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Landscape Photography in Maui • Landscape Photography
• Wildlife Photography
BY MATT NIELSEN | 1 COMMENT
LAST UPDATED ON JANUARY 7, 2019 • Portraiture
• Post-Processing
• Advanced Tutorials
I had the pleasure of visiting Maui for a short vacation this past holiday season.
Maui is the second largest island by land area in the Hawaiian archipelago. The
island is known for its beautiful beaches and tropical landscapes. Prior to my trip Photography Life
I did some research on the types of images I could expect to capture on this
island paradise; I saw a lot of wide-angle landscapes around dusk and dawn. As
UNFILTERED
such, I decided to bring my Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8G and Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8G
lenses and a travel tripod. It is important to pack lightly when you are traveling.
Please enjoy this small sample of landscape images from different locations on
Maui.

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NIKON D810 @ 70mm, ISO 400, 1/60, f/5.6

Table of Contents PHOTOGRAPHY LANDSCAPE

BASICS PHOTOGRAPHY
1. Hookipa Beach
2. Waianapanapa Beach
3. Haleakala Summit
4. Iao Valley
5. Makena Beach
WILDLIFE MACRO
6. Whale Lookout on Route 30 PHOTOGRAPHY PHOTOGRAPHY
7. Closing Words

Hookipa Beach
When I arrived at this popular surfing spot the sun was starting to go down. COMPOSITION & BLACK & WHITE
Instead of capturing the sunset I shifted my attention eastward to this CREATIVITY PHOTOGRAPHY

outcropping of rocks. Every few minutes a big wave would wash over the rocks. I
knew that this was the perfect opportunity to add something dynamic to my
image. As the sky got darker I adjusted my settings and waited for a big wave.

NIGHT SKY PORTRAIT

PHOTOGRAPHY PHOTOGRAPHY

STREET PHOTOGRAPHY
PHOTOGRAPHY VIDEOS

UNIQUE GIFT IDEAS

NIKON D810 @ 16mm, ISO 64, 1/1, f/9.0

Waianapanapa Beach
The Road to Hana is one of Maui’s most popular tourist destinations. Near the
end of this winding seaside highway is a black sand beach. The sand is black
because all of the rocks are volcanic. The black landscape creates an interesting
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contrast between the clear blue water and lush green plants.
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NIKON D810 @ 14mm, ISO 64, 1/125, f/8.0

The main beach was full of tourists. I knew it would be difficult to create a clean
image with so many people walking around. Instead, I headed to a smaller,
rockier beach in the park. Stopping down to f/16 allowed me to capture sharp
details in both the foreground and the background. Additionally, this small
aperture allowed me to extend my exposure time to create some motion blur in
the incoming waves.

NIKON D810 @ 14mm, ISO 64, 1/3, f/16.0

Haleakala Summit
Forming 75% of Maui’s land mass and rising over 10,000 feet from sea level is
Haleakala. I arrived close to sunset and was met by brutal wind and cold. Despite
the harsh conditions, the summit was beautiful. A photographer could spend
weeks exploring this otherworldly place. Unfortunately, I had only minutes to
capture an image before darkness came. I decided to highlight a shrub in the
foreground and the valley in the background. Of all the locations I experienced,
this is the one I most want to revisit.

NIKON D810 @ 28mm, ISO 64, 6/1, f/11.0

Iao Valley
Covered in lush plants and streams, Iao Valley is famous for its “needle” that
rises over 1,200 feet from the valley floor. This landmark is the result of erosion.
Despite having some close-up images of the needle, I thought it more interesting
to capture the rushing stream in the foreground. The needle can be seen
centered in the background.

NIKON D810 @ 18mm, ISO 64, 1/8, f/16.0

Makena Beach
The sun was high and strong when I arrived at one of Maui’s most beloved
beaches. Shooting into the sun was simply not an option, so I walked to the far
side of the beach where I found an outcropping of rocks to stand on. The rocks
helped to frame the beach’s crescent shape and gave some details in the
foreground. To help deal with the harsh lighting I used a polarizing filter.

NIKON D810 @ 24mm, ISO 64, 1/30, f/8.0

Whale Lookout on Route 30

Hawaii is located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with a relatively small
population. This means very little light pollution. At night you can see stars
everywhere. Given the chance, I wanted to capture the night sky. Unfortunately, it
is impossible to see the Milky Way’s galactic core during the winter months in the
northern hemisphere. I was able to capture the edge of our galaxy rising above
this ridge on my last night.

NIKON D810 @ 14mm, ISO 4000, 25/1, f/2.8

Closing Words
Travel photography is a great way to capture memories of your trip abroad.
Before embarking on your voyage it is helpful to plan out the types of images you
want to capture and pack your camera gear accordingly. The traveling
photographer must also remember to balance photography with other aspects of
the trip, like eating good food and relaxing on the beach. With a basic plan and
the right expectations you can walk away from your next trip with a camera full of
memories.

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FILED UNDER: TOURS AND TRAVEL

TAGGED WITH: HAWAII, LANDSCAPE, NIKON, TRAVEL, WIDE ANGLE LENS

About Matt Nielsen

Matt is a software engineer and 2016 graduate of Carnegie
Mellon University living in San Francisco, California. He is
passionate about sports, architecture, and urban landscape photography.
Check out Matt's work on Instagram!

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1 COMMENT Newest

Parker
March 9, 2019 9:32 am

Maui is the beautiful place to travel and taking photographs. Travel Photography is the best
way to capture your memories. Before travelling plan out what type of images you want to
capture and pack your camera accordingly. With some planning you can make your
memories beautiful by taking good pictures.

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