Saturday I went for a walk around the tip of Anna Maria Island. Most of the walk is along the beach at Bean Point as it wraps around the tip of the island. There was a breeze and sound of the waves the whole way and that was a good thing. This is the time of year when the extreme heat abates and an extended walk or exercise outside is refreshing because the humidity is lower. In any case I plan on doing more of these walks because, well, …no bad thing comes from time on the beach.
Tropicana Train
This is the morning Tropicana Train crossing the river on the way to the plant. Bradenton is across the river and trains cross this river day and night to drop off fruit and load up orange juice to take all over North America. Whenever I travel and visit a grocery store, I like to look at the OJ container to see the “Made in Bradenton” label on the box. Don’t ask me why, kind of a silly thing I guess.
Saturday Sunrise
This morning I managed to get out to capture these clouds over the Manatee River at sunrise. Sometimes I wish I lived somewhere closer to nature, but mornings like this can help make up for that. There really is quite a lot of beauty all around, I just have to put myself in the right spot at the right time. Nothing good comes without a little effort and so it was today. But I still need to get out of the city, maybe a walk on the beach is in order.
This is my first image using AuroraHDR from Trey Ratcliff and Macphun. I found it really easy to use. I don’t recall all that I did but I started with Trey’s “Soul Asunder” preset and then just started playing around. Finally I pulled it back into Lightroom for a few minor tweaks. I’m really happy with the way it fits into my workflow, and since I use all the other Macphun products it has a nice familiar feel to it. I’m pretty excited to have a new, intelligently designed product to help amp up my creativity.
Bean Point End
I took this from Bean Point on Anna Maria Island about a year ago. I was driving by and noticed a water spout which is not all that unusual for late summer. By the time I parked it was disappearing but there were still a few people enjoying the last rays of the day including these three boys. It was one of those moments when everything seems just right and fortunately I was able to get a few images as everything came together to form the perfect end to the day.
Walk on a Warm Beach
We are having a rather warm fall season here in Florida. I work in an air-conditioned room and so even I look forward to getting outside just to warm up. There are some beaches where you can just walk along at sunset with a drink in your had and the warm water at your feet. This one is at Lido beach which is just now gearing up for the winter season. As soon as American Thanksgiving is over waves of northerners will migrate south and end up doing something like this each evening. Now if I could just get out of my office, I might just join them.
Nokomis Beach Bridge
In the West coast of Florida most of the beaches are on keys which are long barrier islands up and down the coast. The main reason they don’t get washed away in storms is that usually there are dunes with vegetation to prevent erosion. So we have these bridges over the dunes that create a pretty nice entrance to the sea. As leading lines go, these are one of my favorite because they lead to where we all want to be, on the beach and in the sun. Speaking of which, the weekend is about to begin.
Plain Old Sunrise
As compositions go we might say this has no subject, no main actor. Having said that, nothing beats a good sunrise and sometimes we just have to ignore the rules of composition and go with what moves us. In this case, the simplicity of the scene was enough for me. This is an HDR image, I combined four images to balance out the range of light to try and convey what I saw with my eyes. For me, getting up early and standing next to calm water like this is like meditation. It gives me a certain calm that I can carry with me the rest of the day. Calm and simplicity, two things I strive for in some of my images, especially those close to the water. Have a peaceful day my friends.
Getting Up Early
I am always surprised at how many people get up before dawn to see the sunrise. For me I think its understandable because I’m taking photos, but a whole bunch of other folks show up at this ungodly hour, park their cars, and walk out on to the pier, takes some of photos and then just turn around and leave. I’m not sure why I find that so interesting, maybe it’s just the realization that there are others doing the exact same thing as me. That’s hard to believe. I’m not really sure what to make of that, I suppose its a good thing.
Night Under the Pier
This is a long exposure of about two minutes under Florida’s Venice Pier at night. The water appears still and the night appears brighter than it is. In fact I had people walking in front of me yet the length of the exposure ensures they are invisible. I shot this same perspective at sunset a few years ago and now it was time to come back. The evening perspective is one I quite like, it just seems less rushed and a bit more dreamy. Dreamy is a good word for a night shot, don’t you think?
Bayshore Boulevard
Purchase print
I drove around Tampa one hot day looking for photos to take and this is one I found on Bayshore Boulevard. I’m standing here at one of the many vistas that are provided for viewing the city which is located at the far edge of Tampa Bay so that the water is usually calm and glassy. Bayshore has many large homes with this same commanding view of the downtown Tampa core. I got lucky because these puffy clouds were also present to add to the composition. This time of year we get these hanging in the air which makes for an interesting sky when you catch them in the first half of the day. Normally by the afternoon or evening they either dissipate or group together and form thunderstorms.