A Great Start to the Day Iberostar Laguna Azul Varadero Cuba

A Great Start to the Day Iberostar Laguna Azul Varadero Cuba

I'm not sure there's a better way to start the day than getting up early, in this case 6am, and walking along a beach, in this case Varadero Beach near the Iberostar Laguna Azul rsort in Cuba, and watching the sunrise.

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Waves Crash on Coral Shore and into Blowholes at Varadero Beach Cuba

Waves Crash on Coral Shore and into Blowholes at Varadero Beach Cuba

Just up the beach a little from the Iberostar Laguna Azul is this out croppring of coral. It rises up out of the sand and stretches to the sea. On days when the surf is a little stronger and the waves are a little higher like this one, the waves crash into the coral and push through the blowholes and sprays everywhere. 

Up Early at Iberostar Laguna Azul Varadero Cuba

Up Early at Iberostar Laguna Azul Varadero Cuba

This trip to Varadero Cuba was very much like a déjà vous. I'd been to Cuba before... I'd walked through the sand on Varadero Beach before... I'd stayed at the Iberostar Laguna Azul Resort Before... and I did it with exactly the same people before. What was going on??
Well, to make a long story short we had such a great time travelling with our friends and their kids on our first trip to the Iberostar Laguna Azul, that we wanted to take another trip with them. We search the travel and airline site and the resort that had availability that fit with everyones schedule and was price at a point that suited everyone's budget and had flight times that didn't mean arriving in the middle of the night, was, you guessed it, the Iberostar Laguna Azul. 

Beach Time Lapse Iberostar Laguna Azul Varadero Beach Cuba

Beach Time Lapse Iberostar Laguna Azul Varadero Beach Cuba

I love time lapse video. I love watching time lapse videos and I love making time lapse video. I love the beach. I love relaxing on the sand on the beach and I love splashing in the waves washing up on the beach. Is it really surprising then that I would make a time lapse video while I was on a beach vacation at the Iberostar Laguana Azul resort on Varadero Beach in Cuba? Not really surprising especially considering that it was such a beautiful day, although they all were, and Varadero beach is such a beautiful beach.

I use the built in intervalometer on my Nikon D7000 to photograph this time lapse and if I remember correctly I set it to 1 frame every 3 seconds.

Tropical Rain Storm Iberostar Laguna Azul Varadero Beach Cuba

Tropical Rain Storm Iberostar Laguna Azul Resort Varadero Beach Cuba

We had had a beautiful day on Varadero Beach up until we felt the first drops of rain.  The sun had been shining all morning and into the afternoon. It started to get a bit hazy around mid afternoon and by late afternoon the clouds started to roll in. When the first drops hit us we started packing up to leave the beach and it was lucky we did. Our room at the Iberostar Laguna Azul was in one of the buildings on the resort that was located very close to the beach and we only just made it to that building when the wind started to really blow and the downpour began. I filmed most of this footage from the balcony of our room.

Photo Gear I brought to the Iberostar Laguna Azul Resort, Varadero Beach, Cuba

Photo Gear I brought to the Iberostar Laguna Azul Resort, Varadero Beach, Cuba

After the first trip we took to the Iberostar Laguna Azul Resort in Varadero Cuba, I made this video of the gear that I brought with me on that trip. Deciding what camera gear to bring while travelling is a balancing act. You want to make sure you have all the gear you need to get great photos and video in all the situation you want but camera gear is heavy and so you don't want to be lugging around a bunch of photo and video gear you don't need or worse yet don't use. The only way to figure out the balance when travelling with photography / videography gear is to travel with photography / videography gear. There really is no substitute for experience, seeing what you use and what you don't and adjust for the next trip, but seeing what gear others take with them travelling is also useful for ideas. I made this video for that reason, to give ideas on what gear might be useful while travelling... and maybe, just maybe so I'd remember what I brought.

The photography / videography gear I brought with me to the Iberostar Laguna Azul Resort at Varadero Beach in Cuba was as follows:

Nikon D7000 camera body
Nikon 24-120mm f4 lens
Nikon 17-35mm f2.8 lens
Nikon 50mm f1.4 lens
Kata 3in1-20 gear pack
Gitzo Traveller Tripod

GoPro Fun in the Sun Varadero Beach Cuba

GoPro Fun in the Sun Varadero Beach Cuba

A little GoPro Camera, a beach, some kids, a few waves and the sun, what more do you need to make a fun video? Ok, ok maybe using an awesome waterproof camera like the GoPro helps... and maybe being on holiday in the Caribbean helps... and I guess staying at a beautiful resort like the Iberostar Laguna Azul also helps a little... and just maybe being on a beach as fantastic as Varadero Beach helps too. The reality though is that the camera you have and where you are doesn't really matter if you filming happy kids being themselves and having fun your videos can't help but be fun.