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Lights Reflecting in Sarasota Bay

Lights reflecting in Sarasota Bay on a recent evening. I’ve taken similar images but of course each one is a little different. This is a long exposure panorama of three separate images; the exposure is about ten-seconds and it makes the water look smooth. Panoramas over the water work well only if the water is smooth. Otherwise there are noticeable lines where the wave patterns are stitched together. That’s because the waves from each picture are in different positions and don’t match when combined. A little tip for the day.

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Lights Reflecting in Sarasota Bay
Lights Reflecting in Sarasota Bay

I’m addicted to long exposure photography, I love how it transforms a scene, making it seem almost serene. I’m also addicted to night or low light photography, I like how the mood shifts when the bright light of day fades. When I get to combine the two I’m in my happy place. It’s a lot of fun and I never quite know what I’ll end up with. The main thing is to keep experimenting and, of course, having fun.

panoramas from the gallery

Anyway, now that the weather here in Florida is finally cooling a bit from the long hot summer, an evening outdoors can be refreshing. A cool dry breeze is something I haven’t felt around here in about six months, so now that thats starting I think its time to get out and enjoy the weather. Not that I need an excuse but for me that means doing more long exposure panoramas. Stay tuned, more images to come.

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The Old Pier

This is the old pier in St. Petersburg Florida. I took this a couple of years ago before they began tearing it down. In fact, they just removed the last piece of it couple of days ago. A new pier will be built in two years, but in the meantime pictures are all we have. It’s a little sad.

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The Old Pier
The old pier in St Petersburg Florida

I liked the old one, it had a certain charm to it. But St Petersburg is a thriving city and they want something new that reflects a more modern aesthetic. Two years is a long time to wait for the new pier.

From a photographic perspective I’m a pier fanatic. When you stand next to one it creates a leading line out into the water. When you stand on top of one it’s more symmetrical. This pier is (or was) the largest in central Florida. It’s the only one I know of that you could drive on. I suppose that’s why the new one will take so long to build, it’s a large project.

sunrises photos from the gallery

I just happen to notice this image at about the same time as I read about the completion of the demolition. A coincidence I suppose, or maybe it’s the ghost of the old pier reaching out for one last hoorah. Whatever the case, may she rest in pieces.

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Bridge Street Pier

This is another shot taken next to the Bridge Street Pier in Bradenton Beach, Florida. In the morning everything is quiet as the pier casts long reflections on the calm waters of the Inter-coastal. This is my favorite time of day to get photos of places that are normally much busier during the day. Next to me sat a couple on a bench drinking coffee and watching the sun rise. Not a bad way to start the day.

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Bridge Street Pier
Bridge Street Pier in Bradenton Beach Florida

I’ve taken a lot of pictures from here but when I take the time I can usually find a different perspective. So even if I’ve been here, the photo is unique in some way. I don’t mind repeating myself if I’m taking pictures of something pretty and I’m having fun. Whomever said you can’t repeat yourself forgot to send me the memo.

gallery images with reflections

For me, photography is a state of mind more than anything. I have an idea what I want to convey, something peaceful, calm and serene. So no matter where I am I just figure out how to do that. If my inclination was to show some form of action or interaction, I’d take a completely different approach. Photography is a state of mind and if you constantly practice your images reflect that state of mind. That’s not to say I have a peaceful, serene and calm mind, but that yearning is what I focus on.

Anyway, now that I have you in a peaceful state of mind, maybe its time to get a cup of coffee. Or glass of wine depending on the time of day.

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Sarasota Bay Last Sunday

This is a long exposure of Sarasota Bay last Sunday afternoon. The exposure is a little over two minutes so you can see the movement of the clouds and the water appears still. In a normal exposure you would see boats in the water. Because the boats are moving they are not exposed and it appears deserted and serene. In reality the scene was serene but not deserted. On a Sunday afternoon everyone is out on the water, and I do mean everyone.

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Sarasota Bay Last Sunday
Sarasota Bay last Sunday and the Ringling Bridge – a long exposure

This is another one in a series of photographs I’ve taken of the Ringling Bridge. Close to home it’s one of my favorite subjects. I’m always looking for new perspectives and different angles of it. In this case I was a couple miles away at a little park called Nora Patterson Bay Island Park which is at the entrance to Siesta Key. Use of a telephoto lens allows me to frame end to end like this. I think the next time I come here it’ll be in the evening so I can get this scene after dark; I’m curious to see how that will look.

This is the best time of year to be here in Florida. Its low season before the population expands with visitors and snowbirds. It’s also the time of year that we get a break from the heat, the weather is perfect, not too hot or too cold.

sarasota gallery

So it was this perfect day with the perfect weather that I had this little park to myself. Imagine that, having this view to yourself, alone with your thoughts. I suppose its a common thing because its such a small park, but still, it’s quite the thing, don’t you think?

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When we are Happy

When we are happy we’ll do all kinds of things. I am reminded of my little dog who, when he gets happy, puts on all kinds of antics. Like my little doggy I am prone to a little silliness as well. And if no-one else is feeling the same, I can always count on him to join in the fun. We are very similar in that respect, when we feel a flow of energy things are good.

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When we are Happy
When we are happy we can let lose a little

For me this image is a metaphor for breaking through and getting a shot of good energy. Just a few minutes before I took this it was raining, then the clouds began to break up and the sun created this display in the sky. Life is full of these kinds of moments and weather has a way of demonstrating this with natural displays of the elements. Lucky for me I was here to capture this display with a camera.

This is in Venice Florida on Florida’s gulf coast. It’s one of my favorite places. It’s an area a little removed from the hustle and bustle and a good place for me to walk the beach and take pictures. Actually there are a lot of places like this in Florida, but I have a few favorites.

sunset gallery

Anyway, it’s the beginning of another week and I was thinking I needed a little good energy to start the week. Looking at this reminds me of the feeling I had when I took this image. This is a metaphorical Monday morning cartwheel to get us through the week.

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Light Reflecting off the Bridge

I stood below and captured the light reflecting off the bridge one evening. This is a long exposure image of about two minutes. The bridge is a draw bridge and the light of the signal casts the green glow onto the water. For me this is just another in a series of long exposure studies I’m doing.

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Light Reflecting Off the Bridge

There was some type of plants in the foreground water that I was trying to keep out of the image. But later I liked how it adds texture to the reflection of light, a little foreground interest in an abstract kind of way.

To take these long exposures I set the camera up on a tripod, set the time on my Apple Watch, and then click the shutter. Then it’s just a matter of waiting two or three minutes. In fact its pretty boring, I might check my e-mail, look at the news or just stand there walking in circles. Finally when its time I close the shutter, take a look, decide if I need to make any adjustments and then do it all over again. It can go on like this for twenty or thirty minutes in a single location. It really does take a bit of patience.

night photography gallery

I’m lucky to be here, outside experiencing sites and sounds that most people don’t notice. That’s true about landscape photography in general. If you do it often you will be fortunate to experience natural beauty first hand. So, whether or not I end up with any photos I like, the experience is a good one and I come home with something gained. I think that’s pretty good.

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Next to the Bridge Street Pier

These are moored next to the Bridge Street Pier in the town of Bradenton Beach. Normally I come here to take pictures at the beach but there is another side of town that’s not as well known. It’s on a barrier island so to the west is the gulf and east is the inter-coastal waterway. It’s on the east side that you can watch the sunrise while enjoying a cup of coffee on the town pier. The Bridge Street Pier has a restaurant thats open early seven days a week for breakfast and is one of those gems most people miss.

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Next to the Bridge Street Pier
Next to the Bridge Street Pier in Bradenton Beach Florida

Anyway, there are a lot of boats moored here and just across the water is the town of Cortez. Cortez is one of the last remaining commercial fishing villages on the East coast. You can watch the fishing boats as they head for the draw bridges that surround this spot. Depending on which way they go there could be one or two drawbridges too pass.

florida gallery

Anyway, like many places along the coast, people are famous for getting up to watch the sunrise, (or sunset for that matter). I suppose some do both. This spot is next to a little trailer park with pastel colored mobile homes and flower boxes out front. They are quaint and I thought to myself they are in the perfect location. Out one window you can see the sunrise and out the other the sunset. I could see living that life one day. But until then I’ll just grab a coffee at the pier when I want to see a sunrise.

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Offshore Overnight Thunderstorms

Sometimes the weatherman will say we’re going to have offshore overnight thunderstorms. Well, perhaps this is what that looks like. I took this from Bradenton Beach early one morning before sunrise. Despite the hour it was an awesome time to be here. This is a busy beach by day but I guarantee you there was nobody here before six on a Sunday morning. It’s not always easy dragging myself here at this hour, but being the only person here for miles in each direction is pretty cool.

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Offshore Overnight Thunderstorms
Offshore overnight thunderstorms as seen from Bradenton Beach

This is a three minute long exposure. My thought was that the waves would be smooth with such a long exposure. But as a result of the lighting flash the waves were exposed allowing their texture to come through. It was as though the lightning was a large flash unit.

night gallery

In three minutes the stars begin to make an arc. The more I look at this the more I know I need to spend a night out here getting start trail images. Maybe I’ll plan that for next weekend. If I try it during the week I’ll end up falling asleep at my desk. Then I’d be dreaming about being at the beach and not working. Come to think about it maybe that’s not such a bad idea after all.

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Sarasota Bay Mooring Field

This is the Sarasota Bay Mooring Field. If your anything like me you can be forgiven for not knowing there was a such thing as a mooring field. I just thought it was a bunch of sailboats docked in the bay. Well, well well, …not so. This is a reservation only mooring by the day, week or longer. I took this photo last weekend. Its is a three image panoramic view by the way, but…, I digress.

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Sarasota Bay Mooring Field
Sarasota Bay Mooring Field

After processing this image I went to Google Earth to look at it from the sky (so to speak). And much to my surprise this jumble of boats were actually lined up in neat little rows. That got me wondering and then I found they have a web site. And all this time I just thought it was just a random collection of boats.

sarasota gallery

As I stood at the waters edge I could here people talking and music playing music. In a way it’s no different then a campsite on water. There is a little beach where they can park their rowboats and go ashore to get supplies. Not far from here are all kinds of nice restaurants and even a Whole Foods market. With so much choice it seems like a very nice form of camping.

Now that I know all this is I feel smarter. All this time I was in the dark. People have been camping and having fun all this time and I thought you had to go to the mountains to camp. All it takes is a sailboat, a rowboat, a reservation at the mooring field and a bag of marshmallows.

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Sunrise Taking Shape

On Monday I noticed a sunrise taking shape as I drove home from the gym. So I grabbed my gear and headed across the river to capture the colors as they lite the sky. I barely made it on account of all the traffic, most people were driving to work. By the time I finished and headed back over the bridge the roads were clogged, fortunate for me I was returning against the traffic. But by the time I got home showered and got ready for work, I was late. But you know something? Getting a nice photo makes it all worth while. Hello Monday.

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Sunrise Taking Shape
Sunrise Taking Shape in Bradenton Florida

This is a combination of two long exposure shots. The bottom half is a three minute exposure and the top half is a five-second exposure. I put it all together with the help of AuroraHDR 2017, an updated photo editing tool from Macphun and Trey Ratcliff. Every now and then I take a photo that begs to have the original colors restored, this is one. By that I mean that the colors of a photo are never as full as the actual scene. AuroraHDR allows some of that to be restored. Of course I use artistic license as well because photography is an expression of art for me.

sunrise gallery

As I write this it’s a couple of days later on Wednesday, aka hump day. I don’t know about you but I look forward to the weekend. Three more days to go. Then all is good, I can take more photos, I can spend more time outside, I can be free for a couple of days, free of deadlines, work, worries. Then, Monday rolls around again and we start it all over again. But maybe with a few Mondays like this I might not mind it so much. (Fingers crossed)