Photographing plants and trees might not sound all that exciting, but take it from me, it’s an experience that’s both rewarding and challenging. I started to write about this new private photo ecotour offered at Kauai’s national tropical botanic gardens, when I realized, “Hey! We were just there, having our own private photo tour.”
My boyfriend and I visited the Allerton and McBryde National Tropical Botanical Gardens in Lawai Valley a couple years ago. We showed up on a day with perfect weather, perfect lighting. We had all our camera equipment and high hopes for some cool shots. There are several garden tours offered, but we decided on the walking tour because it would allow us to get up close and personal with the plants.
We got dropped off at one of the gardens and from there, roamed freely with cameras in hand and were not disappointed by what they had to offer us. There was definitely no shortage of photo opps since everything there is seemed photogenic. Sometimes the lighting would change fairly quickly (and drastically) with the shifting of the leaves and branches. But we figured out ways to counter those issues, and before we knew it, we had some pretty descent shots to add to the collection.
Now on to the official photo tour at these Kauai gardens, which is hosted by Photo Safari Hawaii. The company provides private photo ecotours all over the Hawaiian Island chain at awe-inspiring spots; among them, the Allerton and McBryde National Tropical Botanical Gardens. Professional guides, who are also experts in the islands, provide fine art photography exercises and exclusive access to the McBryde Waterfall. That sounds like a perk in itself!
Whether you decide on taking the ecotour or making up your own, I’d highly suggest devoting some time to visiting these gardens. I plan to do a follow-up post on the gardens itself. It’s truly one of the most serene places on Kauai that showcases the botanical importance of native plants and provides a stunning photography canvas for any skill level.
Photo Credit: Noa Myers
PHOTO SAFARI AT Kauai BOTANICAL GARDENS • www.PhotoSafariHawaii.com
