Massive Surf!

Earlier this week I read the surf report for the Mendocino coastline. They were predicting swells in the range of twenty five to forty feet. When I saw that I knew I had to drive over and do some photography. It's not often that we get to see surf of that size. The next morning I got off to a slow lazy start and then got stuck behind a really slow driver going between thirty and forty on the straight aways. They wouldn't use pull outs and I had to drive half way to the coast before I could pass them. When I arrived at the Fort Bragg harbor entrance there were already some photographers set up photographing these massive swells rolling in. I stopped and talked to them for awhile. One photographer was all the way from Maryland! Leaving them behind I headed north for more scenic terrain. I stopped for awhile and photographed Wizards rock at Kabiselleh and then drove further up towards Westport for some more images. This was a day of safety first as the surf if you were to be swept in was incredibly dangerous. Some of the sneaker waves that rolled in were hitting the tops of the bluffs!!! There would be nowhere to run if you were on the rocks or the beach. It was a great morning for photography. God's blessings upon your weekend, chris All images were created with a Canon EOS 7D MkII camera and either a Canon 100-400IS v.1 lens or a Canon EFS-10-22mm lens. A Lee 15 stop "Super Stopper" ND filter was used on some images as well. #TeamCanon

Random Acts of Photography

This last weekend we went out to the coast for a mini family reunion planned by my cousin, Rose. We all stayed at the Beachcomber because it is right next to Pudding Creek Beach and the Haul Road. It's only a three minute drive to downtown as well. It's a great place for families to meet and hang out. It's also a great place to just wander around with my camera and photograph most anything and everything I ended up with a lot of images to edit. It was fun and challenging to attempt to photograph Pudding Creek Beach from a variety of different perspectives. Enjoy the images and God bless, chris All images were created with a Canon T1i camera and a variety of lenses. #TeamCanon

Wind, Waves,Flowers and Birds etc.

Way back on the twenty eighth of April I was going to go to the coast early in the morning. When I got up the wind was blowing and I went back to bed. Later on the wind seemed to settle down and I decided to head out to the coast. When I got there the wind was blowing like crazy. Of course by then it was the middle of the day and the lighting wasn't very nice either. I headed up north to the Ten Mile Marine Reserve and found some flowers to photograph. I would click the shutter between gusts of the wind. I also found a couple of sleeping Harbor Seals. It's great when you can photograph them without disturbing their behavior or sleep. They look like big bratwurst sausages! I headed south to one of the beaches after that and I photographed some Black Oystercatchers and some gulls. Later on I went back up north photographed the waves. There were some really big ones coming in too. Their power is most humbling. Anyone swept off the rocks where I was at would stand little chance of survival so I kept well back from the surf zone. Enjoy the images and have a blessed day, chris All images created with a Canon 7D and a variety of lenses. #TeamCanon

Sirens Call

On Thursday I had a wild drive to the coast from Willits. Along the way I encountered sunshine, hail, thunder and lightning and heavy downpours that slowed me down to about ten miles an hour due to lack of visabilty. When I arrived in Ft. Bragg the sun came out for about ten minutes and then the rain showers closed in again. The sirens called so I I had driven out to see if I could capture some of the intense surf that was forecast. The surf forecast for Ward Ave. Beach was 24 to 30 feet at seventeen seconds. Upon reaching the beach there were large waves coming in but i couldn't find an angle that I could photograph them well without soaking myself or my camera equipment. I hadn't brought my camera cover so I was stuck.I drove northward to as far as Kibisela stopping at various places along the way to photograph whenever I could find a break in the weather. What a fun and fruitful trip. have a Merry Christmas, chris

What a Great Start to the Day

Last night I decided to take a quick trip to the coast to break my case of cabin fever. On the drive out while it was just about light a beautiful Black Bear ran across the road in front of my pick up. It was close enough so that my headlights lit it up rather nicely.Whoo Hoo! When I arrived at the coast the sun was climbing rapidly into the sky with hardly a cloud to be seen. Not the conditions that you want for photography. I made the best of it as the wave action was quite beautiful. After photographing the waves and rock for awhile I stopped off at the beach off at Ward Ave and then later McKerricher State Park to see if I could find any shorebirds. I found a Whimbrel and a Plover. Not bad for a quick little trip. May you have a marvelous day, chris All images created with a Canon 7D