Since I just returned from a weekend down the shore, (Ocean City Maryland) I thought I would spend this week on the pictures I took while I was there. The first morning yielded a fabulous sunrise. There was a couple in their wedding attire, who appeared on the beach with a photographer, who was just as thrilled as I was that the heavens were lit with a rich rainbow of colors. To me a sunrise isn’t just that instant when the Sun peaks above the horizon; it’s a process, an ecosystem where the presentation changes from moment to moment. Facets of the scene change each second, especially when there is an ocean and wildlife involved. Sunrise at the beach is a special thing.
It amuses me to watch people who come out to see the sunrise. It probably gives them a giggle to watch me trying this lens, changing that setting, moving the tripod 3 inches, etc. to get the picture I want. A handful of people make their way to watch the sunrise each day that I have been there, except when the weather is uncooperative. I have always been the first, because the blues and greens that shimmer across the sky are only there briefly, and it’s long before the sun reveals itself. People come out to see the event, some hung-over, some grudgingly drug along by their significant others, some ready for a dawn workout, and some (read most everyone) with their camera. Capturing a sunrise is hard, and later this week I’ll go into my thought process for photographing one, but even a camera phone can take a picture that jogs the memory. “Oh yeah, we went out on the beach while we were on vacation and saw the sunrise. It looked a lot cooler than this picture on the phone. I can’t describe it, but it was much better than this. It was bigger, brighter, darker, redder, neater, awesome, more colorful...” The artwork painted in the sky each day is intricate and breathtaking. If you’re watching it as it happens, soak up the experience while it unfolds before you. Live the moment.

Nikon D800, Tokina 16-28mm f/2.8 @ 22mm f/16 ISO 100 6 image HDR