P#13: Capturing the Power of the Hawaiian Volcano in a Photograph

The Big Island

Jennifer Wu: The final one here is of the volcano that is near Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii. It was erupting when I took this shot.

Audri Lanford: How close were you?

Jennifer Wu: Oh, they didn't let me get very close. The National Geographic photographers were out there. We could see their lights as they went out and I was like, "Hey, I want to, go!" They were like, "No, I don't think so. It's not safe."
(click the image for a larger version)

I'm all, "Yeah, but I'd really like to go." They just kind of laughed at me. I had to make do with taking the shot from about 300 feet away -- and that's with the wide angle lens. Then I used a telephoto and got close-ups of it as well. I also did some night shots with the volcano and the stars.

Audri Lanford: What time of day is this one?

Jennifer Wu: In the evening. It was at twilight after the sun has set but before it's gone completely dark out. I really wanted to get that glow of the volcano, but also wanted some light in the sky.

In Closing

Sometimes you can't get as close as you'd like to the subject you're photographing. In cases like this, you can compensate with your composition and your lens. That's how Jennifer Wu handled this shot of the erupting Hawaiian volcano.