I remember the first time I ever put on a pair of Havaianas flip flops, I hated them. Between my big and “index” toe a massive cut began to form. I took a piece of cotton from my med-kit and wrapped some hockey tape around it. I could hardly walk with them on, I felt like I was clinching my toes every step I took. You see, growing up in Canada there is not a whole lot of time to learn how to prance around in flip flops. Sure, as soon as the temperature tops 0 degrees Celsius you’ll see the majority of people wandering around in sandals and shorts, but I am sensible.
Years later and I now have a hard time putting on shoes. Havaianas just have a way of forming to your foot, like a cushy extension of your sole, and your soul. When I went through Brazil a couple of months ago I bought a couple pairs that I had been planning on alternating so I wouldn’t wear one pair out early. However, as usually happens with Havaianas, I fell in love with one pair, the ones photographed. I am sad to say that today, September 02, 2011, my favourite flip flops have met their end. At the ripe age of 6 months old my sandals had travelled through 17 countries and countless numbers of steps. I sensed their time was coming as I ran for a bus in Guatemala and the right one gave up, tossing the strap from the sole. I did a little bit of work with my first aid kit adding some tape to the ball holding them together, but it was too late. The crack spread quickly and soon out of my control. Can we take a moment of silence to remember my favourite feet please?
HavaianasHow I Got this Shot
In the honour of my Havaianas that always seemed to glow the brightest shade of orange from their straps. I have taken my favourite photo of them, and accented them in a Black and White image, selecting the beautiful orange. Getting this image comes down to a couple things: the shot and the post production. The shot involved setting up the shoes like this and choosing a level of depth of field that created focus on the brand and the strap the sandal. In the post processing I did more than just flip the switch to black and white. I took the image and reduced the saturation of all the colours except for orange. The I played with the tone curves to pop the contrast a little bit. I increased the highlights, lights and shadows while at the same time dropping the dark. That’s what gives the image such dramatic pop in the sand. Anyways, I hope you liked this farewell to my Havaianas.
For the photographers this image was shot on a Canon 60d with a 70-200mm f/4 IS lens. It was shot at a focal length of 144mm, aperture of f/4 with a shutter speed of 1/125 and the ISO was set at 100.