Second Beach at night

[Dave Johnston]

Just got back from a trip to the Olympic Peninsula coast of Washington. Since with the clock and time zone change my body is running four hours behind, I'll be up for a while. Might as well process some pictures! Here is the first.

My time there coincided with high tide at sunset and the evening, and with clear skies sunsets were uneventful anyway. I decided to wade out into the surf a little and do some light painting, to go with the dark skies.

Many thanks to Alan Lichty for his advice on how to optimize my time!

Comments and suggestions always welcome.

DAve

 

[AlanLichty]

Great shot Dave - looks like you made good use of your time. That light painting you did is a nice touch - almost like a luminescence on the surf.

 

[Dave Johnston]

Thanks, Alan, and thanks again for your guidance. By and large the light wasn't great during the day, expect for Thursday when the rain made for some foggy shots, which I will get to. But what a great location you have! I wish I had had the time (and camping gear) to spend the night in some of the more remote locations.

I was hoping for some actual bio-luminescence, but if it happened I couldn't record it. So I had to make some of my own! It was so dark I could hardly see to compose, and I couldn't predict what the surf would do. but a few worked out OK. I'm really liking what that Sigma 14 mm f/1.8 can do!

Dave

 

[Kyle Jones]

Very cool, I like it!

 

[JimFox]

Hey Dave, I definitely like it! Great idea with the flashlight on the water. I am glad you are liking the Sigma 14mm 1.8 because I know I am really liking mine too. I just wish FotoDiox would make an adapter with Wonderpana to fit it.

 

[JimFox]

Congrats on the Daily Featured Post Dave!

 

[Jim Dockery]

Great shot. Like Alan said, the light painting is so subtle it could almost be luminesce. The stars are sure sharp for a wade in the water shot. Did you have high boots or waders on?

 

[Dave Johnston]

Thank you Alan, Kyle, Jim and Jim, and especially for the featured post.

Jim D, I only wear mesh water shoes (Salomon Tech Amphibians) together with synthetic pants and base layer. It was a bit cold but not unbearably so. About half of my attempts showed some blurring of the stars from waves hitting the tripod. The slope of the beach is so gradual that the waves were mostly gently washing over me, even when about knee deep, so it was feasible to shoot in the water. Only a couple of the light painting shots worked out this well. So there was definitely an element of luck that came together for this shot. Even if it hadn't worked out, it was fun to try!

Dave

 

[Ben Egbert]

Very nice night shot

 

[Douglas Sherman]

You did very well with the conditions you had, Dave. Nice job. But bioluminescence is not going to happen this time of year. For that to happen you need warmer water.

 

[Mike Mancil]

Fabulous night shot.

 

[Rick Schump]

That looks sweet.

 

[Bart Carrig]

Very beautiful image. Love every speck and inch of it. Well done !

Bart

 

[Dave Johnston]

Thank you Ben, Douglas, Mike, Rick and Bart. I wondered if luminescence was seasonal or temperature-sensitive. That makes sense.

Dave