About the Image(s)
Saint Augustine Beach
Nikon D850, Nikkor 24-70mm lens @26mm. ISO 125, F18, 8 seconds, tripod with remote shutter, 3 stop ND filter Lenscoat rain coat to keep the salt water off the camera.
Near Saint Augustine, Florida there are still some beach areas that retain a pristine look. Here the beaches a broad and at low tide the blackened Coquina rocks still litter the coastline as they did during the age of Spanish exploration 500 years ago. If you go to St. Augustine the old Spanish fort is made of these stones. On a chilly and foggy morning in early February I found myself alone at the beach. The tide was just coming in and there was light scattered fog across the surface of the water. As each softly rolling wave washed in some of the washed over the surface of the black stones. There was fairly heavy cloud cover along the off shore horizon that helped to keep the rising sun from becoming too bright. I wanted to use along exposure to keep the water soft and still impart some feeling of movement. Even with a low ISO and a nearly closed aperture I still couldn’t get a slow enough shutter to get the appearance I wanted. Adding the 3 stop ND filter allowed for the necessary 8 seconds to get the look I wanted. I experimented with several different shutter speeds and found this gave me the look I liked. I really had to work quickly as the sun was rising and the tide continued to rise. The most difficult challenge was to keep my tripod legs from moving as each incoming wave washed out sand from beneath the tripod. I used spiked feet on the tripod and really jammed each leg as deep as possible into the sand. I could have lowered the tripod’s elevation but settled on a height just above waist level so as to keep the tops of the rocks separated and also to allow the vastness of the ocean to be visible. When I work close to the water line I always make the camera wear its raincoat to keep salt water from splashing on the camera. SALT WATER AND CAMERAS DO NOT MIX
Adi Ben-Senior
L,
As always perfect technique and composition. A few thoughts:
1. Increase contrast to have blacks in the rocks.
2. It seems the horizon is tilting downwards on the left.
This is a definitely a keeper.
Posted: 03/09/2025 09:13:58
Larry Treadwell
Thanks for the thoughts. I looked at the image on my monitor and the blacks seem stronger than when shown on the PSA site. No matter, I pushed the black a bit more and added a bit of contrast. The results are shown below.
As for that horizon. It bugs me also but according to the crop guide in Lightroom it is straight. If I fix the left the right looks worse. I think the issue is the fog along the horizon but who knows.
Posted: 03/09/2025 11:06:13
Adi Ben-Senior
The correction adds a solid base to the picture. The horizon may be a parallax issue if you aimed a bit right side. This can OR not be adjusted on the Left/ Right rotation slider. Regardless this is a super picture. Posted: 03/09/2025 11:25:33
Michael Jack
I like the composition with the sun slightly right balanced by more rocks on the left and agree with your choice of shutter speed. I like the rocks as is where I can see some detail. It does appear there is a bit of barrel distortion from the lens which maybe LR/ACA did not correct. I like the sky color. It seems strange the sky color is not reflected in the water, but that may be due to the effect of smoothing out the waves with a longer shutter speed. Posted: 03/09/2025 12:10:26
Larry Treadwell
Thanks Michael
I'm glad you spotted the sun position, that was intentional. You are correct about the sky color reflection in the water. It shows in my test shot which was taken at a faster shutter speed but vanishes with the longer shutter speed. Since i wanted the "look" of the water I didn't mind losing the reflection. Thanks also for the info on the barrel distortion. That horizon drives me nuts. Posted: 03/10/2025 10:12:17
Barbara Gore
Hi Larry. This image is very soothing, both in terms of composition and effect. I like how the curve of the rocks in the left foreground area guides my eye toward the sun. It seems almost as if the sun is aligned with the farthest rock. The cloud cover is perfect for controlling the bright sun and giving off a warmth to the image. The rocks are nicely lit and have a subtle sheen from the ocean water. The horizon does appear slightly bowed almost reminiscent of looking at the edges of the Earth. I always find the heavy fog near a horizon plays tricks on the mind lol. Great capture. BTW, thanks for mentioning the raincoat. I will be heading to Folly Beach, SC in a few weeks for MW and beach shots and will definitely bring my rain cover. Posted: 03/12/2025 08:22:06
Larry Treadwell
Glad you liked this image. I love these types of mornings. The world is silent, the waves just lap at the shore, you hear the gulls crying. Makes you feel alive and as if the cares of the world fall away. Hope your South Carolina trip yields good results. Thanks for commenting. Posted: 03/12/2025 12:26:21
Gokulananda Nandan
Larry, I liked the second version of this photo. Apart from the position of the sun on the right and rocks on the left, I also like the light reflection of the sun on the water. It's a soothing picture. Posted: 03/20/2025 10:50:46
Larry Treadwell
Thanks for commenting. I like the moody, dreamlike feel. Also the limited color palette. I'm a big fan of using limited colors. Posted: 03/27/2025 22:48:40
Grace Cohen
Larry - this image is breathtaking - I can almost hear the waves and feel the morning's damp sea air on my face. I also get the sensation that the water surface is not quite even but I suspect this is may be from the fog on the distant water. However, if you were to enter this image in competition, it might be worth playing with the warp and distortion to see if a very subtle adjustment might neutralize the slight (real or perceived) unevenness of horizon. Posted: 03/21/2025 03:08:07
Larry Treadwell
Thanks. Like you when I look at this I can feel the damp air and hears the waves lapping on the shore. I've played with the warp and other tools and for me it just makes it look worse. I'm going to stick to my theory that it is the fog. :-) Posted: 03/27/2025 22:51:32
Larry Treadwell
Just a test message to see if the IT adjustments are working, Posted: 03/26/2025 19:35:47
Bill Peake
An amazing image, Larry. The long exposure on the water along with the sunset and sky gives a dreamy otherworldly feel. I do see that the horizon is a bit bowed. Is that a lens distortion or is it just an artifact of the fog? Posted: 03/27/2025 22:37:21
Larry Treadwell
I've always thought that it is the fog, but who knows. Thanks for commenting. Posted: 03/27/2025 22:46:33
