6 Photos of a Golden Buddha in a Cave

Images Made with the New Pentax K1

 

 

 

The highways are insane with Golden Week travelers these days so, I avoided them.

It was a good day, to go down underground and visit Buddha, I figured.

Using nothing but, available light, I pushed the ISO's on the camera, to see what it would do.

The Pentax was handheld, using my knees or a concrete post to steady the shots.

This first photo was taken at ISO 3200 and, didn't come out too shabby.

 Here's another image taken at ISO 3200, giving you a closer look.

Someday, I'll have to ask the monk at Kin Temple if, it would be alright, to dust Buddha off.

It would be best, to get permission.  Don't wanna lose my passport into heaven, you know.

Next, I took a shot at ISO 1600, to see if there would be much difference.

Moving around, to a different position in the cave, gave me a new angle, to shoot from.

You can see from the tone of the gold, it was a little darker, where I was standing.

 The ISO's were pushed all the way up to 12800 when I made this shot.

Families, coming down into the cave, were real polite and, excused themselves, passing me.

Maybe, they thought I was some kind of cave-dweller.  Who knows ?

The next thing I did, was push the ISO all the way up to 51200 and said, "Meah."

We'll save this image, in case someone wants to buy grainy photos.

People bought the Mona Lisa, didn't they ?

If you're excited about grainy photos, here ya go.  How about ISO 65535 ?

Next time, I bring the camera to that cave, I think I'll try a tripod.

Imagine what that camera could do, at ISO 100 !

1st Week of June -- Friday Photos

A Weekend Could Be Spent Doing This

 

 

A relatively mild rainy season, slowed the flower blossoms down a bit this year.

A visit to the northern hills today turned out to be a good idea.

The mountains are popping with bright colors.

Hydrangea flowers are in full bloom at Yohena's Ajsai Garden.

There must have been a few busloads of these little tots on a field trip.

They added some color saturation to the scenes in case you didn't already have enough.

Plus, I found out what about 100 of them want for Christmas.

A visit to Nago and, Captain Kangaroo's was made at lunchtime.

This is a simple burger and cheese with a side of fries.

Not wanting to get an overdose of vegetables, I just had some ketchup.

Potatoes and tomatoes, right ? 

They have other types of burgers on the menu, in case you were wondering.

Someday, I may have to try this humongous thing.

Maybe, I'll pass on the ketchup.

Touring a rock garden, seemed like a good idea after that big lunch.

Buddha looks a bit weathered but, keeps on smiling.

This is a place we always stop by for photos when in the area.

A stand of bamboo, right next to the Buddha statue begs for photos, as well.

Something tells me, camera clubs will be heading for the hills this weekend.

There's a good possibility, they may run into me, somewhere in their photographic travels.

Now, I'm wondering.  How early does Captain Kangaroo open ? 

Maybe, I'll  be the first customer !

Scroll down the page at:

Hydrangea Garden Yohena Website

To Read in Japanese, English, Chinese or, Korean.

Lunacy Before the Full Moon (Photo Essay)

Does the Full Moon Cause Lunacy ?

 

It has an effect on the tides and that causes strange things to happen in the animal world.

And, it got me thinking about some of the crazy things people do, too.

Just making preparations for tomorrow's full moon I had one heck of a day.

Wanting to get some camera practice in tonight, I deliberately, didn't drink last night.

So, I was up at the crack of dawn.  I promised the Missus, I'd go shopping today.

Shopping, to me, is worse than having root canals.  But, people have to eat.

It took a little convincing (the wife) that we would save a lot, if I went by myself.

By myself, means the front seat of the car gets loaded with camera gear.

Heading home with the trunk and back seat full of groceries got me smiling.

Going by myself must have saved me at least a hundred bucks.  Hah !

And, I spotted this Flame Vine growing on someone's house.

So, I whipped a U-turn and shot this photo to show how huge they get in Okinawa.

Feeling a little guilty about leaving the wife, home alone, I came up with a plan.

"C'mon baby let's go for a Sunday drive, after you put the groceries away", I said.

So, back up to the mountains of Motobu, I went for the third time in a week.

The Missus could see Buddha, natural rock gardens and all kinds of flowers.

Plus, she could read that Kanji on the rocks, beyond the bamboo.

Now, I know what it says.  It's the Long Life Rock.

Just when I was about to say "Mission accomplished, let's go home" I remembered something else.

We climbed up to the top of the hill and I introduced the wife to this sweetheart of a lady.

They got drinking green tea and chatting.

That gave me a chance to try and get some better photos of these critters.

A rare, endangered species is what they are.  I still want better photos.

But, this was enough for today.

Get out of the mountains without the wife filling the car-up with plants and flowers became the plan.

Getting ready for a moon shoot sometimes, requires a nap.

At home, I crashed from 4 to 5PM and was at my office by six.

If you look, real close, the moon is peeking over that orange-tiled roof.

It was 6:11PM when I took that wide angle shot.

Here's a photo taken by zooming with the Sigma 50-500mm lens, at 6:20.

Next, I played around with different compositions and crops.

People walk by and look at me like I'm crazy but, it's not lunacy; it's practice, to me.

 Running in and out of the office, I swapped cameras and lenses, a few times.

It all pays-off when it's time for the real-deal.

While I was in the office, I checked email a few times tonight, too.

 That's how I found out this Goat Fight photo essay was published.

Do you know how to capture a photo like that ?

Just lay down on the ground and, act like a lunatic, before a full moon !

Travel Photo Thursday: Buddha and Bamboo

This photo of a smiling Buddha in the bamboo was taken February 21, 2013.

Location: Motobu Peninsula of Okinawa, Japan

Pentax KD10 with Pentax 18-250 at 18mm

f/11  1/10sec   ISO 100

Flower Photos: Azalea This Ain't No Shrub, It's A Bonsai Tree !

Look what I found yesterday.  This bright-colored bunch of flowers grows on a tree next to a red-tiled roof in Okinawa, Japan.  This beauty isn't a whole 20 seconds walk from my house.

So, when the rain stopped for a few seconds, I grabbed the wife and the camera.  She thinks she knows everything so, I asked her to tell me what that tree was growing all those flowers.  She says it's azaleas.

Well, I told her she must be crazy. Azaleas grow on little bushes. 

I shoot them at the Azalea Festival up in the mountains and Azalea Season was over a long time ago.

Look at the size of that freakin plant.  It's a tree. 

That's me, with the camera, across the street.  I'm not exactly a midget, ya know.


It turns out, the wife really isn't crazy. They have Bonsai Azalea Trees that bloom in the month of May, in Japan.  How did women get so smart about flowers, anyway?  It drives me crazy.

Now, mind you, this is rainy season and I plan on getting some high-quality photos of those azaleas, with a pretty blue sky background, first chance I get. That might take some time.

To really get a great shot I'll have to climb the wall and sneak into the garden where the Laughing Buddha statue sits.  I know the people who own the place but, they don't wake up early enough in the morning to let me in through the gate. 

So, I'll just have to pretend I'm a criminal and climb the fence the old-fashioned way.

Just in case you want to learn more about Azaleas, I found the AZALEA SOCIETY OF AMERICA
and, another place, I'll call the THE AZALEA BONSAI TREE CHANNEL because they're the first ones who agreed with me. That Azalea ain't no shrub, it's a Bonsai Tree!

The Year in Photos: Okinawa, Japan 2010

A photo a month taken on the Island of Okinawa by Ryukyu Mike during the year 2010. Enjoy !

 January: The first location in all of Japan to see Cherryblossoms bloom is the island of Okinawa.

February: A Buddha Statue in the Bonsai Gardens behind the Gold Hall Cafe in Kin Village.

March: A Black-winged Stilt (Himantopus himantopus) along a riverbank in Kin Village.

April: Kin Village Elementary School Graduation. Ouch, my Granddaughter is a teenager, now !

May: The sun broke out over a pineapple field in Nago. During rainy season, this was a rarity.

June: A King Cobra's hindsite is as good as most people's at Okinawa World's Snake Park.

July: A view of the northernmost point on Okinawa taken from the cliffs above Hedo Point.

August: A Festival known as Unjami dedicated to the gods of the sea in Ogimi Okinawa.

September: Paper lanterns at a Full Moon Festival in Kin Village Okinawa.

October: Students perform the Eisa Dance at an Undokai (Sports Day) Kin Village Okinawa.

November: A Black-backed Wagtail (Motacilla lugens) at Kin Red Beach in Okinawa.

December: An Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) in flight over the west coast of Okinawa, Japan.

This is just a small sample to give you an idea of the places I've been and scenes  I try to capture with my camera during the course of a year. Many of the critter, culture, castle, festival and scenic shots I've taken throughout the year 2010 are waiting to be uploaded or are on hold pending publication.



Have a Happy New Year!

Cheers,
Mike

Buddha on Thursday (Photo) for Budget Travelers Travel Photo Thursday

This Smiling Buddha resides in Okinawa, Japan not 50 yards from where I live. I could see him everytime I leave the house if the owners hadn't built a big wall and fence around the place.

He's on the grounds of an establishment that charges an entrance fee. Sometimes, I pay to go in because it's the right thing to do. But, if I don't have any pocket change to spare and I want to see Buddha and make sure he still has that big smile and hasn't lost any weight I have to climb the fence. So, that's what I do !

This photo is my donation to TRAVELERS PHOTO FRIDAY AT BUDGET TRAVELERS SANDBOX.