The Highcastle lava bench (new land that is formed as lava cools)
"This was our final quest—the ocean entry at Highcastle, the holy grail for lava photographers. The lava was coming over the last cliff before entering the ocean.
"Standing here, I heard lots of hissing and of course the normal wave action and the occasional cracking and splitting noises of lava tubes breaking as they hit the seawater. Fortunately we didn't experience any explosions when the lava and gases hit the cold water, but that's a risk we decided to take to get this picture. I just trusted that the guardian angels would look out for us.
"I wanted to show the intersection of these two primal forces—the molten rock and the seawater. The trick was to be in a position where you could see those elements coming together. I'm standing on a peninsula of rocks that formed a little cove."
—Photographer James Balog
Photography Notes
- Camera: Nikon D100
- Lens: 24mm
- Shutter speed: 1/15
- Aperture: f/2.0
- Time of day: 6:45 p.m.
"This exposure was timed with the particular bursts of lava over the cliffs. The breakouts could surge for 30 seconds or 30 minutes, and then I'd have to wait a while. I also needed the lava visuals and the proper brightness of sky to be balanced in the photo. If I shot earlier in the day, the photo will lose the contrast and zip. But if I waited until later, only the radiant light would appear."
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