Hawaii Trip Day 3, Schaffer Photography (Roanoke, VA photographer)

Day three of our  Hawaii trip!  We got up that morning and headed out at 9 am to Pearl City to go to see Pearl Harbor.  I have to admit, this is a very touristy thing to do.  But Pearl Harbor is one of the most historically significant events in the history of the United States.  

If you don’t know much about Pearl Harbor, I will briefly explain what happened and why it has been so important to our history.  The attack on Pearl Harbor began on the island of Oahu early in the morning on December 7, 1941 by the Japanese Imperial navy.  Pearl Harbor was attacked with over 350 airplanes carrying bombs and torpedoes that eventually sank four and damaged four U.S. Battleships.  When the attack began, most of the soldiers actually thought that it was a drill.  The attack was such a huge surprise not only to the soldiers stationed on Oahu but to everyone in America.  The attack on Pearl Harbor marked the entry of the United States into World War II where we declared war on Japan. 

My husband and I got to Pearl Harbor around 9:30 am, but our tour wasn’t until 1:00 pm that afternoon.  There were lots of people there that morning!  So, this left us with a lot of time to walk around many of the interesting Pearl Harbor museums before we took our tour of one of the sunken battleships, the U.S.S Arizona, which still remains underwater at Pearl Harbor.  But more about the U.S.S Arizona later.

Torpedo on the USS Bowfin

 

The first tour we went on was the submarine, the U.S.S Bowfin.  It was neat to walk through the Bowfin.  It was remarkably small inside and I can’t believe that soldiers lived in there for weeks at a time.  Every time I went through a doorway, I had to duck and I’m short!  I can’t imagine how it must have felt to be a tall guy walking though the submarine hallways.  All of the bunks were stacked one on top of the other with only about 3 feet of space in each bedroom to move around.  It was cool to be able to see the torpedo tubes and look up the periscope.  Once we finished the tour of the inside of the submarine, we headed for the deck.  On top of the deck was a massive anti-aircraft gun.  If you look down the barrel of the gun, you see a proud and waving American flag at the end of the deck.  Simply amazing.  

Torpedo recovered from the Pearl Harbor attacks

Poster some of the sailors kept onboard the USS Bowfin

Control pannel inside the USS Bowfin

At one of the museums there was a photography display!  Cool old camera equipment!!

My husband and I at Pearl Harbor

Palm tree!

After several hours of walking though museums, we finally got to go on the tour of the U.S.S Arizona.  Yay!  It was hot and I was ready for some air conditioning!  As I said above, this battleship was sunk during the attack on Pearl Harbor.  Tragically, 1,177 men were still on board and died when it sank.   After the movie about Pearl Harbor, we got on a ferry and were taken out the memorial site in the water that is built right over the sunken ship.  Once we were on the memorial site, I could look straight down and see the sunken ship below me.  I could see the rusted remains of the ship that now has a rainbow of colored algae growing on it now.   I stared in awe realizing that over 1,000 soldiers gave their lives for my freedom right where I was standing and their bodies were still underwater, right below where I was standing.  It is eerily quiet while you are on the memorial.  We also got to see the giant marble wall with all of the names of the men that died etched in the stone.  It’s a very powerful sight to see an entire wall etched with all of the names of the heroic men that passed away that day.  

Part of the sunken ship USS Arizona



Part of the sunken ship USS Arizona



View up from the Arizona Memorial

After we left the memorial of Pearl Harbor, we headed back to the house.  We were excited for the cookout that night.  The cookout was to welcome back our friends Steve and Supriya who were arriving from the mainland that afternoon and to say goodbye to several friends of pastor Frank who had been staying with him. 

Me and Supriya

My handsome husband at the cookout

The food at this cookout was amazing!  This was my first of my many experiences eating poke (pr. Poe-kay)!  Poke is amazing.  It is raw Ahi Tuna covered in various spices and herbs.  My favorite poke was Wasabi Poke that was topped with rho.  If you love sushi, you would love poke!  We also got to try and traditional Hawaiian dish called Pipi Kaula (pee-pee-ka-oo-la).  Pipi kaula is a beef dish that is marinated in vinegar and onions.  It has a jerky like consistency and has a very strong and savory flavor.  I loved pipi kaula and ate so much of it!  I had such a great time at this cookout, meeting everyone at the church and kicking the soccer ball around! 



Poke!



Pipi Kaula


Stay tuned for day 4 and beach pictures!!

Levi and Beth's Wedding l Roanoke VA Wedding Photographer

From the first time I met this couple at Gillie's over a plate of eggs and hash browns, I knew they were meant for each other and that I was going to have a great time photographing their wedding day.  Beth was such the laid back bride and Levi was such the organized groom!  I had a great time at their wedding and, if you look at their reception photos, I think you might agree!  You can view all of the photos from Beth and Levi's wedding at www.LSchafferPhotography.com and clicking on "Client Access" Enjoy! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tips for Choosing a Wedding Photographer, Schaffer Photography

     I would say photography is one of the most important critical parts of any couple's wedding day.  If not the most important.  And not just because I am a photographer!  After all, you spend a great deal of effort planning all the many beautiful details that will make up your wedding day.  When your wedding day is over, most of what you will have left to remember your wedding day by is photographs.  And hopefully they are great photos that capture all of the emotions and little moments along with the details of your wedding for you to look back on and remember for years to come.  So, I thought I would write a few tips on choosing a photographer for your wedding!

Choose a photographer that:

1.  Fits your style.
     First of all, you need to know your personal style!  Take a look at lots of wedding photos.  What do you like and what don't you like?  Why do you think you like or don't like those things?  Some couples like traditional photography where many of the photos are preplanned or posed.  Or do you like more unexpected and candid shots(photojournalism)?  Or a mix of both?  Knowing what want in a wedding photographer will help you narrow down your top pics from a sea of many photographers.  

2. Fits well with your personality.
     Your photographer is going to be with you for one of the most important days of your life.  You want the personality of your wedding photographer to fit in easily with you, your husband/wife to be and your bridal party.  You don't want them get on your nerves!  Some of this has to do with style as well- candid photographers will more than likely try and stay in the background, unnoticed to capture truly candid moments as they happen.  More traditional photographers will plan photography opportunities through out the day.

3. Has experience and can prove it.  
      Wedding photography experience is crucial.  Knowing the flow of a wedding and being technically proficient is so important!  What will happen if the shooting conditions during your wedding are less than optimal?  Will your photographer know how to compensate and adjust to make sure that your wedding photos still turn out well?  What if there is a hitch in the order of the wedding ceremony or someone is running late- can your wedding photographer roll with the punches?

     A great way to get a feel for a photographer's experience is to ask for references or check for memberships in professional organizations.  A few well know photographer organizations are the Professional Photographers of America "PPA" (http://ppa.com/), Wedding Photojournalist Association "WPJA" (http://wpja.com/), or Wedding and Portrait Photographers International "WPPI" (http://wppionline.com/).  Many professional organizations require that a photographer submit a portfolio before being accepted which is a great way to gauge a photographers technical abilities and creative aptitudes.  All that being said, some photographers can't afford to have certain certifications, so don't overlook a great photographer just because they don't belong to a professional organization.  Having a wedding photographer with a sound technical knowledge and experience will definitely pay off and you will be able to see it in your photos.  If you find several photographers you like, don't hesitate to contact them and set up an appointment.  Good photographers book a lot of times over a year in advance, so don't wait!

4.  You can afford.
     There are a lot of wedding photographers out there.  That being said, there are definitely some great ones and definitely some bad ones too.  Not all wedding photographers are created equally.  In the wedding photography (and real!) world, you get what you pay for.  This can be a sensitive topic to many couples and I'm not saying to take out a second mortgage on your house to pay for a wedding  photographer!  But, it might be worth it to try and cut down a little on other areas of your wedding so that you can afford more to put towards a photographer.   A good professional photographer will be worth it because they will have a good solid technical photography knowledge, know how to keep organized and calm during the craziness of a wedding, can direct people well to get good photos, have a great artistic and creative eye to capture unique shots, be able to make you feel comfortable while taking photos, and so much more.

5. Archives your wedding images. 
     Yes, you might have been given a CD full of your wedding photographs, but what if you lose it or it gets scratched?  Will you be able to contact your wedding photographer 5 years from now and purchase another CD?   It is important that when choosing a wedding photographer that they backup your images!  Ask the photographer exactly how they back up your images and if they use two sources (just in case one crashes).

Of course, there are certainly other things to consider when choosing a wedding photographer.  I have just listed several of the biggest.  Remember to have fun planning your wedding, even when choosing a photographer!