Huraa postcard, a photo from Maale, North

Photographer's Note

I have been working in the Maldives this week which has been a somewhat frustrating experience because there are so many beautiful places to photograph and I have had so little time to get my camera out, but I did manage to grab this ‘postcard’ shot whilst visiting some government institutions on Huraa Island in the Male’ Atoll. I never tire of seeing the glorious aquamarine colour of the water in the lagoons in the Maldives. The strip of dark blue on the horizon is the open ocean as Huraa Island is on the outer edge of the Male’ Atoll.

Whilst on Huraa Island, I also took a few ‘daily life’ shots which I will post later and I hope will be an interesting addition to the Maldives gallery because most of the TE posts of the Maldives are usually from the tourist resorts or the capital Male’, and there are few of the ‘real’ island villages where two thirds of the population lives. Actually, you could classify this as a daily life shot because the two men in the boat are workers from the Huraa power house which is located on an adjacent island, the tip of which you can see on the left hand side of the photograph. They were transporting supplies between the two islands. What a tough job!

I called this a 'postcard' because I can imagine this printed with white script in the top left hand corner saying "Wish you were here".

The light was very bright so I used a relatively slow shutter speed with a PL filter to maximise the DOF.

PP: Adjusted levels, USM at 350% (0.4)

PJE, jafadabret, Wirraway, capthaddock, Luan, aloyho, Floydian, rabani, peter1892, jhm, anney has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

ahmet54 (3590) 2006-04-29 9:03

Hi David,
great picture. The word postcard sometimes is used as an abusive word. But I don't think so. Your picture is a postcard and it is beautiful. The colours and the composition are perfect. The boat with the people is an extra eye-catcher.
Kind regards,
Roland.

kensimage (8563) 2006-04-29 12:08

This is a postcard in the good sense, meaning the shot has a classic style. A dock, a boat, tropical colors and palm trees--what more could you ask for to capture the atmosphere? One small comment--the boat seems just slightly crowded toward the left edge; zooming out slightly more might have helped. But it sure makes me want to be there! Regards, Ken.

david (3992) 2006-04-29 13:52

i'd love to visit the maldives ... it's a dream destination.

nice shot showing the white sand and clear blue water.

it's hard to believe you used a polarising filter here. maybe you'd wound it down to a lighter density, because i always get much darker blues with my filter. :)

gaby (19819) 2006-04-29 15:54

David bonsoir - nice to see you on TE - superb and very well composed shot - I like theses colors, the turquoise sea and the white sand - I lived 5 years in La Réunion and 1 year in Rodrigues Island (in Indian Ocean) - Infortunately, all my diapos have been destructed during the Ivory Coast war in Novembre 1994
Have a nice sunday
Regards
Gaby

PJE (20758) 2006-04-29 20:20

David this photo is truly a postcard photo. Excellent quality of color and setting from this vantage point. I have been to Can Cun and have seen this wonderful color in the ocean. I can see this is even more gorgous than what I have seen with my eyes. Thanks for sharing and for stopping by!

jrj (34843) 2006-04-30 14:15

Well David you sure had yourself a little paradise shooting with this one. Lovely setting, details and colours.
Should you want to trade with rain and +5C just let me know :-)

jbweasle (9393) 2006-05-01 7:17

Hello David, this is a true scene of paradise with the light sand and blue waters. The two, well placed men in the boat make for a necessary human touch and the palm frames the scene well in a classic composition. The jetty also add more interest and a leading line to the photo. OK I've seen a lot of pics like this before but this is well executed so I'm happy to see another!

elmec (12210) 2006-05-01 10:24

Hello David!
So nice photo!
That are spring holidays!
Thank You for thos relaxing view!
Regards!

jafadabret (56501) 2006-05-02 2:43

Je me suis toujours demandé, David, comment on pouvait travailler dans un cadre pareil !
C'est vraiment le stéréotype de la photo qui fait rêver de paradis sur Terre. Tout y est les palmiers, les cases, le bleu lagon de la mer et le grand ciel bleu. Beau travail !

Polonaise (5802) 2006-05-02 8:27

Yes indeed! It is a postacrd.
But...What a postcard IT IS !!
Hooray for Hurra, and the life seems to be a little bit brighter
Thanks David

George

Wirraway (1985) 2006-05-02 10:17

Great shot of this magical place David, well composed and executed, thank's for the informative note, excellent work.

Regards Ian
Nth Queensland.

capthaddock (28790) 2006-05-03 12:51

Hi David - what a wonderful inviting colour that is, and having come back from Hawaii last night, makes it even more painful to be under the chilly SF fog right now.

Luan (12971) 2006-05-03 13:24

Hello David,
Yes for sure this picture could easily be a postcard, a place who everyone want to be ;o), the picture is sharp and clear, the colors made us dream about and they made us forget the work ;o)
A nice shot
Luan

kclai (2267) 2006-05-03 22:24

Hey David
Yeah, I heard this place is paradise. The sea, the peoples, the sun and everything, such a good place to live in.
A well captured image that reflect the true identity of Maldives, but a little distraction fron the couple on the boat.
The best thing about your image is that you have included the shadow of the coconut tree onto the sea. That's real cool refering to picutres from travelougue.
Cheers and enjoy your day, David.
Eric Lai

dHitman (0) 2006-05-07 3:43

Hi David,
Very lovely shot. Neat and clean composition with all the elements well placed. Well done!
Regards, Jino

izmirli (3989) 2006-05-07 17:52

merhaba dear david
wonderful nature and landscape.
wonderful pastel colours. well done.
best regards my friend.
gürkan akçakır.

nika (0) 2006-05-09 4:14

Hi David!

This is a phantastic shot of the Maldives! You're right...just like a postcard. I like the vivid colours and the great, neat composition of your photo.
Have a nice day!
Anette

aloyho (6798) 2006-05-10 8:49

Hi David,
Indeed a lovely postcard and the place is very appealing too. I enjoyed this scene with all its attractions - the lovely palms, islands, jetty, workers and the shadows. I am also attracted to the blue along the horizon. Excellent shot!! Have a nice day.

Floydian (30970) 2006-05-24 10:48

Hi David,
Yes, a true postcard and that is a compliment instead of an simple explantion. Making good postcards is difficult as i know for myself, you did very well on this one. It has a strong composition with fantastic green and blue colours.
High class...!!!
Regards, Henk

hispic (9658) 2006-05-27 20:55

Very comfortable image from Maldives, David.
I'd like to fly there at once, beautiful blue sky and water with contrasty light.
Have a nice sunday.
Best regards,
Hisashi

rabani (9645) 2006-05-28 5:53

Postcart perfect. The kind that says "Wish-You-Were-Here". but I hoped, you had taken the island by itself with nothing around it but the blue sky and the emerald sea. Did you David? I imagined, it'd look almost surreal

vinicio (23423) 2006-06-03 18:13

Need my comment? No, only compliments, I have nothing more to say, I drink from this image and dream.
Have a good sunday and thanks.
Vinicio

peter1892 (1681) 2006-06-03 18:27

Very good David - perfectly composed, especially the inclusion of the boat! it adds a human element into the idyllic landscape. The colours are excellent too.

jhm (211734) 2006-08-01 13:21

Hello David,

Today I browsed to your gallery, I found different lovely pictures, I chose this picture for the great quality and the beautiful post-card picture, excellent composition and lovely colours!
Thanks for sharing.

Best regards,
John

alan1 (10) 2006-08-16 5:49

Bonjour David,
Très belle photo
ca me donne envie de retourner aux maldives cette image.

Giorgio (11279) 2006-11-01 11:05

- It's this type of photograph who make us break our piggy bank and leave for the airport! Splendid!
giorgio