Dragons at sunset

The Westerly wind blew in kitesurfers to my beach.
Like dragons with colorful wings they scooted along the shore occasionally taking flight.


refittted Russian projection lens Triplet 78mm f2.8  1/1250sec


refittted Russian projection lens Triplet 78mm f2.8  1/3200sec



Cintagon 100mm f3.5  1/60sec


There was an angel among them and at the end of the day she carried her wings when the wind dropped.


Pentax-110 50mm f2.8  1/60sec


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Same place: 3 different moods

I was hoping for a fiery sunset that evening.
All week long the sky has been turning spectacular with powerful red skies; but I was stuck in the city.
Now it was Saturday and I headed to the beach: it was going to be low tide at sunset.
But one thing it's sure with outdoor photography: I can't control the light.
What I thought was going to happen didn't: there was no fiery sky, no dramatic clouds.
The sun lowered to the horizon and then it met low dark clouds. The light went from soft warm to steel cold and flat.

I had a few vintage lenses with me, none of them really designed for my camera. One was a slide projection lens from a Kodak Carousel that I mounted on some macro bellows to be able to focus and certainly the hardest lens to use. Very low contrast, not very sharp and rendering highlights with a glow.


Kodak Ektanar C 102mm f2.8 slide projector lens  1/4000sec

As the light quickly changed I suddenly was faced with a very blue light that robbed all the typical colors of a beach at sunset. What it gave me instead is the opportunity to create a different look, of a more somber and pensive style.


adapter lens from miniature SLR system Pentax-110: 70mm f2.8 (fixed aperture)  1/640sec

Eventually the light faded away and just as I was heading back I notice the mangrove tree silhouetted against the sky.


adapter lens from miniature SLR system Pentax-110: 18mm f2.8 (fixed aperture)  1/200sec


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Beach dream ride

The mesmerizing feeling of riding your horse on an empty beach at low tide; like in a dream.
Horse or horse-power; to each their own.


Steinheil Munchen Cintagon 100mm f3.5     @f5.6  1/1250sec

Company

Photography for me can be an almost spiritual experience.
When the light is soft in a calm setting I get to experience a dream.
Looking down on the screen of my camera I create images of moments that later I can relive.


SMC Takumar 50mm f1.4  1/6000sec

I love to have company with me, to share the experience and later recall it.

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Textured sea rocks

The sea's edge, at low tide.


Zuiko 38mm f1.8 PEN  @f8  1/3000sec

Beach puddle

Every tide shapes the beach with new sand waves, renewing the shore to a new texture.


PEN-F Zuiko 38mm f1.8  @f5.6  1/15 sec

Foreshore playground

There is a dog friendly beach that I like to visit at sunset.
Not all dogs like to chase balls and retrieve sticks, some are just happy to stroll or go for a swim.


M.Zuiko 40-150   f11  1/750sec



M.Zuiko 40-150   f5.6  1/1000sec

Beach combing

Sand patterns on the foreshore

A stranded jelly fish looks like an glass art object

M.Zuiko 40-150R   f8  1/350sec

The aimless trail of a sea snail reminiscent of Nazca desert drawings

M.Zuiko 40-150R   f8  1/180sec

Pride and joy

Only a shade of her former glory I am sure this sailing boat must have been once somebody's pride and joy.


Lumix G 14mm   f4 1/640sec

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Sand pellets

The mesmerizing craft of the sand bubbler crabs.


Lumix G 14mm f8   1/250sec

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The beauty behind death

When life ends death takes over pervading a sense of soberness.
Give it time the skeleton left behind can again become beautiful.


M.Zuiko 17mm  f5  1/20sec

Turtle shell at low tide.

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The difference

I see two types of photographs: the ones that mean to record an event or place so the mind can be later jogged, and the other, more involved and profound, that are an artistic expression of one's creativity.


M.Zuiko 9-18mm (at 9mm) f7.1 1/80sec

I find myself drawn to the latter.
As light and shapes are constantly evolving in front of my eyes, sometimes present for only a split of a second, my skill to capture the moment is tested; I have to think fast and move swiftly.

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Dog walk at low tide

There is a special relationship between a dog and man; one can tell a lot from their interaction.


M.Zuiko 45mm f3.5 1/3200sec