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3 Years In The Making

January 17, 2012  •  Leave a Comment

Here is my first entry for the new blog. My goal is to build this up with useful information for myself and others to come to. I hope to keep this as well as a way of tracking my history and being able to look back on where I started and where I am at some time in the future. In the last few months I have decided to take on photography as a full time business. From trying to sell my landscape shots, enter contests, and work shooting properties for real estate, vacation rentals, builders, etc. While things are coming in it is slow at times and the New Year brings in more marketing in hopes of building up a booming business that will keep me going for years to come.

On to the good stuff on the above photo. From the first hike out to view the Folly Island Lighthouse back in 2008 I had always imaged an image like this.  High tide, rough seas, and a sunset worth capturing.

I have enjoyed shooting landscapes and what I have learned is to be successful in capturing those great images is you have to be at the right place at the right time. You have to be willing to go where no normal person would, pushing yourself and your equipment. This is what doing all the above can get you.

It was the summer of 2011 and Hurricane Irene was coming up the east coast. We started to see effects of her on Thursday, so right after work I rush home to let the dogs out grab the camera and off I go. While the surf was pounding there was not too much going on in the sky or out by lighthouse. I knew we had one more day and she would be closer, 100 or so miles off the coast.  Time for the same program, rush home from work, let the dogs out, 60 min drive out to beach. What should have took me only 20-30 mins to get to the spot took so much longer, everyone was out at the beach. The whole island had lost power so the only thing for the residents to do was hit the beach and watch the surfers. So the road was packed with traffic and parts of the road where flooded.

I finally get past all the traffic and find a place to park. The sun was setting quick and I still had a 15 minute or so hike to the point to see the lighthouse. Amazingly I get out there and there is 2 people out there.  A news reporter and the camera man. I start to look around for a good angle and nothing. The tide was so high that where you can normally walk out to the beach was just ocean.

Time to just go for it. Camera pack goes on back, tripod to shoulders, walk past the reporter and step into the unruly sea. If you can imagine the fear and excitement. Here I am in knee deep water, carrying close to 2k in camera equipment, trying to get a shot…Not one of the brightest moments I had. I get out to a spot fire off a few dozen shots then start to make the hike back.

I finally get back to where the reporter once was and there is now a handful of people taking shots of the lighthouse. Looking at me like I was crazy, hey who can blame them. Was it worth it? Yes, sure I could have stayed where everyone else was and got the same shot they all got. The shot with so many distractions from the city in the background taking away from the lighthouse. I decided to take the risk and find that angle that would show just the lighthouse in the middle of the ocean, still standing tall, without any other items to take away from it.

This was a once in a life time shot. How many times will a hurricane pass just far enough off shore to leave gaps in rain bands, during a high tide, and close to sunset?

To see larger image click here: Morris Island Light



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