A Picturesque Weekend at the Beach

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.

Ocean City Sunrise 8-16-13

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

Mirror Mirror

Perceptions of ourselves are complicated. How much of what we see in the mirror does our mind fabricate? What do you see when you look in the mirror? A hero, a secretary, a “good person”, a sinner, a father, a lover, someone tall, or overweight, forgotten, scared, or sexy,....? I think the idea of who we are distracts from our true nature. I doubt the Heron is thinking about how handsome he looks in the picture. Maybe he’s thinking about being very still to lure a meal. Living in the present is difficult for us as human beings. Our reflections can become windows to the past, that weigh us down with regrets, or encourage us with fond memories. Or they can be pathways to the future, imagining how attractive and enticing we will become. Foolish is the man who looks in a mirror expecting to see his true self. Narcissus’s lesson is as true today as it ever was. Turn away from the figment staring back at you, for that is but a murky reflection. We are much more than the conjuring from a piece of glass.

Nikon D4 Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 with 1.4 tele @ 280mm f/5.6 ISO 900 1/1000 sec

Everybody Needs a Holiday

This weekend I'm taking a short vacation down the shore to rejuvenate myself. Of course rejuvenating would include sleeping in, but how can anyone sleep in and miss pictures like this one? I was up early last year, and probably will be this year too. I'm hoping for some dramatic sunrise weather.

Nikon D5100 Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 @ 55mm f/4.8 ISO 100 1/250 sec

Flooding

Yesterday morning it poured here. Not “raining cats and dogs”, more like “Is that a hippo in the lake that yesterday was our front yard"? Driving over Brandywine Creek this morning, grateful that the waters had receded somewhat, I caught sight of a few herons having a ball fishing in the overflow. Evidently, many fish were washed into newly formed pools by the rush of water yesterday, and they were marooned. The use of this word here feels strange to me because I always thought of marooned as being stranded on dry land surrounded by water, and yet for the fish, it is exactly the opposite. Maybe yesterday the fish were thrilled with their new expansive habitat, but now, feel a bit remorseful. I’m sure the herons feel pretty good about it today.

Nikon D800 Sigma 300mm f/2.8 with 1.4 tele and 1.5 crop (i.e. 630mm) f/4 ISO 400 1/3200 sec

#TravelTuesday Denver

Affectionately known as the “Mile High City” Denver’s official altitude is exactly one mile above sea level. A population of about six hundred thousand makes it the 23rd most populated city in the United States. We flew into and out of the city on our visit to Aspen. Many of the towns in the Colorado area were born during the mining rush in the 1800’s and Denver is no exception. General William Larimer originally staked a claim on November 22, 1858 to the territory and named it Denver City. (Possibly he was trying to find favor with (you may read kiss the butt of) the then governor of the Kansas Territory, James Denver)
The time we spent in the city itself was brief, but enjoyable. It consisted of a lunch and a few hours at the airport. The picture here was taken just before a heavy storm rolled into town the evening we were leaving. On the way to the airport we pulled over on a highway giving me just enough time to play a little human “Frogger” and capture this skyline.

Denver - Mile High City

Nikon D800 Tamron 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 65mm f/9 ISO 400 5 image HDR