valley of the temples

the byodo-in temple is most certainly one of oahu's best kept secrets. located in the valley of the temples at the base of the ko'olau mountains, the temple is a full scale replica of the byodo-in temple in kyoto. amazingly - it was constructed without any nails!

serene and peaceful...

not a single nail...

in black and white...

the coy pond...

they would eat from your hand...

they certainly weren't scared of people...

peace!

chinatown

honolulu's chinatown is right in the heart of downtown and though it gets pretty rough - parts of it are quickly gentrifying, making it the new place to be in honolulu. despite the area's new found coolness, other than san francisco it is perhaps the most authentic chinatown in the nation.

catching a glimpse at the char siu house...

butchers block...

ice (meth) is quite the epidemic on the islands...

peace!

teamwork

who needs waves to surf?


peace!

north shore!

the fabled north shore of oahu - surfing's hallowed grounds. this 7 mile strip of beach is home to the world's most famous (and infamous) surf breaks - sunset, backdoor, log cabins, waimea bay, and of course the heaviest of them all, pipeline. funny thing is, during the summer time the water's of the north shore are calm as a bath tub but come winter and the shift of the swells some of the gnarliest sets around roll through.
it has been a strange winter and swells have been few and far between. today saw 8-12 (4-6 hawaiian) foot faces - nothing to gawk at for sure. hawaiians measure their waves from the back, so in california would be considered a 20 footer is merely 10 in hawaii. this is because hawaiians measure from the back of the wave, the front of a wave has a large concave to it from the vaccum like swirl it produces, whcih makes the face of the wave twice the size of the back.

surfah in from a set...

get out...

checkin the sets...

heading back to the volcom house...

it was a bodyboarder day...

having fun at waimea...

peace!

chunderdome

has mad max gone seaworthy? has the thunderdome been set afloat? not exactly - this is the sea based x band radar, which according to wikipedia is "a floating, self-propelled, mobile radar station designed to operate in high winds and heavy seas. it is part of the united states government's ballistic missile defense system."

are we still living in the cold war - did our government really have to spend $900 million to track russian missles? that money could have educated MILLIONS of the world's children. oh well, war is big business.

::stepping off of soapbox::

look close and you can see mel gibson...

behold the chunderdome...

peace!

mele kalikimaka

here is to a peaceful and love filled holiday to you and yours. i am tremendously thankful for being able to spend christmas with my family in such a beautiful place!


rho opening gifts...


metro honolulu, as seen from the dining room...


mi padre...

peace!

punch bowl

from the edge of the punch bowl crater (national memorial of the pacific) you get a great view of of the city. enjoy.


downtown honolulu...


he thought no one was looking...


a spot with a view...

peace!

shreddin sandy's

sandy beach is arguably one of the heaviest body board spots in the world (not to mention the neck and back injury capitol of oahu). even though it is winter time a few decent sets rolled through.


double dippin...


the oahu condor...


droppin in...


skim board shreddin....

peace!

busy morning

it is not even noon and i have already taken about 200 pictures, enjoy!


feeding the birds...


james the surfah...


paddle out...


guard tower...

peace!

camera phone

i just posted a new photo story featuring a few images captured on my iphone. you can see them on my website, ryanchahanovich.com. enjoy friends.



peace!

welcome!

thanks for visiting the rjc-photography blog, i plan on using this space to share images and stories from my life and work. i hope you enjoy and come back often as i will be updating new content regularly.

currently i am in hawaii visiting family for the holiday, which is of course a photographic paradise!


a walk through the graveyard...


the view from my bedroom window...


another view from my bedroom...


peace!