Fireworks from above

Taking photos of fireworks from a helicopter at night is a very challenging, but rewarding photography experience.

My friend Kris Gourlay called me up on July 4th and invited me up in the air to test out a few new fireworks shot ideas he'd been playing with. Kris is a talented helicopter owner and pilot. He's always thinking of new ways to combine his love of flying with his knowledge of Hawaii's beautiful scenery. In addition to working with photographers, he operates various luxury helicopter experiences. Today, he wanted to check out some of the different firework shows across Oahu.

The fifth of July is my birthday. As a child I spent every fourth pretending the fireworks were ringing in my birthday. I don't get so excited about birthdays anymore, but watching fireworks from the air brought back those giddy childhood feels.

I did a little preliminary research, but "Firework Photography from a Helicopter" didn't bring up a lot. I knew that you normally shoot photos from a helicopter at a very hiiiiigh shutter speed, at least 1/500 of a second and up, because the levels of vibration are so high your photos will be blurry otherwise. I also knew that to capture fireworks you would typically use a tripod and a slooooooooow shutter speed, because it's so dark, plus longer exposures allow you to capture the light trails instead of the fireworks looking like little pins of light in the sky. So take a slow photo from a helicopter that requires fast photos..... 

The best night time aerial photos I found were achieved with expensive gyros for stabilization. Since I don't have one, I decided to bring a few options and figure it out in the air.

Sony - ISO 1600 - 55mm - f/1.8 - 1/200 sec

I brought a Canon 5D Mark III with a 16-35mm 2.8 and a 24-105 F4 with IS. I've read mixed reviews about if internal stabilization helps for aerial photography. I also brought a Sony A7rii with a 55mm 1.8, and my metabones adaptor. The nice thing about the 2nd edition of the Sony mirrorless is that the internal stabilization is built into the camera, so regardless of which lens you attach, you have IS. Since the Canon prime lenses don't have IS, you end up having to choose between stability or speed. With Sony, you can have your cake and eat it too. I only wish I had the SonyA7sii, as it handles low light and high ISO much better than the A7rii. 

Sony - ISO 2000 - 55mm - f/1.8 - 1/125 sec

Kailua fireworks began first at 8pm, so we headed out towards that side to start. As we passed Waikiki, we could see boats lining up for the show in the dusky evening glow. I quickly realized my F4 Canon lens was not going to be of any help, IS or not. It was already so dark I was struggling to get enough light with the 2.8 lens. I ended up shooting almost exclusively with the Sony and 55mm 1.8. I now know that in this situation prime lenses with a low f-stop are the only way to go.

Sony - ISO 1600 - 55mm - f/1.8 - 1/50 sec

As we made our way along the coast, I experimented with a few slower shutter speeds on the A7rii. Obviously they weren't tack sharp, but it wasn't as bad as I had expected. 

Sony - ISO 10,000 - 55mm - f/1.8 - 1/100

We arrived just in time for the start of the Kailua show, and picked a spot from the water behind the islands. Getting enough light to capture the islands in the foreground was especially tricky. It helped that we still had some dusk lighting. 

Sony - ISO 10,000 - 55mm - f/ 1.8 - 1/60 sec

Once we got into position, Kris was able to hold the helicopter in place for enough time to fire off a few sharper shots. Everything was manual focus, since neither camera did particularly well at focusing while moving quickly at night, especially Sony. 

Canon 5dMkIII - ISO 12,800 - 19mm - f/2.8 - 1/80 sec

Canon 5dMkIII - ISO 12,800 - 35mm - f/3.2 - 1/80sec

I wasn't able to get any photos that were bright enough to show the islands in the foreground with the Canon, but I did use it when we pulled around to check out Kailua with the city lights. While I had to use a higher ISO, and I think there's slightly more blur without the IS, the Canon handled slower shutter speed reasonably well.  It was also slightly harder to focus quickly while moving - the focus peaking on Sony really is nice for things like that. 

Canon 5dMkIII - ISO 12,800 - 35mm - f/2.8 - 1/40 sec

As we headed back from Kailua, we could see the fireworks starting in Waikiki, so we moved in for a closer view.

Sony - ISO 10,000 - 55mm - f/ 1.8 - 1/125

The view looking back with the city lights in the front was stunning, especially with the reflections of the city lights on the Ala Wai.

Sony - ISO 10,000 - 55mm - f/ 1.8 - 1/125

Unfortunately, air space can be kind of tricky at night. At this point, several airplanes were taking off in our area, so we were forced to land before the grand finale in Waikiki. We caught a few last glimmers as we descended back towards the airport. 

Sony - ISO 10,000 - 55mm - f/ 1.8 - 1/125

Overall, I was pretty happy with the results, given this was my first try. In the future, I would definitely stick with prime, low f-stop lenses, and perhaps a camera that handled high ISO better, like the Sony A7sII. Despite the challenges, I was happy with the results.

In the end, it was one of the best ways I've ever rung in a birthday, and pretty good fourth of July. :)

Have any tips for night aerial photography? Which camera do you prefer for low-light high ISO? Comment below and let me know your thoughts!

5 things I learned as a photographer

2015 was my first official year in the business of photography. I'd been taking photos for awhile, but it's a whole new world when you make a business of it. In true Liz fashion, I learned all of my lessons the hard way. I laughed a lot. I cried a lot. Sometimes I locked myself in my room for days. My first year was all about "The School of Hard Shots." Here's my top 5 photos from the year, and what they taught me about myself as a photographer: 

It's ok to try everything

In this day and age as an artist, there's a lot of pressure to "find your niche." In the beginning of the year, I just knew I liked taking photos and meeting people. Early in the year I did a lot of yoga projects, and some of my photos were a hit (this one made it into some different yoga catalogues and advertisements). I started getting a lot of inquiries for yoga photos. I even got to do a shoot for Lululemon.

But then I froze up. I started worrying if I put myself out there as one "type" of photographer, I would be branded for life. What if I wanted to shoot more than just yoga? For a period, I stopped posting any of my work online. I was scared of being branded as one thing or another. For fear of going in the "wrong" direction, I didn't go anywhere.

In the end, I learned more about myself and photography by just going out there and shooting everything. In addition to my own shoots, I assisted on a lot of different types of shoots for free, just for the experience. Working for free meant also picking up extra side jobs to help pay the bills, and consequently turning down a lot of social invitations due to lack of time. It was fun. Sometimes it was lonely. But overall, it was really rewarding for me. I learned what I like, and what I don't like. I'm eternally grateful to the photographers that took me under their wing, mentored me, and showed me their crafts. On a side note, I gained a whole new level of respect for jewelry product photographers.

When you find things you like, don't give up on them

As someone who is constantly fighting feelings of inadequacy, I find it really empowering to tell stories about strong, inspirational women who pursue their passions. Especially if it involves things I also love, like being active and outside.

But my ideas don't always come together the way I want them to. This particular shot was from my fifth attempt to shoot a girl climbing with blue water at this location. It's over an hour drive from my house, and on this particular day, it was overcast and pouring rain.

It was one of those "NOT AGAIN!!!" moments of frustration.

But then we remembered why we were out there in the first place - to do the things we love, and have fun. We decided to go climb in the rain anyways, just for fun. As we played, the clouds parted. We ended up getting some blue water climbing shots with a bonus rainbow.

I'm currently working on a personal project that I have attempted eight times so far. When I get frustrated, I like to look at pictures like this one. It reminds me to relax, have fun, and just keep working at it.

Always make time for personal projects

It was really tricky for me, finding a balance in mixing my artistic expression with my source of income. At times, I started becoming more of a "button pusher" and less of an "artist." Some of my photos felt downright flat and lifeless.

About halfway through the year, I realized I didn't want to be hired just because I have a nice camera and can push buttons. I wanted to have the creative freedom to work with people who trusted and valued my artistic vision. At this point, I realized I had tried a lot of different things, and I was ready to start making moves towards defining myself as an artist. I've always have been a storyteller. And I have a lot of fun, but quirky ideas.

So I started adapting a more photojournalistic, story-telling style in my photos. And I started working on more personal outdoor creative projects.

For me, personal projects were the best way of attracting my ideal clients who liked my style and trusted my ideas. My "Mother in the Moon" project arose from working with a client who trusted my vision to create something special for her. And that was a really good feeling.

A picture is only as powerful as the story it tells

This was by far, the biggest revelation to me this year. I got to take a lot of beautiful photos this past year. But the photos that meant the most to me were the ones that captured not just a place, but also a story.

This picture of Helene Dumais had a large reach this year. It was from my largest personal project of the year, documenting the first female to complete the Ko'olau Summit Ridge in one through-hike, and it won several contestss. But what made this photo so powerful to me was not so much the timing, framing, lighting, or any technical details. What made it powerful to me was the feelings and story behind it.

It's not actually a triumphant photo of reaching a summit or end-point. It's a photo of defeat mixed with determination and dreaming. It was right after a failed attempt to complete the trek. We were scouting a section of the "saddles," three treacherous climbing sections that had forced us to quit. Our limbs were covered in bruises and rashes, and our knees were swollen. We were completely depleted. But Helene's body language still conveys a sense of strength, adventure, and hope.

I like this photo because it has a meaningful story behind it. It reminds me to keep your sense of adventure in times of adversity, and never, ever, EVER give up on your dreams.

In June, we finally succeeded and became the first documented women to through hike the entire ridge line in one self-sufficient through-hike. Ironically, on the last attempt of the trail, I actually left my camera behind. Finishing the trail required significant weight cuts. It forced us to choose between high quality photos, or being truly ultralight and actually having a chance at finishing. It was appearance vs. experience. I left the camera gear behind, and only brought a mini point and shoot to document. As a photographer, it was a game changing decision for me. I realized that I was first and foremost, a storyteller.

Photos have an incredible power to move a viewer emotionally, and incite action

Emotions captivate me. Happiness. Loneliness. Curiosity. Sorrow. Love. Fear. I spent a lot of this year learning how to help people relax and capture them in their most natural states. That was one thing I discovered about my "style"- I like capturing genuine emotions. Most were in happy moments, like weddings. But I captured other emotions as well.

I took this shot during an emotional search for Moke, a missing teenage hiker. In this moment the father & David (a volunteer searcher) embraced in a tearful and emotional hug after they returned from a flight scanning over the mountains for his son. Moved, I quietly took a few photos of the love & sadness I saw between the people there.

I wasn't sure if it had been insensitive to take photos in those moments. I asked the family before I shared any photos. Surprisingly, they agreed, and actually thanked me for the photos, which we were then able to use for a fundraiser. As Moke's story spread, volunteers and donations poured in. While many different forms of media helped their cause, it was rewarding to be a small part of that. It was the first time I experienced the power of photos to not only tell a story, but to generate action. And that was pretty inspiring.

It really brought home the capacity of photos to move people on a deep, emotional level. And when people are moved, they act, and create change.

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There are so many other things I learned through the school of hard shots this past year, but those were my big ones. What advice would you have for somebody in their first year?

Secrets of the Supermoon

Warning: objects in rearview mirror may appear larger than they are. 

Especially when said object is a supermoon, and you replace "rearview mirror" with the screen of my iPhone. If you've ever tried to snap a picture of the moon and wondered "It sure looked bigger in the sky", you know what I'm talking about.

I recently undertook a project to photograph the moon with pregnant ladies. I knew two lovely ladies that were going to be first time mothers, and I wanted to create a special concept for them. Full moon, full bellies.. it just made sense. I had no idea just how much I would have to learn to make it happen. That hits the spot... Finding the right location was tricky. I thank God everyday for amazing apps, like The Photographer's Ephemeris (although she insists, please, just call her TPE) & Sky Guide. For basic planning purposes, TPE helped me scan the island and see where the sun and moon will be rising and setting, when it will be full, and where I can angle the moon behind my subject and still have enough space between us in order to use a telephoto lens. TPE helped me find the best spot, and then I hiked out there and scouted during the day to make sure I could elevate my subject and be able to see them unobstructed from far away. Using Sky Guide, I could hold my phone up to the sky, fast forward to the time and date I would be shooting, and see exactly where the moon would be in relation to where I was standing and where I wanted my subject to stand. So far so good.

Bigger isn't always better...

I knew in order to make the moon appear larger in the picture, I needed a telephoto lens, but I didn't know how large I needed it to be. 400mm? 1600? After looking at a few images on other blogs, I decided 800mm would give me the size I wanted. Only one problem- it's $350 to rent the 800mm lens for 3 days.

  After consulting with the helpful staff at Hawaii Camera, I opted for the poor man's version- a 100-400mm lens paired with a 2x converter to create an equivalent 800mm, and a sturdy tripod. I was ready for my first victims.

I brought my beautiful friend Stacy and her husband out to the spot, and then ran back to my location 500 feet away to set up the lens. They set up their phone on speakerphone, while I juggled mine in one hand while adjusting the camera and tripod. As the moon started to rise, I realized we weren't in quite the right spot! I yelled directions into the phone. Quick- move! Over there! Two steps, no back! We soon found out that at 800mm zoom, the moon moves across your camera screen so quickly, you only have about 15 seconds to capture it before it's too high. 7 days of planning and anticipation is a lot of hype for a mere 15 seconds. thatswhatshesaid

Stacy and Rom were committed to getting the shot, so I had them move to a higher rock and re-positioned my camera. I double checked the alinement of the moon against my subjects and my camera lens angle using Sky Guide, and we waited again.... the excitement....the anticipation....

Watching the glow of the moon silently rise up behind them and illuminate her full belly was magical, but we had to work fast. When I was exposed and focused on Stacey and Rom, the moon was a white blur. In order to have both subjects properly exposed and focused, I took two photos- one adjusted for the moon, and one adjusted for my subjects, and created a composite with both my subjects and the moon in focus.

The result was beautiful. For my next attempt, I wanted to create an image where the moon was still large, but the belly was larger against the moon. To understand how to create this effect, I had to learn a little more about the science behind it all. Back when I was in highschool and my little brother was in middleschool, he helped explain my math homework to me. He likened himself to Jason,  child mathwhiz of the comic Foxtrot.

10 years later, nothing has changed. He's now getting his PhD in physics, and he helped break the science of solar photography down a little better. My first question- is there a size difference between the moon at different times in the night?

The moon is not bigger on the horizon A picture of the moon at 800mm zoom taken high in the sky, and a picture of the moon gracing the horizon with the same settings are, in fact, virtually the same size on the screen of my camera. It turns out it's all one big solar optical illusion, and for all photographic planning purposes, it's not actually as large as it appears. thatswhatshesaid

Distance is the greatest determining factor

I thought I could control the relation of the size of my subject against the moon using the zoom on the lens, but it turns out of all the factors involved, the distance between the camera and the subject is the one that makes the greatest difference for my purposes. My mathwhiz brother broke this down to me even further in a spreadsheet involving the lensmaker equation and other fun things, but that's a whole new level of nerding out that I'll save for another day.  For the second shoot, I decided to be only 300 feet away from my subject. I brought out another lovely mother, Coco, and her husband Ryan, who helped hold the phone for her on speakerphone. I stuffed my own phone down my shirt so I could holler at them while using both hands to adjust the camera and focus (another reason to pick a spot farther away from civilization). With the knowledge gained from my attempt the night before, we were nearly perfectly aligned as the moon rose, and in that special moment, Coco bowed her head gently towards her growing belly.

Mission accomplished, we hiked home under the light of the full moon, having created a special memory of the anticipation, awe, and fullness of heart embodied in these beautiful first time mothers.

Thank you to everyone who helped bring this vision to life. :)

Yoga: The elements

A collaboration with four artists & four yoga teachers. 

Art Director: Michiko Nagai
Photography: Liz Barney
Models: Coco Zhang, Naomi Kiyalah Iwabuchi, Christina Soo Hoo, Emily Elizabeth
Artists: Dexter Naira, Anna Leychenko, Michiko Nagai, Justin Sosa