Douglas J. Hoffman Photography

Inconic Maui Scene – Sugar Plantation

Doug Hoffman — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 00:51:42 +0000

Iconic Scene in Maui

One of the first things visitors to Maui see is the twin stacks of the sugar mill puffing away with the vapors drifting in the strong Maui trade winds. The gusts were about 2o knots on this day as evidenced by the smoke or steam stream comes is immediately blown towards the West by winds coming from the east.

When deciding on the design for this image I wanted to avoid putting the factory in the dead center of the frame. I wanted to show a bit of sugar cane field in the foreground and the west Maui Mountains in the background. IN so doing the cane and the factory are in the lower third of the composition and the mountains take up two thirds of the negative space in the background. This serves to make the subject of the factory a bit more compelling.

Composition is a great topic and the subject of a Photography Workshop. Click here to see more beautiful photography

Behind every good Man is an incredible Woman

Doug Hoffman — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 00:41:06 +0000

This old saying is so true. In my case I would not be where I am if not for the love, support, trust, belief, technical support, and understanding of my wife. I recently received the Master of Photography degree, and the truth is I would not have the degree if not for Mieko, and all the attributes just mentioned.

So this post is for Mieko. Thanks for always being there for our business, me. And, for being a wonderful mom to Hana, Aya, Finn, and Dusty.

Hoffman Girls

Maui Green Sea Turtles like to bask

Doug Hoffman — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 10:17:57 +0000

Basking on the beach is not limited to humans. It seems turtles do it to.

Basking Turtle on the beach for the night

Within a few minutes the sky was almost void of light the mass turtle migration occurred. Sixteen male turtles hauled out for the night. The behavior is called basking and it is very different from the same human behavior. I am not sure of the real reasons these turtles bask on the beach for the night. Perhaps its due to the presence of Tiger Sharks. After all for millions of years Sharks have fed at night. Food for thought anyway. THis is the second time I have observed this behavior.

Basking the night away

Dominica – The adventure begins

Doug Hoffman — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 00:51:12 +0000

Today I depart for Dominica. Not the Dominican Republic. In my effort to conform to stricter airline regulations I am traveling very lite. I have 85 pounds of checked baggage spread out into two pieces of luggage. I will get nailed for an extra bag on each leg of the journey but as a u//w photographer I am used to that.

What I am most concerned with is avoiding extra fees for carry on baggage. The airlines I am flying have stated that one piece of personal baggage at 15 pounds is the maximum, and they mean it. Not wanting to be separated from my housing and camera, I decided to wear it around my neck.So I put a strap around my nexus housing and will carry it on. It looks impressive and I figure the best place to hide it, is to put it right in front of people.

I am also going to wear a Tamrac Photo Vest and carry about 20 pounds of lenses and hard drives in the pockets. When they weigh my backpack it will come in at 14 pounds. Once on the plane I will transfer the lenses back into the backpack.

Ready to go!

Hopefully this approach will save me not only money for extra carry on baggage but also allow me to keep my eye on my camera bodies and lenses while I travel. This alone is priceless. After all my cameras are my tools. I don’t feel bad about my strategy because the tickets cost about $2,000 so I have contributed to the airlines bottom line.

I remember 10 years ago the airlines gave scuba divers and photographers a special baggage allowance giving them an extra piece of luggage. Too bad those days are long forgotten………..

2012 Our World Underwater Underwater Photography Competition

Doug Hoffman — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 06:16:36 +0000

The worlds best underwater photographs have been decided in the recent Our World Underwater Photography Competition. Wow is al I can say. The depth of talented photographers in the world in incredible and inspirational. Congratulations to all that took a chance and entered, and Kudos to the winners. Well done.

Once in a lifetime opportunity – Snorkeling with Humpback Whales

Doug Hoffman — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 23:31:26 +0000

It is no secret that I am passionate about Humpback Whales. For seven seasons, I have traveled to Tonga to observe and photograph these gentle giants. Over the years I have worked several captains and boats and learned what works and what does not. The latter is very important as making mistakes costs, time as well as money and both are what I consider valuable resources not to be wasted.

playful baby whale

In 2011, I worked with Dave and Tris Sheen. The couple operates a business called Whale Discoveries. The tour was land based and utilized an inflatable called Tropic Bird. It was a perfect combination. The Sheen’s have a great boat, a lot of experience working with whales, & an impressive amount of passion. I have over 10,000 hours in the water, and am very experienced at guiding small groups that are dedicated to whale photography.

At the end of our adventures together last season Dave told me they intended to purchase a large sailing cat, and do liveaboard trips for small groups. Tris asked if I would like to commit to hosting a few special photography adventures. I gave it a moments thought and realized being on a live aboard allows us to move to where the whales are. Its much easier than having to return to port each day. If that was not reason enough having a small group of 3-5 people as opposed to 16 or 18 people like on the larger liveaboards in Silver Banks is ideal. So I said yes.

Well, Tris and Dave purchased a brand new 54 foot sailing catamaran that is built for speed and performance. The vessel is made of Kevlar and carbon fiber composite & fiberglass. Their are four spacious cabins, all of which have a queen size bed. One of the trade offs in having large cabins is that there are not in-suite toilets. Instead there is a shared head on the main deck. The boat has two heated showers, one on the aft deck, and the other in the head.

The vessel is fitted with solar panels and attempts to minimize its footprint as much as possible. This is not the kind of boat to get chocolates on the pillow or a heated towel after each whale swim. It is the perfect vessel for those that are more interested in comfortable surroundings and experiencing the whales in the wild. Thus the name of the boat Wild Life.

Last year when we planned all this we scheduled a few trips but without a boat it was hard to market properly. Somehow we managed to fill two trips. Due to personal circumstances of the people that had reserved the boat on the first adventure, we are now looking for 2-3 people to join our September 21-29 cruise.

If those of you reading this have ever thought about going on a whale swimming adventure this is time to act. If you know of anyone that might like to know about this opportunity please pass this post on. It will be an incredible adventure.

We will board the boat in the Ha’apai island group and disembark in the Vava’u island group. We hope to visit a series of Sea mounts, and make it to a remote island called Toku, where we know from experience there are a lot of whales.

Please contact me for details and price info.

Live the dream – dont dream about living

Doug Hoffman — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 05:00:53 +0000

Life is what you make it. So go for it. You can sit on the dock, sidelines, or couch watching…… or figure out what you want and go for it.

Our World

Perhaps I read to many Huck Finn books as a kid but I think if you can define your dreams you can live them. All that is required is an never ending sense of belief, commitment, motivation, and perseverance. Where energy goes, attention flows, and results show.

I am passionate about whales and have figured out a way to live my dream. You can do it to!

See The Forrest between the Trees

Doug Hoffman — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 04:18:43 +0000

As a kid I heard this saying and wondered what it meant. Now that I’ve been around almost five decades I think I understand. Perhaps it means not to get so caught up in something that you cant see the answer is right in front of view. Sometimes passion or focus get the better of us and we can see that what is important was right there the entire time.

Hawaiian Forrest

OR, it might mean that we need to relax a bit and look at things from a wider variety of perspectives and viewpoints so we can see whats out there and make our own decision.

I suppose it also means we should not take things for granted and enjoy the moment. Enjoy the smell of fresh brewed coffee, the fragrance of a flower, magic colors of a sunset, e.t.c…

What do you think it means?

See more beautiful photographs.

Waterfront Restaurant – A Maui Tradition

Doug Hoffman — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 02:05:54 +0000

In about an hour I will go to the Waterfront Restaurant‘s new Location in Maalea Harbor, Maui. The Smith Family has owned the restaurant for well over two decades. In the late 80′s I worked their as a waiter. Back then I had just started a dive business and worked a second job to earn money for equipment, cameras, lenses, and dive travel. The restaurant has always enjoyed a reputation as one of the finest places to dine in Maui. Famous for seafood and table side caesar salads, the restaurant will open again in just a few months.

Three Bears Maui

When it opens the walls will feature my photographs of iconic Maui locations, beaches, waterfalls, flowers, forests, sunsets, coral reefs, shipwrecks, Turtles, and Humpback Whales.

Turtle Town

Today we did a preliminary fitting and looks like we will install somewhere between 25-35 pieces of art ranging from my favorite black and white whale portraits to colorful Sunsets like this.

Celestial Sunset

Hope

More photography

Master of Photography Degree – Official Press Release

Doug Hoffman — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 02:16:47 +0000

Feb 15, 2012 for immediate release

Douglas J Hoffman, of Maui Photography Inc, in Kihei Hawaii, has earned the Master of Photography degree from Professional Photographers of America. The degree was presented to Hoffman, by PPA President Don Dickson, M. Photog.Cr.Hon.M.Photog., CPP at the associations annual convention, Imaging USA, Jan 15-17, 2012 in New Orleans, Luisiana.

Hoffman has met the standards of excellence set by the Professional Photographers of America. Douglas has been awarded the Master of Photography degree in recognition of his superior photographic competence demonstrated through photographic competition, advanced education, and service to the profession.

PPA, a worldwide association, exists to assist its more than 22,000 members in achieving their professional, artistic and fraternal goals; promote public awareness of the profession; and to advance the making of all images in all its disciplines as an art, a science, and a visual recorder of history.

To see Some of Douglas work check out these sites. Douglas J Hoffman – Maui Photography – Maui Photo Tours