I spent this past weekend at the legendary Ka’anapali Beach Hotel. This was my 18th November in a row, as a guest there. KBH, as most of us call the classic Hawaiian joint, is one of my homes-away-from-home. The staff is my family and the endless stream of food makes me fat & happy.

The occasion for my visit was again the Hula o Na Keiki (Children’s Hula Competition). The individual male and female hula dancers range in age from about 11 to 17 years old. Their dances are intense and steeped with tradition and protocol (not the cutsy type of hula you might expect an immature child to dance).

For the 18th time, I woke up early on the following Sunday morning to photograph the winners at sunrise on the beach. You see, in the lobby at the hotel is a wall of fame, where each male and female winner has a portrait hanging in perpetuity. It is a legacy that has been building from one generation into the next. A third generation of hula champions will be on the wall in just 4 or 5 more years.

That wall is one of the hidden treasures in Ka’anapali  — not because I made the photos, but because it gives true insight to the future of the hula and the direction of the Hawaiian culture. The vast majority of the children whom have won this competition have grown up to become cultural leaders and hula teachers.

Again, for the fourth year straight, the winners were students of Kumu Hula Haunani Peredes, and Brandon Peredes. If you have seen any of my posters, you know who Haunani is. She won this very event 17 years ago!

Many mahalos again, KBH, for your committment! And mahalos also to photographer Aubrey Hord for assisting me and capturing these candid images.

I just ran across a file of images that I shot quickly during another job. She is one of my favorite model-dancers…     Introducing Danielle!

I never looked at this image before. This time I moved it from the digital world and made it look “filmy”. So images just deserve a grainy darkroom look, don’t they?

It seems like every time I visit a a new part of our national parks system I find myself in awe of the beauty within this country.

This past month I traveled the “grand staircase” of the Southwest. The top step being Bryce Canyon National Park (9000 feet); the middle step being Zion National Park (7000 feet), and the lower step being the Grand Canyon National Park (7000-3000 feet-ish).

Aside from nearly freezing to death on my very first night in my pup-tent at Bryce (it was eleven degrees according to the ranger who can to see if I was still alive in my mummy-bag), all went pretty well. I made some nice images and coated my new camera sensor with a thick layer of powdery dust during my month in the wilderness. (Mental note: Bring a squeeze-blower to clean sensor when in the desert.)

This was my fourth year in a row to explore deep into the Grand Canyon with a very trusted group of canyon experts. There were 9 of us this year who dared to hike the “Tapeats/Cranberry Creek/Deer Creek/Kanab Creek/Indian Hollow” circle route as mapped by the famous canyoneer George Steck. If I hadn’t been with the experienced climbers I was with, I would have turned around after the first day and gone back to the car. We had to rope-in several times on sheer ledges. I was thinking, after each time my heavy pack was lifted or lowered by rope, “good thing my Gitzo Tripod has a lifetime warranty” because it was completely beat up, along with the rest of my pack.

For those who have gone deep into the Grand Canyon wilderness, it is somewhat impossible to try and explain the exhilaration to those whom have just stood on the rim above.

It will be several more days before I have a chance to really look at my latest images, but I wanted to post these before moving on to other projects.