San Diego January Evening
A January evening at La Jolla, San Diego.
Feb, 2018Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken whilst on holiday in San Diego, at La Jolla beach.Time
It was about 5:30 pm, but in January, so it was a blue hour shot taken after sunset. I had gone to the beach earlier with my family, but decided to linger and see what the sunset would be like. I am so glad that I did as it was the most spectacular one which I have ever witnessed. The entire sky and sea exploded with colours which you never see in the UK - where I live.Lighting
The colours and shapes created in the sky were are what made me so excited when taking this picture. They seemed a perfect compliment to the rocky shore. The lights of the houses also added a lovely touch in the background.Equipment
I used a fuji xt1 with a wide angle lens (10-24mm) set on 10 mm. I set the camera on a tripod and took a long exposure of about 4 seconds with a very low iso. I used a very small aperture as I wanted a wide depth of field.Inspiration
I took lots and lots of photos of that sunset. It was pretty overwhelming: everywhere I looked was a stunning photo crying out to be captured. Everything was perfect: beautiful rock formations, gorgeous light, pleasantly warm weather and a nearly empty beach. I felt like I was in some sort of photograpic heaven.Editing
The processing was crucial. Even with the long exposure the picture was somewhat underexposed. The shadows needed lifting and I also cloned out three other photographers who were down by the water.In my camera bag
I tend to not have a camera bag on me: I get on really well wearing a think tank belt with a series of pouches on it. I like carrying all the weight on my hips rather than my shoulders. I will always have my beautiful fuji xt3 (I have upgraded since this photo was taken...), and if I am travelling, ideally I like to carry three lenses. The wide angle 10-24mm, a long zoom (usually the 18-135mm which gets a bad press but is in fact incredibly useful), and my 100-400mm lens as I am a passionate bird and nature photographer. I usually have a 2x extension tube attached to the 100-400 lens. These days I also some carry some Nisi filters and a tripod. I can walk for miles carrying my things like this and can easily do quick changes of lenses with the pouches if necessary.Feedback
Don't visit a beach without a tripod! And if you are there near sunset, be prepared to stick around after everyone else has left to see what happens. Ideally you will already be at a good location before blue hour as it does not last very long. Be aware of the patterns in the sky and how they interact with the landscape.
