Canon 5D Mark II, 70-200 f/2.8L IS. 200mm, ISO 50, 242 sec @ f/8.0.
My first photo trip to the La Push area of the Washington coast was just after Christmas, 2009, and most of the time shooting was spent at Second Beach.
One of the challenges of shooting at Second Beach is that it’s a pretty popular photography location, particularly at sunset. I was determined to come away with something different than the standard sunset with islands shot. One way to help that was the restrictions I placed on my shooting prior to leaving on the trip: every image had to be black and white, and cropped square.
Those two restrictions completely changed how I looked at Second Beach. The visits were no longer about waiting for perfect sunset light (I didn’t care, the photo was going to be black and white anyway), and instead became all about looking for curves, textures, and tones.
The above photo was taken about an hour before sunset on our first day at the beach, and what drew me to the shot was not only the curves of the rocks but the green seaweed. I knew that the contrast of the green against the rocks would give me all sorts of interesting post-processing opportunities. Working on the image after the fact was a joy, and when this photo is printed the seaweed glows on the page.
Have you ever visited a popular beach location? Did you come up with a new way to interpret the scene? What was it?
Canon 5D Mark II, 70-200 f/2.8L IS. 173mm, ISO 100, 1/60 sec @ f/8.0.
The last stop on our nine-day vacation to Utah was a visit to Dead Horse Point State Park and Canyonlands: Islands in the Sky. One day is nowhere near enough time to spend in these two locations, but we tried to make the best of it.
Alas, the day was the first true overcast day of the whole trip which made the photography challenging. I remember not being particularly inspired by anything I saw, and felt like I was just going through the motions when shooting. I think we’ve all had days like that.
Looking back through the photos afterwards was a good reminder of why it’s important to keep shooting even if the vibe isn’t quite there. The above photo was buried among a bunch of uninspiring junk, and in its raw state a complete washed out mess. But the line of the river and the hint of greenery made me stop and take another look. I’m glad I did, because it wound up being one of my favourite photos from the trip.
I haven’t printed it yet. Something is still nagging me, saying it isn’t ready for a print. Maybe printing it out will help figure out what’s missing. I did do a digital negative of it with the intention of making a lith print in the darkroom, but on further reflection it’s just not right for lith.
Have you ever found a hidden gem in your photos after a shoot? What was it? Did you remember seeing it when you took the picture, or was it a complete surprise after?
