Maui, Hawaii.

Maui has some of the most impressive bamboo forests I have ever seen. They tower high above the Pipiwai trail.

It was a windy, overcast day. Because of the lack of available light, I had to set my camera to a 10 minute exposure. It was virtually impossible to photograph the bamboo, as the wind was causing the bamboo to sway back and forth. I was photographing with a film camera, and even though I couldn’t see the result of my captured images, I knew the bamboo would be blurry in the final image.

I was quite frustrated by this, and spend a long time waiting for that perfect moment. In order to make efficient use of my time, I hiked up and down the trail a couple of times, as there were some stunning waterfalls to be photographed as well.

Quite late in the day there was a burst of rain, and next thing all the bamboo took on a magnificent glossy shine. But still there was no break from the wind.

Then suddenly, like a gift from heaven, there was a break in the sky and the wind completely disappeared. For a short while all bamboo stood motionless, like frozen in time. The sun appeared through the break, and created a glow that looked out-of-this world.

I managed to capture only one single image with my Linhof Technorama film camera. I spent about a month in Hawaii and had to wait for 3 long weeks before I could see the final results. But I was over the moon when I saw this image! I have it enlarged at my home in Singapore, as an acrylic face mount. It looks amazing!