If Honolulu surprised me with its beauty, the same could be said for Waikiki—tenfold—especially when we found the best sunset spot on Oahu.
It blows my mind that just a peaceful spit of sand is located right in the middle of such a bustling city.
Our hotel was located just a block off the beach, which was pretty convenient as we could run over for an hour and get some sun or take a walk at sunset whenever we had a brief break from all of our activities.
I loved the little pier that jutted out into the jade-tinted surf. Just beware the locals: I saw many surfer dudes trying to time it perfectly so they’d send a heavy spray up onto the (clothed) innocent bystanders above!
Luckily, we kept our distance. I would have been peeved, ever so slightly, if they’d ruined our camera equipment, which we were toting around out in the open, on the tripod for a change.
I’ve never seen so many ripped, beautiful bodies in one place. It was enough to make me almost—key word: almost—throw away my ice cream and hit the gym instead.
Yet another spot to add to our ever-growing “Places We Need to Revisit and Spend More Time In” list—a list that exponentially expands far quicker than it shrinks these days, it seems.
Gorgeous! That is one place we didn’t spend a lot of time, except for sailing by – I remember seeing that pink hotel. That first picture is absolutely stunning. I love how deserted and iconic of paradise it is with the colors, the setting sun, and the soft wash of the water.
Stunning! And I’m jealous. I’m headed back to the states after 3 weeks of work and fun in Asia, but I could sure use a trip to the beach to relax a little. Hope you had an amazing time. Sure looks like you did.
What beautiful pictures! We loved Waikiki and wandering up and down the bustling beach…so laid back and exhilarating at the same time!
This looks amazing! I’ve heard some rather negative things about Hawaii in the recent past–that it’s all commercial, that it can be hard to get off the beaten tourist path, that the schism between the wealthy tourists and the service-sector locals can be dramatic. You’re convincing me that it’s still definitely a great place to visit.
Don’t listen! There are definitely some commercial spots but just as many quiet, secluded ones as there are places that are overcrowded and overrated.
I love how it looks like the land runs out into the ocean and just…disappears. It makes for a haunting connectivity between the land and the water in your pictures.
I like that analogy. It sums up my view of places like this.
Peeved would be the word! I do try to remember to stick a 2-gallon, zipper-close plastic bag in my camera bag when I travel…and I’ve used them to protect my cameras from water several times during my travels (during a sudden downpour, on a speedboat ride…)
We were going to try this on our current trip, but it’s been full-on pouring the entire time we’ve been in Salt Lake and I don’t think a plastic bag would even do much to protect our gear!
These pictures are stunning! And they’re bringing back memories!
Thank you, Mary!
A couple of those photos really surprised me how empty the beach was in such a crowded place. Nice to see and definitely an enticement to visit.
To be fair, it wasn’t too empty…it was in spots like the lifeguard stand, but we did all long exposures (around 25 seconds) so it blurred out any people in the shot. That said, there were definitely stretches filled with a lot of people and stretches that were blissfully empty.
Really beautiful 🙂
Beautiful photos Kristin! I love the effect you used on the first 2 or 3. Makes the pictures look mysterious and sublime at the same time. Hope all is well. Cheers!
Thanks, Ryan!! No special tricks or editing, we just used a tripod for a change and exposed most of the shots for 20 to 30 seconds each. Not much work, but killer outcome.
Great photos! The first one looks like it should have some inspirational quote written on it and hung in a place of importance. I’ve scrolled back up twice just to look at it. Love it!
Haha, I love it! Maybe Scott, who is better at Photoshop illustrations than I am should turn it into one!
Hey Kristin! Truly stunning, I love the long shots of the sky and the way you captured the water.
The lead photo of this post is simply breathtaking.
Amazing photos, as always! I miss Hawaii.
Well, you’re close enough to jet back in a heartbeat =) Take Amy with you! Girlfriend needs a nice beach vacation after a stressful semester.
Swoon! Gorgeous!
xox
That lead photo — amazing! So gorgeous. (The rest are lovely, too 🙂 )
Thanks so much, Nicole!
Love those pink skies which must have been around sunset I suppose
Yes, sunset! Nothing beats Hawaii just as the sun is starting to drop.
Great photographs! Hawaii is such a magical place… I’m not usually a big fan of beaches that are overgrown with hotels and high rise condos, but somehow the skyline looks just right here. Classic paradise
Just beautiful.
I’m doing some research for a friend who is in Waikiki right now. OMG your pictures are gorgeous. Yup, Hawaii is moving up the list for sure!
Those photos gave me the urge to pack my bags and visit the nearest beach asap. by the way here is my own entry to the weekly photo challenge, http://langaeh.wordpress.com/2012/07/08/weekly-photo-challenge-movement/
Thank you for stopping by–and for playing along, too!
Wonderful shots. Love the first one used for this weeks photo challenge. Indeed, very dreamy.
Thank you! We do love playing with long exposures in the rare instance we actually haul the tripod around =)
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