- I waited for the sea to pull out and the sand to briefly become glossy. So it reflected the color in the hole in the clouds and the sky off the left side of the frame.
- sweet! - joαnnα.bαnαnα ☮
- I moved around to get the structure entirely in front of the clouds. Too much contrast otherwise.
- I moved back to get the entire wheel in front of the clouds so that it stood out more and simplified the composition.
- The exposure time was limited to this bright patch of sand. I did not want this over-exposed.
- Usually I leave people out, but here is seemed better to have them in there.
- In the full-sized version, you can read the text here.
- The wheel moved only one spoke along during the 4-second exposure, but that was enough to fill the wheel with light.
- I was hoping for the color of the wheel to complement the reflected color of the sky with the golden sand. Fortunately it happened.
- This was our escape boat, in case the paps broke through the security barriers.
- like - Aaron Dinham
Santa Monica Spin #3 - Santa Monica Pier, California
This is a view from the first annual Greater Los Angeles Summit of Fine Art Photography held at the usual place just south of the Santa Monica Pier. hehe... No HDR!
Free wallpaper for over 100 of my images in 6 different screen sizes is now available!
See the 1200 pixel version!
www.flickr.com/photos/patrick-smith-photography/425824867...
Settings etc.:
Canon 5D Mark II
Canon 24-105L @40
4-second exposure @F13
LEE soft ND grad (100x150mm) 0.9 (two filters would create reflections
with these lights)
Lee foundation kit filter holder with Lee 77mm adapter ring
No polarizer.
ISO 50
Small Slik tripod with Manfrotto pistol grip ball head
RAW file processed with Capture One by Phase One
TIFF file processed with Photoshop
Space was extremely limited due to heavy demand and the heavy publicity going on for at least 5 whole minutes before the big moment. So, there were a total of 3 lucky attendees including Jim Patterson, Kendra Karr, and me. Once the paparazzi were cleared from the beach by the security team, and the the airspace was cleared of helicopters, we shot the breeze for a while and then got down to business. Also, this was a 100% chimping-free summit!
This is the new wheel that was installed after the old one was sold on eBay for US $132,400 to an Oklahoma developer sight unseen! See this photo with the old wheel for more information. This is a very high-tech wheel with programmable lights that can create patterns and images. Also, it is powered by the solar panels you see in front of the wheel.
www.flickr.com/photos/patrick-smith-photography/3977498042/
The good news is that the wheel changes colors and patterns every few seconds. So every shot looks completely different it seems. The bad news is that you only get about 10 minutes where the light is even enough to get a decent exposure across the entire frame. That is the brief period when the lights are bright, but not too bright and there is light in the sky. The other bad news is that it takes about 7 minutes to fill up the wheel with passengers before it spins 2 or 3 times and then stops again. So I really only got a few minutes during the entire evening where the wheel was in motion and the light was good at the same time. Still, I managed to get a few nice ones!
Thanks goes out to Jim for saving my water shoes from a danger-filled trans-Pacific voyage initiated by a quickly rising tide!
Resources:
Google Earth
earth.google.com/
Simply the best way to scout out locations that there is. You can see sun angles and pre-visualize light under lots of different conditions. Sometimes you can actually pre-compose your shots! This has saved me many thousands of vertical feet of climbing by avoiding spots with blocked views etc.
Satellite imagery (choose 'National' for a local US region or use your
fave website)
www.wrh.noaa.gov/satellite/?wfo=mtr
Tide charting and preditions: (chose your area in US, other countries
have similar websites)
tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/tide_predictions.shtml?gid=235
Wave Heights (I choose 'North Pacific from Global')
polar.ncep.noaa.gov/waves/main_int.html
Or Here:
www.opc.ncep.noaa.gov/shtml/RP1bw.gif
Photos of every inch of the California coastline from a small plane. Excellent for close in detailed views.
The map shows exactly where this is. It is an easy hike from the parking lot.
See my Flickr profile for a link to my newly designed website.
.
Comments and faves
mudpig, DeSouzaLima, wagdi.co.uk, sdosick, and 1051 other people added this photo to their favorites.
Eriç [deleted] (41 months ago | reply)
Love the vibrant colours and the reflection.
mudpig (41 months ago | reply)
great reflections and exposure - beautiful work.
wagdi.co.uk (41 months ago | reply)
fantastic..
Chee Seong (41 months ago | reply)
Digging the light reflected. Great weekend Patrick.
Hugh Deck (41 months ago | reply)
Lovely work Patrick. This has a very nice steely-blue hue to the sand and sky. You did well with the pattern on the ferris wheel.
IMAC- (41 months ago | reply)
Great capture dude!!
Good composition and reflexion!
schramcrackers (41 months ago | reply)
the reflections are amazing!
A Sutanto (41 months ago | reply)
WoW...pure magic!!!
ystan (41 months ago | reply)
Great shot love the water reflection
FrankKingPhotos.ca (41 months ago | reply)
Your typical brilliance. Isn't it about time you posted something less spectacular so the rest of us won't feel so inadequate?
Jessica Kirste (41 months ago | reply)
Amazing shot!! Have a great weekend :)
jcpgarzon (41 months ago | reply)
...Maravilha de reflexos Patrick ... muito bem elaborada e
... construida foto ...um trabalho enxuto ...
PatrickSmithPhotography (41 months ago | reply)
Thanks for your comments!
I do have lots of less spectacular things, but .. oh, will you look at the time... gotta go...
Patrick
rachael hyde (41 months ago | reply)
I love the reflection!
hanson_s_lee (41 months ago | reply)
stunning shot! have a great weekend
katepedley (41 months ago | reply)
Gorgeous reflections and light :)
BobMacMillan [deleted] (41 months ago | reply)
Amazing shot!
alan ranger photography AFIAP, BPE3*, LRPS (41 months ago | reply)
outstanding!
--
Seen on my Flickr home page. (?)
Alaina Dall (41 months ago | reply)
You really ought to better publicize these annual events you have :)
Another great shot and interesting info about the pier!
Glenn Cartmill (41 months ago | reply)
Beautiful. Great reflections. Nice colours.
tropicaLiving - Jessy Eykendorp (41 months ago | reply)
Beautiful texture and reflections on the wet sand..like the way you include people in this shot Patrick!
Have a nice weekend dear friend ^_^
Thank you!
Fionn Luk (41 months ago | reply)
Wow amazing seascape! Wonderful exposure and great reflection. I love going on ferris wheels
Dave Berryman (41 months ago | reply)
You did a wonderful job of lining up all the elements for the perfect shot. Way to go! You're my new hero!
PatrickSmithPhotography (41 months ago | reply)
Thanks for your comments!
Oh, this was very well publicized. It was planned several minutes in advance! literally......!
You too Jessy...
Patrick
Jeanette Runyon (41 months ago | reply)
Stunning shot!
maxxsmart (41 months ago | reply)
It looks like a fun spot, and you made it look even better. I think the glow on the wet sand is best in this image ( just going by your older images from here). Just when I think you've got the best image from a spot, you come up with a newer, better image.... Sorry to hear about your back : /
Mike Hornblade (41 months ago | reply)
I live within walking distance of this place.... Didn't realize you guys were down there or I would have stopped by!
Indiana Ivy Nature Photographer (41 months ago | reply)
Great reflections !!!
Dave Berryman (41 months ago | reply)
This is a must view on black!
Lyfizgood (41 months ago | reply)
Awesome Patrick! Love the shimmer of lights on the sand, and the gorgeous sky!
D Breezy - davidthompsonphotography.com (41 months ago | reply)
too pretty!!!!!! great colors! and the reflection on the sand is amazing. nice!
Jim Patterson Photography (41 months ago | reply)
Well, this totally blows away anything I got that night, so I guess it may be years before I post mine. ;) The summit was a great success, and more summits should be planned. We shall give the honorary 5 minutes of preparation time per usual. ;)
Nocturnal Bob (41 months ago | reply)
Great colors and reflections!
PatrickSmithPhotography (41 months ago | reply)
Thanks for your comments!
Jim, you'd think that 5 minutes was plenty of time but maybe we should extend the announcement to a full 10 minutes just to let the stragglers filter in. Especially with security being so tight and all!
Patrick
artistic55w (41 months ago | reply)
Wow! You're the god of photography! What a spectacular photo of an iconic place. I have such photographer's envy.
jeffwc00 (41 months ago | reply)
Wow - Colors, reflections - all masterful.
MarkHarmel (41 months ago | reply)
How long will you be in town. I would be great to meet.
DEVENDRA PAL(AWAY) (41 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called *****DEV'S GALLERY (INVITED ONLY), and we'd love to have this added to the group!
DEVENDRA PAL(AWAY) (41 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called !!THE MASTER OF MASTERPIECES (INVITED ONLY) P1/ C2. SWEEPER, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
magda.indigo (41 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called TLC photography [upload 1 comment 2], and we'd love to have this added to the group!
Another stunning image, hope you are well? Have a great one! M, (*_*)
I saw this in the 25+ Faves group and Faved it.
ilkin. (41 months ago | reply)
Perfect!
Reedy Photography (41 months ago | reply)
Wicked mate! Nice!
elginz (41 months ago | reply)
This is a beauty. Very well done Patrick!
Thankful! (41 months ago | reply)
Sweeet!
Ivan Sohrakoff (41 months ago | reply)
Don't you just love the gradually-sloped beaches that provide endless reflections? I don't live too close to a specific beach, but a couple with excellent gradual slopes that come to mind are Clam Beach (& many others in Humboldt County), Koki Beach in Maui, and Morro Beach in Central California -two of which I learned about from Patrick the Great... Great shot, Patrick.
Martina Morris ( Ireland) Thanks for your visits (41 months ago | reply)
WoW !!!!!!!!!!!!! Stunning capture
Andrei Linde (41 months ago | reply)
I saw this in the 25+ Faves group and Faved it.
ayashok photography (41 months ago | reply)
wow lovely shot and reflections
PatrickSmithPhotography (41 months ago | reply)
Thanks for all of your kind comments!
Mark, I was only there for a few days. Sorry....
Yes Ivan, those flat beaches are great for reflections and all sorts of creative stuff. This one was perfect about 2 hours earlier with lots of glassy reflections. By sunset I was reduced to timing it for a few seconds of glassiness!
Patrick
P. Huynh (41 months ago | reply)
Patrick, it seems like you didn't have have to climb, hang glide, or rappel down any slope to capture this shot. :) But, it's unusual to see people in your shot. Not that it matters for this type of subjects. Love that glossiness of the sand. Nice timing!