Stormy Island
Storm approaching from the Pacific Ocean onto a beach at Coffs Harbour Australia
Storm approaching from the Pacific Ocean onto a beach at Coffs Harbour Australia
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Apr, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken in Coffs Harbour, Australia while visiting my family last year. It was my first visit in 7 years. I had made the trip to see one of my brothers get married. this particular beach is where I spent a lot of my time surfing in my teenage years. It holds a lot of fond memories and to capture it like this was amazing.Time
It was around midday. I had travelled into Coffs with my mum and while she was at an appointment decided to head to the beach to kill some time. The storm was rolling in off the Pacific Ocean and looked so imposing I knew I had to take a couple of shots.Lighting
In front of me was this dark rolling cloud formation swallowing up the island, sunlit sky and beach. Behind me was clear blue sky with the sun warming my back. When I edited the image I played around with the shadows and highlights to really bring out the structure in the cloud. It's almost like the cloud has taken on the form of a monstrous wave breaking over the island.Equipment
As I am quite new to photography this was shot on my very first dslr camera. A second hand canon 350D and an 18-55mm lens (older version without is) which was given to me by my father in law, after I expressed an interest in taking photo's.Inspiration
I had decided that I would take the camera with me to shoot some photos of the beach and surrounding area as I now live in the UK. I had hoped to capture something to take back that reminded me of home. I like to carry my camera with me and just take photos of things that catch my eye and inspire me. As I said before I am new to photography and I am self taught and still experimenting. When I looked at the atmosphere on the beach in that particular place and time with the tide out and the storm approaching the island I decided to try and capture it. I never thought in a million years that it would turn out as well as it did.Editing
I had been experimenting with editing images and wanted to try and really show the calmness of the water against the turbulence of the sky. I did a few different compositions with HDR and black and white. I'm an absolute novice and have zero skills or training in the editing department. I also cropped the image to different sizes to try and bring the scene out.In my camera bag
Since this photo was taken the camera had a major malfunction with the mirror becoming detached. I had to wait six painstaking months, but finally on my birthday I unwrapped a Canon 100D. This is now coupled with an EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM and a EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III zoom lens. The 100D is a great little camera. Its so light weight which is great for someone like myself who likes to take their kit with them just about everywhere. its spec is ideal for my current style and level of experience. I would love to expand on my lenses but feel I need to find my true style before committing to any more.Feedback
Shoot with your heart as well as your eye. Enjoy yourself with both capturing an image and editing. I don't feel I can give technical guidance as I'm certainly not an expert. I research how to take photos of certain types if I am looking to photograph something in particular. The internet is a wealth of knowledge for any budding photographer. Also forums and social networks such as viewbug are great where you can discuss with photographers of all ability what you are trying to achieve, take points and tips and get your work critiqued. I take photos because I enjoy photography. If I can share something that has moved me with others, then all the better.
