A lone surfer waits for a wave as people stroll the pier watching a brilliant sunset at the end of a winter day. 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/536814054...
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Details about the entire panorama.:
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Canon 5D mark II
Canon 17-40L lens @28mm
1/4-sec. exposure @F11
ISO 100
ND Grads 0.9 + 0.9
No polarizer.
RAW file processed with Capture One by Phase One
TIFF file processed with Photoshop cs4
Small Slik Sprint mini II tripod
Manfrotto 322RC2 pistol-grip ball head
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The Story
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I have a bit of a backlog of photos made during the past two months so here is one from December 30th in Oceanside, California just north of San Diego.
It had been clear all day and by noon, things were looking grim for any sort of a dramatic sunset. I was watching the satellite movies during the day and this very same band of clouds had set in over the ocean but too far out to be very interesting. Most of the time the weather and winds come from the west off of the ocean. But about 3 hours before sunset, the band evaporated and reformed almost overhead. Then I started to worry whether it would stick around for sunset. Of course there is always something to worry about, right?
Fortunately, the cloud bank held up all the way to sunset and I saw this amazing scene just as I had hoped. It extended to the north and south for at least 50 miles in each direction. The cloud was moving quickly but it was evaporating on the backside and forming in the front side, so overall it remained in place for hours. It was still there at 10 at night!
Needless to say, it is really important to study the clouds to know whether it is worth your effort to drive 40 miles as I did to capture this scene. I watched the cloud and realized that it would hold in place despite how it seemed to move so quickly.
Also, I just learned that I will have a photo in the 2012 Nature Conservancy Calendar. That makes three years in a row. Voting is going on to see which one will be the cover photo, but at least I know I'm in there!
The map shows the exact location.
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Other stuff
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My pictures are featured on the front page of the
state Government. of California website and the new Governor, Jerry Brown's website too. Have a look! It is
Flash with my pics cut into layers for a 3-d slideshow. If you are
into building apps, the State has opened up lots of data to the
public, so check it out!
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Resources:
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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.
Amy Heiden, antoninodias13, andreaskoeberl, flytography, and 826 other people added this photo to their favorites.
View 20 more comments
danielle kiemel 23 months ago | reply
Magic, I have no words!
The Neepster 23 months ago | reply
wow - just clicked through from google+ - this is amazing. Glorious colour and light.
Luís Henrique Boucault 22 months ago | reply
Great Shot! Well done!
ChrisRoebuck [deleted] 22 months ago | reply
Incredible photo. I want to be there haha.
Savinelly 19 months ago | reply
beautiful
I want on same place
Nycee4 19 months ago | reply
Insane colors!
neosmultimedia.com 19 months ago | reply
Awesome shot Patrick. Your website was one of my biggest inspirations when I moved to Southern California. Thanks for sharing your work!
BOBBY AYCOCK 19 months ago | reply
Patrick, found a guy using this picture as his own, I gave him a piece of my mind. Here is the link. www.flickr.com/photos/66577754@N02/6298778633/
betty wiley 17 months ago | reply
I just found your photo stream and I wanted to tell you that I think your photography is just stunning. I visit California often as I have a good friend who lives on the central coast. Your images are so inspiring and beautiful - I want to make another trip out there - soon!
Bob T... 16 months ago | reply
Beautiful image...Congrats with Explore, 1 year ago today, very well deserved...
Regards...
Bob...
Shellnort 14 months ago | reply
Oh, WOW. Amazingly perfect. It actually made me cry! I used to live a 5 minute walk from there...stunning capture.
Soph.Elliott96 13 months ago | reply
awesome colours in the sky and the movement in the water.
Gustavo Muleey 11 months ago | reply
fantastica !
Cordula Schaefer 7 months ago | reply
Simply beautiful!
Gemma~A Passionate Photographer 7 months ago | reply
Dramatic looking sky, love the colors.
hillcrest1986 3 months ago | reply
great love it there!
rkaddn 3 weeks ago | reply
Beautiful colours
ArmyJacket 2 days ago | reply
Great colors.