12 Images of Okinawa's Sailing Sabani Boats

Itoman City Mayor's Cup Race

The event took place NOV 13th at Bibi Beach in Itoman, Okinawa, Japan.

Ryukyu Life dictates, I must spend a few days getting a feel for things.

Two days and nights of, having too much fun, can wear a cameraman out.  I loved it !

In no particular order other than, how they came out of the camera, here are some of the boats.

One of the things, I enjoy most, about the Ryukyu Islands is November weather.

This scene, depicts the rugged working conditions, I never complain about.

Two cameras and three lenses, accompanied me on this trip, along with a sturdy tripod.

Wide angle shots were planned, for catching many boats in scenes.

But, I wanted the ability, to photograph, Ken Uehara, during the races, also.

He is sort of a living legend and, over the years, has become a good friend of mine.

Five years, my senior, Ken stands out on the jetty, to wave a red flag, starting each race.

And, he makes me sit next to him, as an honored guest, during evening celebrations.

At times, sabani boats move faster, with the sail lowered, using paddle power.

Offered a ride on a safety/escort boat, I declined. I'm not that crazy.

A tripod, works much better, when your feet are on the ground.

It took some maneuvering around but, I could capture photos, in the light I liked best.

An escort boat's mission, is primarily for the safety of the boat teams.

Riding aboard one of them, would often require, shooting towards the sun.

For me, catching some of the boat crew's faces, was more important.

Off in the distance, the Kerama Islands, can be seen on the horizon.

The orange buoy marks the finish of the races.

Over the course of two days and nights, I must have taken 2,000 photos.

Hopefully, each team got their photos taken and, I can give them some pictures.

Now, I'm sort of an old guy and, got stuck, shooting a team of girls. Yuk.

But, when I do an event like this, I try to get all the teams.

Well, in the photo at the top of this page, those girls came in 1st place.

The little darlings.... Now, I love them all !

Packing to Travel Light Takes Practice

12 Photos from First Rehearsal

 

 

Today, I decided to start about a week early, getting organized for this trip.

It's an annual event, I've been doing for the past few years, where, I go off island.

 First, the contents stored in the pack, had to be taken out and examined.

There are lots of things,  that will be unnecessary for this journey aboard a boat in June.

Woolen socks, insect repellent and, a can of tuna fish shouldn't be needed.

Getting rid of all the unneeded junk, would lighten up the load, I'd be carrying.

A little bit at a time, I started making room for more important stuff, to pack away.

The sailing sabani boat races, I'm attending, will be out in the ocean.

So, all the cameras and lenses, stand a good chance of, getting wet.

The two cameras (above) are the Pentax K1 and K3, I'll be using a 300MM lens, at sea.

For closer up shots, the Pentax 18-250 and 15-30MM will come in handy.

 Battery chargers and a USB wire for the smartphone are important things to carry.

Two changes of clothes and some plastic bags, I'll bring for sweaty laundry.

In case, I get stuck, washing my clothes with body soap, I brought along some clothesline.

Don't giggle at my underwear. Somebody else, buys and folds it Not me.

 When all this, thinking about packing, started to get on my nerves, I remembered something.

Get the Aspirins and Rolaids ready, to stuff in the backpack. Just in case.

 Some additions (above) were, a spare belt and camera straps.

Normally, I wouldn't use straps, on the camera but, this time they may, come in handy.

Bouncing around on a fishing boat, shooting a camera, can be dangerous.

So, I might rig up a contraption, to keep me from falling overboard.

A circular polarizing filter, was added, in case, I'm shooting on a bright sunny day.

Certain times of the day, there's a horrible glare, off the ocean, to be dealt with.

With that thing, mounted on the end of a lens, glare can be eliminated.

As things started, getting stuffed in the backpack, more things were thought of.

Like a Mickey Mouse towel and the laptop power supply. Important stuff.

A laptop and gadgets, plus a surge protector, almost complete the required load.

Then, I remembered to throw in a USB wire for the Android.

Add, a light weight windbreaker jacket and the pack is getting full.

The Lowepro camera bag which, is hardly ever used, got called into action.

That's because, the cameras, aren't in the backpack, yet and it's getting full.

The two hours, spent on this exercise, wasn't a total waste of time.

It just taught me, it will take more practice at packing things for the trip.

Just for the heck of it, I reduced the images down, to make a 20 second video:

 Previous Zamami Island Excursions:

 
2013 Packing List for an Overnight Island Hop

2014 Scenes from Zamami Island Sailing Sabani Race

2015  Animations from the Sabani Sailing Race: Zamami Island

Boating Photo: Sabani Boats of Itoman

A Chinese New Year Tradition

 

 

Today the sailing sabani boats of Itoman, Okinawa were in a parade.

A procession, to Hakugindo Shrine was made by the sabani boat teams.

Prayers and offerings insure a safe and productive New Year.

Afterwards, the boats, decorated with colorful banners and flags, sailed around Itoman Port.

Camera:  Pentax K3

Lens:  Pentax 18-250 and 1.4 converter -- Focal Length 252MM

Exposure:  f/11   1/400   ISO 100

Date and Time:  FEB 11  2016  9:49AM

Related Post:  2014 Itoman Okinawa Sabani Boat Parade

Views of the Sailing Sabani Boats in Kin Bay

The 1st sailing sabani race of 2015 was held today.

It's a blast, capturing these events with a digital camera, bouncing around on the ocean.

Out of the seven hundred and, something images, taken this morning, here are a few GIFs.

There were only five boats in the competition and, I hope, I got them all.

If I had a choice, I'd rather be shooting my camera with my feet planted on some earth.

Riding a safety/escort boat, I was out at sea, looking towards the shore.

With a combination of sails and paddles, these boats move quickly.

So, every once in awhile the safety boat dude,  guns his engines real fast.

And, the cameraman cusses, as he almost gets thrown overboard.

It got me thinking.  There must be an easier way to get these photos.

Like, couldn't they rent one of those Goodyear blimps ?

More About Sailing Sabani Boats:

What the Heck is a Sabani ?

Okinawa's Sabani Sailing People

Wide Angle Photos from the Zamami Jima Trip

When the Light is Right

 

 

It's nice to take home some wide angle shots from places my travel takes me.

It's tricky, trying to compose and shoot photos from a seagoing platform.

Some of the things, you have to deal with are the pitch and roll of the ship.

And, there may be salt water spray, hitting your camera lens.

There's a technique, I'm working on, to perfect this type of photography.

It consists of mostly, pitching and rolling in the opposite ditection of the ship.

These images were all taken with Pentax cameras.

They are extremely water resistant and can take a beating but, salt water can ruin them.

So, I make sure, I have some fresh water nearby, to rinse salt water spray off.

And, I have plenty of lens tissue on standby.

The Umimaru, was the sailing sabani team, I went on this mission to photograph.

It would have been a shame to miss this shot because of a fouled-up lens.

 The more distance between my boat and theirs, the bluer the skies became.

 Even though, I was softly cussing the boat, I was on, I was enjoying the scenery.

If another sabani, sailed into the right light, I shot them, too.

Blue skies, over the islands, are just irresistible, to me.

One last wide angle photo was taken as we entered Naha, Okinawa.

Then, I put the cameras away. 

Part of the Technique Involves Safety 

 

A cameraman could easily become a man overboard, when shooting at sea.

One of these days, I'll put together an article, showing how to do this type of photography.

It would be nice, to have some photos, demonstrating the methods used.

We will have to get a model photographer so, you don't have to look at me.

There's one, I know, who might be crazy enough but, she was riding a different boat.

Next time I see her, I'll ask if she wants in on the deal.

Then, maybe we'll getterdun.

The Sabani Sailboat Dog Asura

Made Into Boating Bow Wows

 

 

It took some doing, getting this gal from Okinawa, into a Boating Magazine.

They have plenty of girls in bikini photos but, Asura doesn't wear those things.

Pets on the Water was the category I entered her in.

 

In an email to the editor, I explained that, Asura sails with the sabani team, Ayakaji.

The photo was taken at Kanna Beach in Ginoza, Okinawa, Japan.

Here's a link to the image at Boating Magazine

It's a little tricky because they have 146 Boating Bow Wows.

The first one you will see is #1. Then, you have to push NEXT, above the photo.

When you get to #3, you can see this sabani sailing dog.

Then, hit Like and Tweet and maybe, we can get Asura into the #1 position.

That's where she belongs, I think.

PS  I almost forgot.  You can look at the girls in bikinis, while you're over there, too.