it is just another excuse to take this cruise again.

Next post we go back to 3D as we depart the Island of Maui and set sail for Ensenada Mexico.

Questions and comments always welcome.

HDR without the Sunset.

I thought I should try HDR during daylight, next will be a night scene.

Here is what I shot today.

And not 3D HDR

Comments always welcome.

Thanks Irene !!!

In spite of all the devestation left in the wake of Hurricane Irene, it has disipated into either a Tropical Storm or Tropical Depression, not sure of its actual status at this time.

But she has arrived, or her outer bands have arrived in Ottawa giving us a great diisplay of colours and designs.

I was busy, if you can believe it, washing the dog when my wife calls down that I must see the sunset!  So out goes to dog and off I run across the street to the clearing and got these shots.  Unfortunately no HDRs but the clouds were moving so fast that HDR wouldn't have turned out anyway.

It is just sad that something this beautiful can be so devestating.  I wish everyone on the East Coast well as they pump out the water and return to normal.

Wayne and Amy's Sunset in HDR 2D

Spent a lovely evening at our Friend's , Amy and Wayne, new home.  They are on the extreme west end of Ottawa and their new house is up on a hill.  All the ingrediants needed for seeing a great sunset.

So, when we received an invitation to dinner I couldn't go without my camera.

Here are the 2D photos I took last night, 3D to follow later today.

Oh... It was a fantastic evening.  Thanks Wayne and Amy (not necessarily in that order).

A Walk on the Banks of the Ottawa River

Tonight we had dinner at an Indian Restaurant followed by a walk along the banks of the Ottawa River.  We decided to take Grandson #2 and judging from his complaints he was somewhat less than impressed.  He did settle down long enough for me to take this photo.

Here are the photos I took of the river.  Next time I take on the challenge of the sunset itself.

Back to Cha Cha

Since the arrival of my new 3D lens, allowing me to take action photos for the first time, I decided today to try out my new camera using the Cha Cha method of 3D photography.

One can either have a "split" lens like the one below, or take one photo and then move sideways and take the second.

As you can imagine, with action of children or water or a sporting event, the action won't stop to allow you the 10 seconds needed to take the two photos.  Thus, while quality is far greater, Cha Cha works best with posed photos or nature photos such as scenery.

Here are the photos I took today.

As always, your comments are welcome.

Cathy and Wayne's Wedding - The Horse Drawn Carriage

While there have been the odd photos posted here, the following are the remaining shots of the Horse Drawn Carriage.

And Finally ... No Wedding photo collection would be complete without a photo of the first dance.  Given the time of night this shot was not possible with my new 3D lens, so...  Here it is in Standard Photo mode.

CONGRATULATIONS Cathy and Wayne, and thank you again for including Linda and I on your very special day.

More Cruise Photos to come...

We just booked our next cruise. 

We will be sailing on Golden Princess out of Los Angeles February 1st for 14 days (and nights), round trip to Hawaii.  Hey, this cruise will include Valentines Day and Superbowl!  Should be great for parties!

Day                          Port                                           Arrival                 Departure 

1      (Wed)	Los Angeles, California		4:00 PM
2      (Thurs)	At Sea
3      (Fri)	At Sea
4      (Sat)	At Sea
5      (Sun)	At Sea
6      (Mon)	Hilo, Hawaii	8:00 AM	5:00 PM
7      (Tue)	Honolulu, Hawaii	7:00 AM	11:00 PM
8      (Wed)	Kauai (Nawiliwili), Hawaii	8:00 AM	5:00 PM
9      (Thurs)	Maui (Lahaina), Hawaii	7:00 AM	6:00 PM
10    (Fri)	At Sea
11    (Sat)	At Sea
12    (Sun)	At Sea
13    (Mon)	At Sea
14    (Tue)	Ensenada, Mexico	2:00 PM	8:00 PM
15    (Wed)	Los Angeles, California	7:00 AM

Should be fun and a great trip for 3D photos.  I am looking into DSLR Cameras and a proper 3D lens to allow for the taking of some action shots rather than my limited opportunities now for just still or posed photos..

More to come.

Note:  Map Photo taken from Princess.com

Museum of Nature, Ottawa Canada

Before each vacation I usually go to someplace interesting to take photos and ensure my “skills” for taking stereoscopic 3D photos are still in existence.  Before going on our latest cruise, Carnival Pride, we visited the Canadian Museum of Nature.

For our visit it was divided into 2 distinctly different sections:
1. The dinosaurs; and
2. The Indigenous Animals of Canada

Here are the Dinosaurs:

Next post... The Indigenous Animals of Canada