The Witness
Jul, 2015Views
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Contest Finalist in Composing with the Horizon Photo Contest
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken on Cape Cod, Mass, at Skaket Beach.Time
It was sunset time.Lighting
I know I can count on at least one spectacular sunset over the course of a week while on vacation there. This wasn't a flashy red/orange/pink one, but the cloud structures were nice and it was glowing .Equipment
I use Canon 6D , Canon 16-35 f2.8 lens plus ND Grad filter , RRS head on Gitzo tripod .Inspiration
On Cape Cod during the summer vacation months, watching the sunset is such a daily ritual, thousands of people will stop what they are doing to come out to view it. There were perhaps 50 people just out of the frame to the right but I wanted to include just one person . I feel the story is entirely different when presented this way. There is a feeling of serenity , plus the vastness of the universe , we are but a small part of it . By carefully framing it this way , excluding a crowd , I feel I've created an image with more emotion than it might otherwise have. Additionally , I don't very often put the horizon line in the middle , but in this case I wanted these reflections off the tide pools that appear at low tide . The bay side is known for this, as the tidal changes leave a good half mile of sand bars exposed. This is one reason I love photographing here . My family has been vacationing on this one spot since I was a small child.Editing
In this case only light processing in LR was required.In my camera bag
I always have my Canon 6D , the 16-35 2.8, the Canon 70-200 1:4 L IS, Canon 24-105 1:4 L IS, plus various filters .Feedback
When photographing the sunset here , I am prepared to stick it out. Most people leave as soon as the sun hits the horizon but I've learned better over the many years of coming here that often the best light may come 15 or 20 minutes later . I look for tide pools to bounce the light off of, often using a low POV. I will shoot directly into the setting sun sometimes , then turn the camera to aim Away to capture the effects of the light onto beach houses and across sand bars. Often that is the most dramatic light.
