The April 2022 Full Moon Over Okinawa

 It Wasn't Easy

Living on an island the weather can be tricky.  Knowing this, I make plans for moon shots.

Like, climbing onto the roof of my house hours ahead of moonrise.

The camera and tripod are pointed  East in the general direction of the anticipated full moon.

The moon was supposed to rise shortly after 5:30 but, I knew it may take an hour to be visible.

There were thick clouds on the horizon. It would be nice to catch moonrise over the ocean.

But, I knew it would be a waste of time, walking down to sea level.  My roof would be better.

Standing on the roof, I kept looking off to the east for some gold-colored light in the sky.

It seemed as if the moon would never make an appearance. 

Eat lots of coffee candies, talk to the dog, zip up the jacket, stare off into the sky.

It must have been in the low 60's Farenheight. When it's windy that's freezing in Okinawa.

At 7:34 PM for a few seconds, the moon shined through the clouds.

A quick snap of the camera shutter and it was gone again. Miserable night!

Everything was tightened securely and, I covered the camera lens.

Downstairs, I told the wife the camera could stay on the roof overnight. 

There wouldn't be any decent full moon photos today. GROAN

About an Hour Later

Downstairs I played some Solitaire on the computer and checked email and SNS sites.

YAWN, when it's dark outside the sleep monster crawls up on my shoulders.

First, I went to the kitchen and looked outside to see if any moon had shown up.

Hallelujah!

There it was, a big bright moon with hardly any clouds around it!

Quickly, I prepared one photo for posting on Instagram and Facebook then hurried off to bed.

One good photo of the moon with the Rabbit facing upwards was all I needed.

Y'all know, I don't believe in the Easter Bunny. But, just in case.....

What the Lily (Flowers) Taught Me Today (Photos)

It's Spring and Easter Sunday is just around the corner.  So, today I figured it'd be a good time to practice shooting Lily flowers.  Mrs. Ryukyu Mike has the things growing in a garden on the roof of the house. 

What brand they are, I have no idea but, the Missus said if I planned on shooting them I'd better do it today.  They won't be in bloom much longer.  Here's a few photos.

                                     Just for the sake of simplicity I'll call this the Red Lily.

                                          This one, I don't know.  Call it whatever you'd like.

HERE'S WHAT THE LILIES TAUGHT ME TODAY:

1. I was born to shoot wildlife, not flowers.

2. Lilies won't hold still in the wind.

3. Lying on my back in a puddle of water isn't as much fun as it used to be.

4. The wife and Wikipedia disagree on the names of these lilies.  One of them could be wrong.

5. Hold real still shooting lilies, lying in a puddle and the wife's dog thinks you died.  So, he pees on you.


There is a big Lily Festival on the island of Ie-shima in Okinawa, Japan at the end of this month.  I plan on taking the ferry over there to shoot the white lilies.  They will have over a million of them in bloom. 

Those lilies, I know, are Easter Lilies.  But, Easter will be over before I get there.

It's a good idea to practice for these big events.  I need to brush up on my flower photography before I go spending an overnighter on some strange island.

That's just in case the locals slip something in my tea and I wake up with a hangover. Know what I mean?

What I'm hoping for is to come back with plenty of good flower photos taken under sunny blue skies.

And, I hope they have a "No Dogs Allowed" policy for the Lily Festival on Ie-shima.


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