"Swept Away"
(1/320 sec.@ F/8, ISO 160, 18mm fl, pattern metering, handheld, overcast evening light)
Braving the elements. That's what it takes to get skies like this. At least, that's what I kept telling my husband as we wobbled around on top of some sand dunes in some chilly, blustery weather a couple evenings ago. He was not impressed, especially when wet sand kept crunching about inside his work boots. But I knew the skies wouldn't wait, so as soon as he was in the door from work we flew right back out it with my kit bag and some rain coats, sweaters, and gloves, and drove like mad over to the beach. As a thank you I made him a very nice supper afterwards... but oh the things we do for the people we love that love cameras. Right dear?
It was overcast enough that when the light did anything at all, it was only for a few seconds. Then it would change or disappear. I thought my hand was going to be permanently frozen to my camera. And the sound of my hubby's teeth chattering was scaring off gulls from the next beach over. And wow were those clouds moving along. 40km/h wind conditions (minimum) meant a) the sky felt like it was flying past you pulled along by some massive unseen hand and b) there was no way I was using a tripod, even weighed down with a bag of sand, that puppy was just as blown about as we were.
But you know what, I was happy as a clam. Like the gull hovering in my photo. The gulls would hang in the air, facing into the wind, delighted to swoop once in a while and get swept away. And for a moment the light became nice and warm. And I was ready.
I may post some other shots from this outing, but the light is more stormy and green, very cold looking. I'll have to play with them to see if I can enhance the greens a little, make sure they really will look menacing. The image above only needed the contrast and saturation levels adjusted in Corel, and the Nik Color Efex Graduated Blue Filter applied last to emphasize how dark the clouds overhead were.
My husband mentioned how nice it would be if one of these days I could find a nice still pond to photograph, preferably one located beside a coffee shop or a Home Depot. Next stop: google maps!
Have a very non-blustery day if you can folks, and thanks for the ramble!
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