The Quarry Photo | TrekEarth

Photographer’s Note

This is the Rano Raraku, an extinct volcano, the quarry from which the majority of Easter Island statues (moai) were carved. Almost everyone has seen the iconic images of the Easter Island statues staring silently out from the hillsides. The fact is these Moais were not meant to have stayed in this place. The Moai that you see half buried on the sides of the volcanic cone of Rano Raraku were pieces waiting to be transported to the Ahu around the island. The common Moai that you see have bodies that extend 6 - 12 meters. Centuries of erosion from the slopes above have covered all but the tops of these giants. One of the unfinished moai, completely carved but not removed from the crater wall, is a staggering 21 meters in length, the largest Moai ever constructed. The slopes of Rano Raraku are filled with eye-less moai - several hundred circle the crater in various stages of construction. The eyes of a Moai are inserted once the Moai is set on top of the Ahu, not before.
All of the Moais were found by western explorers toppled down from the ahu, as shown in this photo

You can check in the map for the exact location of this place

cherryripe, Klaracolor, macondo, disturbia73, kingurek, sacavem, dta, trekks, Floydian, avene, cunejo200, dip, Photo65Net, mafegan, subhendu_bagchi has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Klaracolor (201) 2009-05-04 5:40

It's a beautiful picture with an interesting story. Nice colors and a good composition.
Greetings,
Klara

macondo (13071) 2009-05-04 5:41

Hello Jorge.
A well considered composition which develops a good strong perspective and has a pleasing diagonal traced by the slopes and the decreasing size of the statues. The strong shadows in the carved faces are very striking, and you had a beautiful blue sky above. I found your note very interesting, as well as the photo of the 21 metre Moai.
Regards,
Andrew

fabianoleite (913) 2009-05-04 6:15

The famous sculptures, from a very nice angle. The sky helps highlight them. The texture of the grass looked fine, making a wonderful composition. Nice shot. Congratulations.

disturbia73 (373) 2009-05-04 6:15

Impressive shot from easter island.
It's one of my dreams to go there.
The composition is excellent and the detail is superb. I really like the framing, simple but very nice, and the note is really worth reading.

Great job,

Regards,

Thomas

kingurek (608) 2009-05-04 6:16

Hello,
Very interesting composition - usually we can see these statues from a completely different point of view. Beautiful contrasts between blue sky and dark Moai. I like the sharpness and very interesting note :)

Greetings

Kinga

sacavem (8223) 2009-05-04 6:58

Olá Jorge,

Great colours and a very pleasant composition.
Thanks for your sharing with TE.
Best Regards,
Filipe

wolf38 (12664) 2009-05-04 7:49

Hello Bruno. A fantastic shot. Best technical quality. Beautifully and worth seeing. Compliment. Best regards, Wolfgang.

dta (4908) 2009-05-04 8:16

Hello Jorge ,
Of course , one of the most famous place on Earth . But so far from my home . So , it is really a good thing to share with us such a beautiful picture . Colors , sharpness , framing , sky , all is perfect .
Thanks .

pauloog (6374) 2009-05-04 9:34

Hello Jorge,
These sculptures remain an amzing sight, and brought very well here with good shadows and with the almost tumbling stones in the background.
Regards,
Paul

trekks (14262) 2009-05-04 9:52

hi Jorge

I like it.

The dark grey tone of these stone faces striking a nice contrast to the blue sky and casting a bit of shadow on the ground. The composition is very well done at a diagonal of the slope. In fact, I quite like the puff of white clouds floating across the sky in this sunshine day.

Very sharp and good clarity in your shot.

tfs, bill

chawax (5909) 2009-05-04 11:40

Hi Jorge,
Excellent shot. The point of view you chosed creates a great DOF. Sharpness is excellent. TFS.
Regards,
Olivier

gilou530 (35007) 2009-05-04 13:58

salut jorge
voila un coin qui fascine par ces statues qui interroge beaucoup un joli cadrage en perspective bien trouvé, excellent
amitiés
gilbert

emka (21179) 2009-05-04 14:02

Haha, Jorge, I have almost identical one. Impressive view of the moai. It is maybe the most interesting place on the Easter Island. It was such a dream for me to see it with my eyes. Amazing sharpness. Thanks for sharing.

Regards

Malgorzata

Greg1949 (8507) 2009-05-04 14:29

Jorge, fine capture and note, a perfect shot for TE and something few of us are ever likely to see on our own. Great work.

Greg

cherryripe (18869) 2009-05-04 14:49

Hola Jorge
Escojistes el angulo perfecto para la primera estatua para que todo la imagen sale dinamica. Hay profundidad gracias al camino. Bonita luz y cielo.
Saludos
Nikki

ribeiroantonio (21859) 2009-05-04 18:55

I have been there and I have a photo of myself standing by the side of that “little monster”. It is a truly amazing place.
The shot is excellent with very good light and natural colours. Well done.
Antonio

delkoo (34158) 2009-05-05 4:38

hi jorge,
one place where I would liked to go,Great photo. Well composed with excellent depth and perspective. Good colour and details also. Thanks for sharing.

didier

Floydian (30970) 2009-05-05 5:31

Hi Jorge,

Beautiful....you really make me jealous with such images. I could spend a whole week there and do nothing else than shooting around. Very photogenic statues, very intriging story also, not at least because the island was discoverd by a Dutchman ;-)
Thanks for showing this, it's really beautiful.

Regards,

Henk

Modos (679) 2009-05-05 8:49

Buenas tardes, Jorge

Este sitio es increíble, no!? La foto esta perfecta y la nota es muy buena.

Te Felicito.
Luiz Paulo

avene (10940) 2009-05-05 11:56

hi Jorge,
thanks for the interesting note, I realised I knew so little about these famous statues. the composition works very well, strong diagonal of the hill slope forms a good contrast with the line of the statues. light seems a little harsh, but it nicely brings out the textures of the stone. fascinating shot and fascinating story, thanks.

best,
Kristine

Clementi (43659) 2009-05-05 14:04

Ciao Jorge,
a photo rich in history, your pov exalts the beauty of these works of art, lights and colors perfect.
good job
Giorgio

cunejo200 (7157) 2009-05-07 5:45

hey bruno,
i like how the predominant colors are separated by a beautiful curve. The focus on the main statue and the smaller ones behind ought to be commended. A well written and informative Note. Best regards. Danilo

dip (12534) 2009-05-07 6:15

Hi Jorge,
beautiful and interesting shot!
good POV and amazing blue sky,
well done!
Dimitris.

sacimar (7357) 2009-05-07 13:02

Hola Jorge,

impresionante lugar y excelente imagen, buena perspectiva, luz y colores perfectos, me gusta mucho la composicion, gran trabajo!

Un saludo

Sergio

parbo (10966) 2009-05-07 18:00

Hola Jorge,

This is an impressive view of giant Moais. Also the story in your note is very interesting. Your point of view build perfectly while adding all Moais together on nice slope of ridge. The sky and their dark colors created splendid contrasts. Excellent addition of complementary post and Toppled Moai photo too. Congratulations.

Saludos cordiales,

Ertugrul

Photo65Net (43084) 2009-05-08 3:01

Hello Jorge,
Superb picture !
I like the way you composed in this mythical place.
Have a nice day,
JB.

jonathan_hart (22570) 2009-05-08 13:48

nice composition with these statues and the blue sky where i see "cute" clouds
jc

vincz (19039) 2009-05-11 6:07

S'il est des endroits mythiques, celui la en fait bien partie. Photo superbes devant ce beau ciel bleu avec ces quel;ques nauges. Une belle profondeur.

devimeuxbe (55853) 2009-05-25 0:19

Hi Jorge
You have a beautifull galery with a lot of interesting destinations. This picture of these famous island is beautifull. Excellent perspective. There is not a lot of pictures from this place on TE
Thanks
Bertrand

Paul57 (1635) 2009-05-28 7:32

Hi Jorge,
Another excellent shot. Great POV and a goreous blue sky. WOW.
One of my friend's son-in-law is writing a book about these lovely islands. I had the opportunity of translating a few paragraphs in another book that he wrote a few years ago. TFS

greg64g (11193) 2009-06-02 4:41

Wow so impressive place, i d like to visit it during a storm
well done
greg

Signal-Womb (11675) 2009-06-06 16:25

Great shot Jorge. I like your composition here and exact exposure revealing detail in the shadows. I would love to visit this location some day. Very mysterious. Regards Steve.

mafegan (4115) 2009-06-20 4:29

Hello Jorge
Perfect composition and so sharp. The beautiful blue sky really enhances the scene. Tfs, Marlene

javierphoto (97) 2009-08-05 8:49

Bravo. Les magnifiques et mystérieuse statue des îles de Pâques. Un endroit qui me fait rêver...

subhendu_bagchi (2920) 2009-08-05 10:38

Namaste Jorge, nice shot. The beautiful sculpture, the deep blue sky, the white clouds, the grey rocks... Fantastic contrast. POV and light management is perfect. I actually get known with this place by your picture. Thanks.
Subhendu.

magalik (1266) 2009-08-12 11:18

Beautiful shot !!
Very good quality, good POV, nice colors , good composition : perfect.

Magali K.

yquem46 (7830) 2009-08-28 10:56

Hi jorge
a gallery that I do not know (yet) but a brief browsing makes me eager to see it more carefully
I take this one as an example: excellent compo taking into account the respective position of the statues, nice color contrast between the sky and the rocks, a high quality pin sharp shot
Bravo
see you soon for sure
patrick