BAHAMIAN RHAPSODY

Everybody who visits the Bahamas waxes lyrical about its natural beauty. Travel photographer Peter Adams is no exception. As he reveals, even on a family holiday he can't help but spend hours capturing the scenery.

"THE BAHAMAS must be a travel writer's paradise. Where as Albanians have some 27 words to describe types of moustache, the Bahamians must need at least 50 to describe the shades of the sea. Words such as 'turquoise' and 'azure' litter the tourist brochures and I felt myself struggling for more similes as the film rattled through the camera.

"It was meant to be a camera-free holiday. As winner of the Travel Photography Of The Year 2003 competition, part of the prize was a holiday to the Bahamas. I figured my support group (wife Suze and two children) who put up with my long absences should benefit and any photography should be put on the back burner. So I packed my Lowe pro Mini-Trekker backpack with two Canon EOS-lvs, three lenses and a Hasselblad XPan outfit, plus flash. Which is in fact pretty much what I'd take on a proper trip anyway. Still, mentally I switched off from looking through Velvia-tinted shades.

"Arriving on Paradise Island just over the bridge from Nassau, I seemed pretty safe. The Island is where most people stay and has several large hotels. It's very much America by the sea as it's just a short hop from Florida. The first couple of days were spent by the pool recuperating from the flight and adjusting to the heat. However, on the first trip to the beach and seeing the beautiful white sand with that cliched sea,

I knew I was going to have a job not recording anything from this trip It was then that benefits of our location occurred to me.

The Caribbean is an excellent place to combine a family holiday and photography. No arguments over ruined dinners whilst the photographer catches warm evening light. No stumbling around in the dark waking the house trying to capture morning mist.

"Some of the best times to- shoot in the tropics are mid-morning and mid-afternoon. The polar hours. Where a polariser is permanently attached to the camera and tweaking it around reveals a saturated world of colour that's like living in a David Hockney painting. Sea and sky leap through the lens and you can safely slightly overexpose the sand, leaving it looking crisp and white. I popped back to the beach that afternoon. I knew I wouldn't be long. It was too hot to be perspiring into a viewfinder.

"Later we made a family visit to Atlantis, a huge, hotel/resort complex located on Paradise. The kids revelled in the glitz, whilst parents gaped in an English, ironic, aloof way at the gargantuan casino. We were on our way to the aquarium where sharks and stingrays swooped overhead as we walked through perspex tunnels. Jellyfish shimmered like space creatures in their tanks and I was drawn to the many multi-coloured tropical fish. I'd brought the tripod in anticipation, but no fast film. It was dark in there but not too many reflections were

visible on the glass. I figured if I got up close and kept the lens straight onto the glass there wouldn't be any annoying reflections. A polariser was out of the question as I was struggling for speed and didn't want to change films so I pushed Velvia instead. Operating at l/8sec at f/1.8,1 wasn't expecting everything to be in focus. The glass was given a wipe with some tissue, and I ended up shooting more than I expected as the shoal made frequent pass-bys. It was going to be a hit and miss affair, but the more I shot the more chance I had. Out of around 20 frames, a couple really worked for me.

"Our visit happily coincided with Junkanoo, a festival that takes place every July. The event was wonderfully low key and reminded me of a larger version of our village fete at home. This meant access to the parade was no problem and I was able to get in amongst the musicians and dancers. Trumpets were blasting full force but I had no chance to reach for the earplugs that I always have in the camera bag.

"I decided to capture the vibrancy and movement so experimented with shutter speeds of around l/8sec whilst using flash to freeze some element of the overall blur. I pushed the envelope further by choosing to try shooting into the sun for added drama. Lens flare was going to be hit and miss due to the rapid movement of the participants.

Afterwards, cold beers were sunk with local culinary delights from the various stalls, accompanied by bands on the stage playing into the night.

"When we'd arrived on Providence Island, I'd caught a glimpse of a promising-looking pier jutting out into the enticing sea. 1 hired a car for the day and spent an afternoon exploring from Nassau and visiting the pier. After driving past it on the road I ended up parking and walking back. On passing over a bridge I realised this elevated view gave me the best vantage point. A couple of figures in bright clothing on the promenade would have helped give scale, but I wasn't going to be greedy. Afterwards I made my way via a beach to the pier itself. A few exposures and Mr Jobsworth approached - apparently I was in a resort and permission was required, so a visit to the office resulted. "I laid down my credentials as Mr Tea Potty (TPOTY), doors opened and permission was given. The beautiful contrast of translucent green sea and white pier had me enthralled and I shot on panoramic and 35mm. I took shots of the whole vista and went in close on some chairs and tables placed at the end.

"What had been anticipated as a laid back family holiday also turned out to be an interesting photo trip. Meanwhile, the family have decided: this is now the style that they are accustomed to and tropical island visits are as de rigueur as yearly visits to a Morecambe B&B. Still, if I can balance a holiday with some photo-earning potential, the 'Full English' may be replaced by mango and breadfruit."