This past President’s Day weekend, my wife and I spent the long weekend in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. No stranger to the Outer Banks since I grew up vacationing there each summer, I had never visited during the winter. What a different experience. Gone were the crowds, closed were many of the stores and restaurants, peace had returned. Besides the lacking warmth of the sun and the unfortunate blustery wind, the Outer Banks retained their pristine beach beauty.
The conditions did halt much of my photography plans, however I did manage to drag myself out of bed for a sunrise on the beach. As I stumbled my way to the car hoping I remembered to fully dress, I quickly drove down to the local beach parking. By this time, I started to see a faint morning glow on the horizon, so I started to scramble. As I made my way down to the beach, I realized I had my camera, one lens (on said camera) and tripod. My camera bag (filters, lenses, etc) was still in the car. Unfortunately, I didn’t have enough time to dash back to the car and make it back before sunrise, so I made do with what I had.
Canon EOS 5D, Sigma 24-70mm set to 24mm
I scouted the location for shooting options and dug in my tripod and started to fire off some test shots. Given this was going to be a sunrise, I was going to practice my HDR photography technique. I was a little worried though since I had left my split neutral density filter in the car.
As the color began to increase and the sun finally rose, I shot dozens and dozens of bracketed shots. When I felt I was done (by the growl of my tummy needing nurishment), I was about to head back to the car when I noticed something I had completly missed – the sand! This was my first photographic experience since my October trip to the Smoky Mountains, sans my food photography, so I was rusty.
As the water retreated back to the ocean, it left unique lines in the sand. With the rays of the sun illuminating the sand, it presented a beautiful, intimate photograph. I fired off a few shots, but felt this one was the best of the group. While I did capture one or two other decent shots (one is already posted in the landscapes gallery and on the homepage), this was one of my favorites. Specifically, I like how the water lines draw you into the picture.
