Oahu DJ Photographer - Dj Effay - Mike Vidales
DJ Effay and I connected in Honolulu, I knew only that I wanted to merge his dynamic presence with Hawaii's distinctive environments. The island's quality of light is unlike anywhere else—that golden Pacific glow creates an almost surreal backdrop that begs for experimentation.
We began downtown, where Honolulu's urban textures offered perfect contrast against colored gels. I positioned a single strobe with a CTO gel to balance with the fading daylight, creating that intersection of warm and cool tones I'm constantly chasing. The concrete walls became impromptu reflectors, bouncing harsh light back into shadow areas without needing additional modifiers.
I used a Canon 6D, 24-70mm and 85mm f/1.2, two Godox AD200 strobes. No assistants, no complicated setups—just quick movements between locations and responsive adjustments to changing light conditions.
What made this Honolulu session distinctive wasn't just the locations but how quickly we could transition between dramatically different environments. Within 1 hour, we'd captured five distinct looks by moving between downtown alleys, palm-lined streets, and finally shooting directly into the sunset with flash overpowering the ambient light.
Post-processing was straightforward—minor adjustments in Lightroom emphasizing the color contrasts we'd created in-camera, followed by selective dodging and burning in Photoshop to enhance the three-dimensional quality of the light. The goal was always to preserve the authentic feel of natural light while pushing it just far enough to create something distinctive.
If you're interested in working together in Hawaii, reach out and let's create something beyond the typical island photoshoot. I'll be returning to Oahu quarterly for select sessions.
