CHALLENGE2:MIDTIDE
Thetidewasnowquicklyfalling,revealing
interestingandphotogenicledges,channels
androckyoutcrops.Dannyneededlittle
invitationto switchto hisultrawide-angle
Nikkor17-35mmzoomandbegan
searchingfora goodviewpoint.It hadbeen
overcastwhenwefirstarrivedandthere
wasnosignof thecloudclearing.However,
therewasa littletextureandinterestin the
skyandthelightwassoftanddiffused.We
hadtobecarefulasweclamberedover
thewetrocks.Althoughthetidewasnow
receding,bigwaveswerestillrollingin and
sowestayedperchedonhigher,larger
rockstoensurewewerekeptdry.
A quickbitofadvice:ideally,when
walkingoverrocky,uneventerrain,keep
yourcamerain yourbackpackuntilyou
arereadytosetup.Otherwise,if youslip,
youwilleithertryandsaveyourkitandhurt
yourself,orviceversa.Alsotakecarewhen
placingyourbagdownonrockstogetset
up.Youdon’twanttobecaughtoutbya
bigwavewhileyourbagis unzippedandon
theground.Therefore,usecommonsense
andtakegoodcare,watchingforbigwaves
asyougetkitout.Andonceyouareallset
up,zipupyourbagandslingit backover
yourshoulder,orontoyourback,tokeep
everythingsafe.
Havingtrieda coupleofdifferent
viewpoints,Dannyfounda compositionhe
reallylikedwherethebackwashofthewave
createdsomelovelymotionandwatertrails
overtherockyshore.However,withthe
tidedroppingquickly,hedidn’tneedmeto
tellhimthathewouldneedtoset-upand
workquicklyif hewasgoingtocapturethe
shot– it wouldn’tbelongbeforethewaves
didn’treachanymore.ButDannywasback
in hiscomfortzone,andhetoldmethat
photographingthistypeofcoastalscenery
waswhatheenjoyedmost.Withthesky
lackingimpact,theemphasishadtobe
placedonforegroundandsoDannyopted
fora classicone-thirdskyandtwo-thirds
foregroundcomposition.Heconstructed
hisshotsothatthewatermotionwould
createforegroundinterestwhilethe
jaggedCornishcliffscreateda dramaticbackgroundandcontext.
Heselectedanapertureoff/11and
focusedroughlya thirdofthewayinto
theframetohelpachievefront-to-back
sharpness.However,theresultingshutter
speedof1/4secdidn’tprovidevery
obviousmotionandtheshotlookeda
littleordinary.I suggestedusinga solid
NDfiltertogeneratea longerexposure
in ordertoblurthewater’smotion.ND
filtersarea greataccessorytohavewhen
shootingthecoastat a midtide,when
thereis lotsofmotiontocaptureaswaves
dragoverrocksandledges.Dannywanted
tocreateanattractiveandintentional
levelofblur,withoutblurringthewater
toomuch.Therefore,heoptedtousea
LEEFiltersPro-Glassfour-stopND,which
prolongedexposuretofourseconds.We
thenwaitedpatientlyforthenextbigwave,
butwhenit didarriveit waslargerthan
wewanted,nearlyfillingour'wellies'and
obscuringtheforegroundaltogetherwithblurrywhitewater.Timingis soimportant
whenphotographingwatermotion.We
waitedforanotherwave,andthistimeis
washedbeautifullyovertheforegroundand
Dannytriggeredtheshutterat justtheright
moment.Theshotlookedgoodontheback
ofthecamera,butwecontinuedshooting
in thehopeofcapturingevenbettermotion.
Dannyis a fanofblack& whiteandasked
mewhetherI thoughtthiswasa shotsuited
toconversion.I agreedit wouldbe,given
thelackofnaturalcolourandthedetailand
textureoftherocksandcliffs.
Beforelong,thetidewasn’treaching
usanylongerandwithoutwateradding
separationandmotionto theforeground, the
shotdidn’tworksoeffectively.Wedecided to
headto a localcaféforsomethingto eatand
drinkandto reviewtheday'simagessofar. By
thetimeweheadedbackto thebeach,we
hopedthetidewouldhaverecededenough
to revealthesandybeach,readyforourthird
andfinalchallenge.ThePhoto Workshop
123MAJESTIC MONO
Perfect timing and creative use of
exposure combine to produce a stunning
shot. Conversion to mono adds drama.
Exposure: Four seconds at f/13 (ISO 64)70 Digital SLR Photography Ma y 2019