Good Morning everyone! I’m really happy to be sharing some very exciting news with you right now. We have been hunting for other St. John residents to contribute in order to add to the voice and perspective of News of St. John. And, I’m glad to say, we have a few fresh voices working on articles as I type this. One of which, I am very happy share with you today!
Photos and Videos
Where Am I?
One of the first things most visitors do when arriving on St. John – whether it’s their first trip or their 20th – is to take the iconic North Shore Road and stop for photos at the world-famous Trunk Bay Lookout. I even know of one particular resident *ehem* who still does the same, every time she opts for the scenic route in lieu of Centerline.
Insert Yourself Here
We thought we could all use a minute of beauty to bring us back into balance.
Imagine yourself relaxing under this palm tree … the tropical breeze blowing through your hair, a frosty beverage in your hand, with nothing but happy thoughts …
Now get back to work. You have a vacation to plan!
St. John Music Video: “The Youth Need Love”
Good Morning! I hope everyone had a beautiful week. I’m sharing a video with you today featuring some of St. John’s kids and a very powerful message. It was also filmed on island so you might recognize some familiar sights 🙂 Co-written by 2018 Calypso Monarch Lucas “John Gotti” Evans and Herb Black, the song is entitled “The Youth Need Love.”
Underwater photo editing tips
Now that you’re back at the villa and out of the direct sun, the first thing you will likely want to do is review your photos to find out if you actually captured all of the exciting sea life you saw while underwater.
Step 1: Editing software
The editing software that comes pre-installed on your computer or camera will allow you to make a majority of the basic corrections. You can purchase advanced editing software, like Adobe’s Lightroom package, but rather than spending hours in your villa instead of the beach, I suggest taking advantage of the free editing software available to you. Be sure to save a copy of your original photos while learning the editing software so that you can go back to the original photo and start over if necessary.
Don’t be afraid to be creative. Photos that might otherwise seem unexciting can become artsy with just a click of a different editing filter.
North Shore Tour
Happy Sunday Funday! For those of you who are dreaming about those Caribbean Blues this morning, here’s your fix! I took a drive out North Shore Road and stopped at some overlooks this weekend to get some fresh air and take in the post-Sahara dust views.
You’ll still see a little bit of haze in these pictures but, man, it’s so good to have the vivacious blues back in sight. You’ll also notice there is still a WEE bit of brown on the hillsides but after the dust cleared this week, we got a ton of rain! Things should hopefully be greening up nicely very soon!
Enjoy!
That’s all for this morning, but I hope these sights of STJ help to kick your Sunday off right.
Help Track the 2013 Hermit Crab Migration
It happens often, and it’s pretty cool. Thousands of hermit crabs migrate in the US Virgin Islands and on St. John. Researchers are looking for your help this year in their efforts to track the predicted 2013 migration.
Their request is pretty simple: If you happen to come across hermit crabs anywhere on the island, they would like to know about it. This could be in your backyard, at your villa, on a trail or even on a roadway or in a parking lot. Researchers are asking that you make note of the date, time, location, number seen, as well as the direction they are traveling (toward or away from the water). Once you jot down that information, please fill out their questionnaire which can be found here. You can help determine when and where the hermit crabs are migrating.
Last year’s hermit crab video taken by Steve Simonsen was so incredible, it went viral. To date, it’s received more than 476,000 views on Vimeo and YouTube.
Check out last year’s video here:
Inner Visions videos
If you weren’t there, you shoulda been.
The island’s premier reggae band, Inner Visions, has been busy on the island. They played at the St John benefit to support Cancer research in Cruz Bay last month, and also at Skinny Legs' Halloween party.
Standing in the crowd with a video camera was r8395ors and he/she has posted to YouTube nearly a dozen videos of the band. Click here to see the videos.
Some of the songs were performed in the streets of Cruz Bay in front of Woody's and the Iguana Grill. Others are from Skinny Legs. Tracks include Are You Ready, Can You Feel It, and Mama Africa. The video’s kind of static and dark in places, but the audio is good enough.
There is more than an hour of the Inner Visions sound.
How to bring home a great shot from St. John
St. John has lots of opportunities for snapshots. But if you want more than a snap, you're going to have to do a little work. Thankfully, an earlier issue of the St. John Sun Times has done some of that work for you, assisted by Bob Schlesinger of Tropical Focus.
In the article you'll learn when to shoot. Generally, the best time to take great photos is just before around sunset, between 5 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. That's when the light has a soft and buttery feel.