Ahh the Snakes of Okinawa, some love them, most hate them, or at least steer clear of them. Alas I’m unlike most people wherein I actively go in search of them for photographic opportunities. Heading north, it was the middle of March, almost a year and a day to a similar trek I made to the same location. I was looking to test a theory as to when the Himei, or ‘Princess’, Habu would emerge from their Winter sleep. I also had a shot in mind that would allow me to combine the use of ND Filters for one of my photographic accessories sponsors. The Himei Habi is one of three Pit Viper snake species to inhabit the island of Okinawa, also known as the ‘Princess Habu’ by the locals, it’s the smallest of these infamous snakes of Okinawa.
Almost three hours drive north from my then base in Ginowan City I found myself enveloped by the green expanse of the Yanbaru, the forested Northern regions of the island. It is in these green rolling hills that I feel comfortable. Whether for photography or video adventures around Okinawa I frequent this region for its rocky coastline, a coastline that lends itself perfectly to long exposure photography.
For the days trek I had made my way to one of the many small rivers that permeate the green expanse of the Yanbaru. This particular river had until a few years ago been a part of the Jungle Warfare Training Area used by the resident American forces in Okinawa. Having been returned to the Yanbaru National Park the river and surrounding wilderness is a real asset given its pristine condition. It also seemed to be a magnet for the Himei Habu which is the more prevalent of the Habu Snakes of Okinawa. Throughout the day I had numerous wildlife encounters without once seeing any trash or refuse, sadly something one so often does find when visiting so many locations around the island that have greater human foot traffic.
I parked in the same spot I had done so the previous year, maybe that would bring me some luck. I’d also since that last trip worn out my protective snake boots so I would have been down to a standard pair of Wellingtons had I remembered to load them in the car! Instead I was relying on a pair of felt bottomed dive boots for their grip on the sometimes slippery rocks that proliferate along the shallow river in which I was about to enter. Backpack, check. Front pack, check. Tripod bag and Snake stick, check. I was set for the off. The icy temperature of the water suggested we were still in the grasp of Winter, I hope the level didn’t get too high.
Sheesh, this was the part I was dreading. I’d hoped this particularly vertically walled section of the river had changed, alas it remained. It meant a quick check of my pockets. No wallet, my audio recorder for the commentary as I was also shooting a video of the trip was transferred to a safer location. As the water got to mid-thigh height it really started to hit home just how cold it was, and deeper still. Up to my waist I grimaced through the iced liquid. But it was here, in this prominent gorge area that on a previous trip I had come face to face with no less than five Himei Habu.
Emerging from my iced water immersion I spied the tell tale serpentine shape of my quarry. There ahead of me by about some 20m was a small water feature of rocks with cascading waters swirling around them and right smack bang in the middle of a small waterfall lay a perfectly motionless Himei Habu. With eyes locked on my approaching form the snake was in the perfect model pose. I hoped it would stay that way as I rushed to get my camera set up.
I wasn’t left disappointed. I always make a habit of setting up away from the immediate presence of wildlife that can, at times, be skittish in the presence of humans. With two hands full of thumbs I eventually got set up and moved in for the shots. For these images I wanted to incorporate the use of ND filters, sunglasses for my lenses if you like. Basically they reduce the amount of light entering the lens, seems odd though that I would reduce the light given I needed it to expose correctly right? My solution in this case is to then look at opening the camera exposure for a longer period in order collect enough light in order to expose correctly. Seeing as the snake and the rock were motionless the situation allowed me to adopt this technique. It quite simply meant that anything in motion, such as the flowing water, would become blurred but in a aesthetically pleasing way way. We call this motion blur and it adds to the visual impact of an image when there are any moving elements in the composition such as water, clouds, traffic or even people.
With this first snake I was able to shoot various imagery of it until eventually, as I was changing a lens and out of the river, it decided enough was enough and it slipped silently into the icy flow of the water. Thus I had to pack up and move on in my quest for another willing ‘model’. I didn’t have to wait long. Until now I had concentrated on taking closer imagery of that snake on the rock. The surrounding vegetation didn’t lend itself well to the shot I had in my mind, one that would encompass the truly wild vibe of the Yanbaru, something that would merge both landscape and wildlife imaging in one composition. My quest for further encounters with the snakes of Okinawa continued. Rounding a corner less than 100m from my first snake I was met with the perfect scene. Again, with the dexterity of a Chimpanzee with butter smeared extremities I managed to cobble my camera gear together in anticipation of the shot.
For this second shot I’d elected to shoot with a super wide angle lens. This meant I had to get closer than the previous shot using a zoom lens, a lot closer. Inching my way I was hoping the snake had recently eaten and was feeling lethargic. It took me about ten minutes to get comfortably close enough with my 12mm lens which meant close, real close. I guess my saving grace is also that I was shooting with a 50MP camera so I had the luxury of being able to crop in without losing too much detail. Wide angle lenses are inherently sharp through their focal range meaning that as long as the subject is in focus it’s an almost given that the rest of the background would be in focus. That said I elected to focus stack this scene. This technique means that I shot four images each with a different focal spot from the foreground, the snake the middle and then far background. It is then a relatively simple task to merge those images in Photoshop and retain just the focused zones from each shot to thus end up with one fully sharp image from the foreground to the background.
As much as I wanted to hang around in the presence of this very plump and photogenic specimen I took the shots I needed. I still had to make my way out of the jungle in one piece. With the light fading and about a mile trek through the river to get back to my car, not to mention be wary of any other potential Habu encounters on the return trip I took the shots I needed and packed up. I don’t know what was more of a concern for that return trip, the potential of another snake encounter or the definite knowledge that once again I would have to submerge the family jewels into that icy flow of the river…
“Ooch, that’s cold”…
Watch this space as I continue in my quest to encounter more Snakes of Okinawa.
