Golden Blue
It's not always about having the best tech to get the perfect shot... It's about being creative and working with the tools you got, to get the shot yo...
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It's not always about having the best tech to get the perfect shot... It's about being creative and working with the tools you got, to get the shot you want. One night in France, One GoPro, One sunset and One idea
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Sep, 2015Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
The image was taken during conducting fieldwork for my masters program in Marine and Lacustrine Science. For one week we were stationed in Concarneau, France to study fauna and flora on the rocky shores along the coast. All day we had been working and climbing across the rocks, however it was only until nightfall I could take out my camera and get the shot.Time
As soon as the sun set with the rising low tide I saw my moment to put down the camera and get my shot. With the last moments from the golden hour I set my camera for a long exposure of 30 seconds to get the most colors in the image.Lighting
With no clouds to reflect the amazing colors of the setting sun I framed the shot to center at the rocks and get their contours. This also gave the opportunity to let the water reflect the blue sky. Using a GoPro didn't really give me a lot of control in the settings, so I was limited in choosing the right combination of parameters. To get the misty feeling from the waves I needed to wait until the light was almost completely gone to do a 30 second exposure. In the end it made for a nice composition with also including some stars in the sky!Equipment
Yes you heard it: A GoPro, Hero 4 black edition to be precise. I was surprised to see the quality of the image when I plugged the SD-card into the computer. Even with this small action camera you're able to get wonderful shots. It shows that the best camera you can use, is the one that you have with you. The only other equipment used was my phone as an external monitor to view the composition. No flash, No tripod, only the rocks and my camera.Inspiration
I always loved the misty shots from the water side, showing the timeless rock in the ever changing waves. As soon as I saw the little bay with the rocks I knew it would work out. So I sneaked out while my colleague students were still enjoying their evening and climbed down the rocks. It took a little while to find the right composition with the wide angle of the GoPro, but with the use of the app I finally came across the best spot. The rocks were shaped ideally to fit the camera out of the housing so I could just use the application as an external shutter.Editing
I used Lightroom for some small color corrections in the white-balance and straightening to align the horizon perfectly. All the rest was straight out of this little camera.In my camera bag
Back when I took the picture I only used my GoPro cameras, a Hero 4 black and Hero 3+ black. I mostly film for my youtube channel Lucky Studios, but when I have the chance I take them out for some nice shots, action or not. Since then I upgraded to a Canon 70D which I now use for all my photography. Together with a 10-18 mm and a 18-200 mm lens I go out and explore whenever I can.Feedback
Well, firstly I would suggest using a proper DSLR or mirrorless camera to take pictures like these, especially if you want to print them out eventually. But if you are like me, and you only have an action cam or even a phone by hand, take out your notebook. I used the lowest ISO I could get (100) to reduce the noise in the picture. Since these action cameras have relatively poor low light capabilities you'll want to get the most light in as you can. This is why I used a 30 second shutter speed. With the previous versions of the firmware, that was all you could get from manual settings. Go out and get to know your camera. Explore the limitations and most of all... Have fun while doing so!
