Tag Archives: Sunday Stills

Living in the past

The King Kamehameha I statue in Honolulu

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Images Inspired by Favorite Song Lyrics.’ See more responses here.

My final post on this theme is a photo with some history. This is the statue of King Kamehameha I in Honolulu. It’s appropriate for the old Jethro Tull song, Living in the Past. It also works for a favorite of mine, History Repeating by Propellorheads, with guest vocals by Shirley Bassey of all people! And for a final song, how about William Shatner singing(?) Has Been. I have a few William Shatner songs which feature on bad song compilations, but Has Been is actually a pretty good album in my book and speaks well to Shatner’s good humor when it comes to music.

Half moon

A half moon seen from Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Images Inspired by Favorite Song Lyrics.’ See more responses here.

Day four of this theme response is a photo that fits three moon offerings: Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon is an album, but I like all of it. Walking on the Moon by The Police and I’ll Shoot the Moon by Tom Waits are both songs I like. I could have picked dozens of Tom Waits songs but I don’t have the photos to illustrate them!

Hawi humpback whale tail art

Artwork on a fence in Hawi, Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Images Inspired by Favorite Song Lyrics.’ See more responses here.

Day two of this theme response is a photo that fits three quite different songs I like: Mountain’s Nantucket Sleighride, 10cc and their classic Art for Art’s Sake, and Steeleye Span with Let Her Go Down, even though this is a track that doesn’t feature the distinctive voice of Maddy Prior.

Sailboat running in white water

A sailboat in white water off the Big Island, Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Images Inspired by Favorite Song Lyrics.’ See more responses here. I was going to put together a selection for this, but pressed for time, I’m splitting this into a series of posts.

This photo seemed like a good illustration for a couple of musical favorites: Blind Faith’s Sea of Joy and Me First and the Gimmee Gimmees with their version of Sloop John B

Bugs

A Bee on a Maiapilo flower

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Summer Bugs.’ (See more responses here.) To the best of my knowledge, Hawaii’s bugs are pretty much the same year-round. Here are some of them.

The top photo shows a bee showing impressive balance on a maiapilo flower.

Next up, clockwise from top left: Getting down to eye level with a juvenile praying mantis. A painted lady butterfly on a kiawe tree. A katydid wondering what it’s done to deserve this much attention. A seven-spotted lady beetle being watched.

  • A juvenile praying mantis at eye level
  • A painted lady butterfly on a kiawe tree
  • A Seven-spotted Lady beetle being watched by flies
  • A katydid on a piece of laundry

The final gallery: Top left: A mango flower beetle explores a spider lily. Top right: A watchful cane spider wondering if it should run, very fast, away. Bottom left: A Hawaiian carpenter ant (Camponotus variegatus), one of too many that have taken up residence in the house. Bottom right: A rusty millipede deciding that it’s all too much!

  • A Mango flower beetle on a spider lily
  • A cane spider in Hawaii
  • A Hawaiian carpenter ant (Camponotus variegatus)
  • A rusty millipede curled up

Ohia

  • Ohia trees growing in the lava
    Ohia trees growing in lava
  • Ohia trees growing in the lava
    Ohia trees growing in lava
  • Ohia roots growing down into a lava tube
    Ohia roots growing in a lava tube
  • Ohia roots growing aerially
    Aerial toots

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Geometric–explore various angles.’ I’ve focused more on the ‘various angles’ than the geometric.

Ohia trees (Metrosideros polymorpha) are endemic to Hawaii and the flower of these trees is the official flower of the Big Island. Depending on growing conditions, ohias can vary from ground hugging shrubs to 50 foot trees. They grow at sea level and at elevations up to 8,000 feet. They’re probably most noted for two things. One is their brilliant display of flowers. The other is that they’re usually the first plants to recolonize lava flows.

They grow in lava is because their roots reach down into lava tubes and tap into the moisture available there. But ohia can also put out aerial roots to gather moisture. They’re very flexible in this way.

  • Ohia flower buds
    Buds form
  • Ohia flower buds begin to reveal the flower within.
    Stamens emerging
  • An ohia flower
    An ohia flower

The puffball flowers are actually clusters of flowers. Each flower is made up of a bunch of stamens (the male part of the flower) and a single pistil (the female part) which is thicker and longer than the stamens. When the flowers have been pollinated, the stamens fall away until only the pistil remains. This too will disappear as the calyx, where the seeds are found, develops. Eventually, the calyx will dry out and release the tiny mature seeds, to be dispersed by the winds, and hopefully grow into new ohia trees.

  • An ohia flower after pollination
    The stamens fall off…
  • Ohia flowers after pollination
    … until only the pistils remain.
  • Ohia seeds develop as the plant dries out,
    The calyx dries out…
  • Ohia seeds develop as the plant dries out,
    … Ready to release seed
  • Different stages of ohia flowers can be seen on a tree at the same time

Also posted in response to Becky’s July Squares challenge theme of ‘Trees.’ See more responses here.

Tropical foliage

Tropical foliage at Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Evergreen.’ See more responses here.

In Hawaii’s mild climate, a few trees, such as plumeria, will shed their leaves for a short while in the depths of our not-so-bitter winter. For the most part though, the island is green year-round, particularly in the wetter parts, which is where these photos were taken.

The trees remain green. The vines which climb the trees are green, and other colors too. The foliage around the trees is green. In short, the landscape is evergreen.

Also posted in response to Becky’s July Squares challenge theme of ‘Trees.’ See more responses here.

  • Tropical foliage at Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden
  • Tropical foliage at Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden
  • Tropical foliage at Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden
  • Tropical foliage at Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden