Raymond Tice
October 2026 - Trinidad Head
About the Image(s)
For her 80th Birthday, my wife and I are currently visiting the northern California and southern Oregon coasts; spending time at lots of spectacular state beaches, taking photos of crashing waves, sea stacks, and nearby redwood forests while learning about the history of the various towns. This photo was taken of the Trinidad Head while visiting Trinidad State Beach. I used a Nikon Z8, with a 24-120mm lens at 24mm, iso 64, f/20, 1/60 sec handheld. It was post-processed in LR Classic, with the horizon straightened, followed by establishing landscape masks and treating the sky and everything else separately using various effects and tone sliders.
1 comment posted
Ray-this might be my favorite photograph of yours. It has immediate impact, a ton of visual interest, and a good story-and stories aren't always easy to convey in landscapes. The rugged rocks, incoming surf, and cloud sweeping over Trinidad Head convey the character of this coastline. That cloud is especially effective, giving the headland a distinctive presence and drawing my eye into the distance.
What impresses me most is your composition. You've placed a large, eye-catching rock near the center without allowing it to monopolize the viewer's attention. Instead, the surrounding rocks and channels of reflective water lead the eye toward the surf and headland, creating excellent depth. I've tried similar compositions without achieving this kind of success-really well done.
My suggestions are relatively minor. I would experiment with a modest crop from the bottom to see whether slightly less foreground strengthens the headland's presence while preserving that successful visual flow- but frankly I like it as is, but you might try it just for the heck of it. There also appears to be a blue-purple cast in the sky and wet sand; maybe it's my screen, but it's worth a look. Finally, in my VF I opened the shadows on all the rock surfaces except the big boulders as you enter the frame - they're near perfect so I left them alone. I think the added detail especially along the left side of hte image add to an already outstanding composition
Overall, this is a very thoughtfully composed coastal image whose textures, movement, and atmosphere give the viewer plenty of reasons to hang around and examine it - I really enjoyed this image.
Posted: 10/04/2026 14:28:50
What impresses me most is your composition. You've placed a large, eye-catching rock near the center without allowing it to monopolize the viewer's attention. Instead, the surrounding rocks and channels of reflective water lead the eye toward the surf and headland, creating excellent depth. I've tried similar compositions without achieving this kind of success-really well done.
My suggestions are relatively minor. I would experiment with a modest crop from the bottom to see whether slightly less foreground strengthens the headland's presence while preserving that successful visual flow- but frankly I like it as is, but you might try it just for the heck of it. There also appears to be a blue-purple cast in the sky and wet sand; maybe it's my screen, but it's worth a look. Finally, in my VF I opened the shadows on all the rock surfaces except the big boulders as you enter the frame - they're near perfect so I left them alone. I think the added detail especially along the left side of hte image add to an already outstanding composition
Overall, this is a very thoughtfully composed coastal image whose textures, movement, and atmosphere give the viewer plenty of reasons to hang around and examine it - I really enjoyed this image.
Posted: 10/04/2026 14:28:50