I was on my way back from photographing the monarch butterflies at Santa
Cruz Bridges State Park. The fog was rolling in off the Pacific and I
didn't think I would see anything worth shooting. The last thing I was
planning on was stopping to shoot Pigeon Point Lighthouse as I already have
tons of images of the lighthouse, hadn't eaten since breakfast and I figured
the lighthouse would be mired in fog anyway. The fog was so thick I wasn't
even sure where we were, then I saw it. That familiar silhouette. You
could just barely make it out in the yellow mist of the Pacific Sun. It was
surreal. I promised my wife I'd just take a few shots. She rolled her eyes
and leaned her seat back. It was going to be a long wait. I stayed on the
side of Highway One taking pictures till dark. Don't worry, I made it up to
the wife with a nice dinner at our favorite place. If you are in the area
we recommend stopping for lunch/dinner in Half Moon Bay at the Half Moon Bay Brewing Company. If it's warm enough sit outside next to the fire.

-Darv
LiquidMoonlight.com
© Darvin Atkeson
California Photographer

Tags:   Lighthouse Pigeon Point Pacific Ocean Sunset Orange Silhouette Darv Darvin Atkeson LiquidMoonlight.com LiquidMoonlight Sea Fog Haze Landscape USA U.S. America 美国加州 カリフォルニア州 캘리포니아 灯塔 灯台 등대 岸标

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It was a crowded day at the beach with barely enough room to stretch your
wings. When I arrived at the beach a massive flock of gulls caught my
attention and I pulled over to take some pictures. Walking down on the
beach the flock moved around me constantly watching me and it took an
strange feeling much like in the old classic Alfred Hitchcock movie The
Birds. Actually the movie The Birds had been filmed just a ways on up the
coast and I can see why. There had to be tens if not hundreds of thousands
of birds on this one beach. But unlike the movie they were actually quite
fun to watch. Some of the younger gulls played with small pieces of
driftwood picking them up in the air and dropping them in the surf.
Another gull would pick it up and carry it back up and do the same. In
the nearby Gazos Creek the birds would bathe and clean their feathers in the
freshwater. It was clearly gull heaven.

Like most summer days on the Central California coast, a fog covered the
sky but dissipated quickly as it was blown inland. Most people think who
do not live near have a vision of a clear blue sky over the California coast
during the summer months but it's been my experience that's not often the
case. The heat over the inland valleys generates a deep fog over the
coast. Only when the wind blows off shore do we get clear sunny skies.
Winter is often the best time to find clear skies over a Central California
beach.

Darv

© Darvin Atkeson
LiquidMoonlight Photography

Tags:   Photography Pigeon Point Lighthouse Gazos Creek Beach Central California Beaches Ocean Pacific Gulls State Sea Seagull Darv Darvin Atkeson LiquidMoonlight.com

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It seems that if I am anywhere along the coast south of San Francisco and it
appears that there might be a chance for a good sunset I inevitably head
towards Pigeon Point Lighthouse. On this day I had headed towards Four
Mile Beach near Santa Cruz but turned around as the clouds got further and
further from the coast. It looked like the only way to catch the clouds
was to head back north. Maybe it was me but it seemed that Pigeon Point
was once again the best spot. Clouds to the north looked more sparse and
to the south none at all. Initially I set up just north of the lighthouse
but as the sunset began to approach I realized there rocks I wanted in the
scene where not quite in the right spot. I headed down to the lighthouse
and set up in my usual location but realized the sun would be blocked by the
lighthouse. With only a few minutes to spare I jumped back in the car and
drove just south of the lighthouse and down to the cliffs. It was
perfect as I was able to pop the trunk and setup right behind the car.
Within minutes other cars were pulling in. By the time the sunset was in
full force there was a line of cars parked along Highway One just above me.
It turned out to be a great day for a sunset and I had both my D200 and D300
on tripods taking a shot every few seconds. My wife had to laugh at my
frantic switching between the camera and between the wide angle and zoom
lens. As it turned out, the D200 got this shot with the 70-200mm lens
zoomed almost all the way out. We waited till the last of the light and
everyone else had left just enjoying the moment without taking any more
shots. Sometimes I am so busy getting the shot I sometimes forget to just
relax and take it all in. The ocean at night is quite relaxing. We
drove back up the coast and sat down at a local restaurant that overlooks
the coast and enjoyed a meal outdoors next to a fire. All in all, a great
California day. I'll get a shot of the sunset without the lighthouse some
other day.

Darv

© Darvin Atkeson
LiquidMoonlight Photography

Tags:   California Pigeon Point Lighthouse Pigeon Point Lighthouses Sunset Pacific Ocean Coast Coastal Surf Beach Beaches Sun Fresnel First Order Rays Beams Sunlight Rocky Northern Sea Spray Hostel Santa Cruz San Francisco Bay Area Darv Darvin Atkeson LiquidMoonlight.com LighthouseTrek LightKeeperAward USA U.S. America 美国加州 カリフォルニア州 캘리포니아 바닷가 ビーチ 海滩 灯塔 灯台 등대 岸标

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This image is stitched out of 3 separate shots taken at Pigeon Point State Park. The sunset was moving so fast due to the high winds that I have several more you'd swear were taken on a totally different day. The ocean is one of my favorite topics. I originally posted this image with no text as I wasn't sure I liked the exposure settings. I toned them back down a bit and am happier with the final image.

Details:
Nikon D200
f / 2.8
s 1/800 sec
25mm

Stitched with:
Photoshop CS4
Processed with:
Adobe Camera Raw 5.5


Darv
© Darvin Atkeson
www.liquidmoonlight.com/flickrphoto/
darvin@comcast.net

Tags:   Lighthouse Pigeon Point California Pacific Ocean Sea Cliff Sunset Panorama Clouds Surf Darv Darvin Atkeson LiquidMoonlight.com USA U.S. America 美国加州 カリフォルニア州 캘리포니아

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I had been looking at these great horse tail (cirrus) clouds in the sky all
day but the forecast was for them to disappear before sunset. Gambling
that there might be a few left I headed out for the hour drive down to the
beaches. When I arrived, most of the clouds left were above the land and
there was not much out to sea. I continued to drive from San Francisco
down the coast looking for a good place to turn out. I arrived at Bean
Hallow beach and took a few quick shots of the waves to the south but it was
rather mushy that day and other than some large splashes there wasn't much
left. I was thinking of heading back but noticed there were some clouds to
the south so I headed that direction hoping to get there before sunset.
After a few minutes in the car we noted the sun was setting and it was now
or never. I really hadn't been paying much attention to where I was and
then right around a turn the Lighthouse came in to view. So I pulled out
off the road and took a look at the sunset to the west. Nothing but the
sun. But to the south there were a few clouds towards Santa Cruz hanging
over the lighthouse. I walked out on to the lush green ice plant which
was in boom and took a few descent shots and was approached by a couple
asking if I could help out and take their picture. As always, I was happy
to help out and we started talking. The sun had long since sank in to the
sea as our conversation continued and I noticed the pink clouds in the
distance and took an without really looking closely took few shots.
Arriving home I discovered those last few shots were some of the best in
part due to the longer exposure. All in all it was worth the trip.

Tentative plans for tomorrow are to head toward the beaches north of San
Francisco. Current weather reports show partly cloudy.

Darv

© Darvin Atkeson
LiquidMoonlight Photography

Tags:   Pigeon Point Lighthouse Pacific Coast California Ocean Lighthouses Sea Sunset Coastal Pastel Ice Plant Bloom Surf Sand Clif Travel Landscape Seascape Hostel Darv Darvin Atkeson LiquidMoonlight.com Photography USA U.S. America 美国加州 カリフォルニア州 캘리포니아 바닷가 ビーチ 海滩 灯塔 灯台 등대 岸标

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