Sunsets' Gym

COVID put a major damper on my photography plans for 2020. As I look back through my photos for the year it became clear that there weren't many new photos. A couple sunset outings to the coast, a few Redwoods trips (and *lots* of tree photos) ... the Comet ... a few drone pictures ... so when any chance to get away from our normal day, get out of the house, and take some photos is appreciated. Willie and I have been photographing the San Francisco Bay Area coastline for nearly 10 years now, so we've photography most or all of the popular beaches more times than we want to count. It's easy to grow tired of them, so when he suggested we explore an area we hadn't shot before, I was very excited. The beach is really only "epic" at a super low tide, which we had on this evening. On higher tides, the beach is under water and it's extremely hard to photograph the coastline. Escaype correctly predicted a beautiful sunset. The color was isolated to a band just above the horizon but it surely was beautiful. I had intended to photograph a different part of the beach but the scene looked further south and the colors weren't quite reaching that way, so I picked up and redirected the scene. I loved how the rocks and the seastacks make a triangular line that sucks the eye in. I used a slow shutter to add to the lines in the scene. And of course the orange-red reflected light on the rocks seals the deal. Nikon D850 w/Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8: 14mm, f/11, 0.6 sec, ISO 80

Pacific's Tentacles

Thanks to a low-tide Willie and I were able to get up close and personal with this beach. Typically we get to a beach early and scout the scene to see how things might look. Of course it's a bit tricky because arriving early means you have to "guess" where the waves will be an hour later when the sky starts to light up. You might check out a scene and the waves are perfect, only to find the tide continues to drop and the waves never reach the spot. Or the tide could rise and your perfect scene becomes flooded underwater. I had checked out a number of spots as we were waiting and had an idea for this vertical portrait oriented photo but as the sun set, the waves continued to retreat and I wasn't sure it would be possible. Finally, just as the light was starting to die, a set of large waves rolled in. This channel between the rocks created the perfect motion for the waves as they retreat. Rocks underneath the water created beautiful swirling patterns as the water tried to retreat around them. And light snuck in to illuminate the rocks with a bit of last glow. Nikon D850 w/Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8: 14mm, f/8, 0.5 sec, ISO 80

High Tide 2

There are so many factors that people don't think about in photography. Let's talk about one of the least discussed factors in this photo: knowing your location can be crucial to making great photos and often requires multiple visits. It's easy to dismiss a place after getting great photos the first time: "I've been there and shot that. No need to go back." When you have that attitude, you can miss so much. That's exactly what happened when Willie and I explored this coastline years ago. On the particular day we scouted the area the tide was high. The waves crashed against the cliffs, hiding any beach below. Everything seemed submerged. But we returned years later at a very low tide and the scene was completely different. We fell in love. So we returned again, this time at a different, higher, tide, to see if our creative juices could flow now that we knew the potential existed. Hide tide definitely made this evening much more difficult. Gone were the chances to use the beach as a foreground element. The high surf was terrifying as the waves crashed against the rocks. So I stayed high, along the cliffs, where I could stand and setup the camera safely. I had to get close enough to the edge to capture the motion of the waves and I ended up loving the lines that this composition created as the waves retreated and the sunset turned the color a beautiful orange and red. I wish I had a wider angle lens so I could capture even more of this scene. Nikon D850 w/Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8: 14mm, f/11, 0.8 sec, ISO 64

High Tide

There are so many factors that people don't think about in photography. Let's talk about one of the least discussed factors in this photo: knowing your location can be crucial to making great photos and often requires multiple visits. It's easy to dismiss a place after getting great photos the first time: "I've been there and shot that. No need to go back." When you have that attitude, you can miss so much. That's exactly what happened when Willie and I explored this coastline years ago. On the particular day we scouted the area the tide was high. The waves crashed against the cliffs, hiding any beach below. Everything seemed submerged. But we returned years later at a very low tide and the scene was completely different. We fell in love. So we returned again, this time at a different, higher, tide, to see if our creative juices could flow now that we knew the potential existed. Hide tide definitely made this evening much more difficult. Gone were the chances to use the beach as a foreground element. The high surf was terrifying as the waves crashed against the rocks. So I stayed high, along the cliffs, where I could stand and setup the camera safely. I had to get close enough to the edge to capture the motion of the waves and I ended up loving the lines that this composition created as the waves retreated and the sunset turned the color a beautiful orange and red. I wish I had a wider angle lens so I could capture even more of this scene. Nikon D850 w/Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8: 14mm, f/11, 0.8 sec, ISO 64

Standing Tough

This photograph was taken on my second to this beach. We had told ourselves that we were done photographing here after we were highly successful on our first trip, but sometimes returning to a place and witnessing how it changes can also be worthwhile and turn out new images with a unique twist. On our first visit, the tide was low and the beach was exposed, letting us get close to the seastacks and use the rocks on the beach as foreground elements. On this particular night the tide was much higher and we had to stay back along the cliffside, with pounding waves coming right up to the cliffs. Standing further back gave us a chance to see the seaside with a different view and Willie and I knew we had to be more selective in our compositions. I used a long lens for the photographs on this night. It meant focusing in on particular areas of the ocean to find something interesting in them. I was drawn to this particular group of seastacks. On the far left the cliffside was capturing the faint glowing light as the sun set. Just to the right of it the crashing waves created a waterfall as it drained over a small stack of rocks sticking out of the sea. Then to the center of the scene, a seastack stands tough, blocking the waves and forcing them around it. Lastly, lower in the scene, 2 rocks peak up, directing the waves around it too, creating a sweeping motion for the eye to follow. Nikon D850 w/Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8: 38mm, f/10, 1.3 sec, ISO 64

Tunnel to Dinner

One of the nice things about photographing sunset in the winter is that there's plenty of time to get home and *not* be late for dinner! On this particular night the forecast was calling for a beautiful sunset and I took a work meeting in the car while I drove over to the coast to photograph this beach. I had visited here a week or two previously when the tide was much lower so I knew we'd have to explore different compositions this time. Previously I had gotten down, closer to the seastacks but this time I wanted to stay further back and capture the tunnel in the photo. I waited for a big wave to come in and splash against the rocks, creating a "waterfall" like effect along the cliffside. The draining water creates a sense of motion. And of course the sky provides that nice warm sunset mood, which is picked up and reflected in the rocks and cliffs. I used a less wide lens this time so I could really focus in on the tunnel and the seastack, so here's a non-super wide photo for you! Nikon D850 w/Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8: 28mm, f/11, 1.3 sec, ISO 64