This is one of my favorite places to watch the sunrise. I haven’t been getting up for sunrise recently, maybe it’s a bit of a funk over the unending pandemic. No telling, but today, I was rested and ready to face the day at 4:30 am, so I got myself together, packed up my gear and headed out.
first stop: sawfish bay park
It looked like it would be a good one on TPE (there’s an app for that), and I walked out on the dock to get a preview, and it seemed promising. Since this wasn’t planned, and I wasn’t meeting anyone, it was hard to choose a location. After a couple of drive-bys, I chose Sawfish Bay Park and a view of the lighthouse. I got a dozen beautiful pictures of the lighthouse in the blue light. They are all very similar, and this one is the best after the first pass.
what is blue light?
Have you heard of the golden hour? It is the half hour before sunrise and sunset, and the half hour after. I have a widget on my phone which tells me exactly when that is every day (there’s an app for that). So, the golden hour is actually an hour, during which you should be taking as many photos as possible to take advantage of the best light of the day.
The blue hour is not an hour. It is the 10 minutes between dark and the golden hour. During this time you get the most dramatic light because you are half way between night and day, and you can almost capture the line.
Today at sunrise the sky was a bright blue, and the horizon was warming to a deep red. It isn’t always that dramatic, but today was a good one. We also have a Sahara Dust Cloud diffusing the light to make everything even more beautiful.
stop two: the inlet
After about twenty minutes, I thought had my lighthouse shot, and I did, as it turned out. That is not always the case. So, there was a half hour to get over to the inlet and see the sunrise. It was perfect timing because the ranger was just unlocking the gate as I arrived. That was strange, because it is always open before I get there, unless the park is closed.
The first shot I composed was a bust because it was too dark for me to see that there was a big “warning” sign AND a trash can in my shot, so those were all deleted and I switched back to my zoom lens.
The next plan was to shoot some birds, but they were in the shadows and I couldn’t get the settings where I like them without a lot of noise, or graininess. So, the rest of the session was spent entertaining myself with boats. I love this shot of the Reef Rat.
I felt very good about myself, that I got out there today! It’s been too long.
jupiter photo locations
Sunrise at Coral Cove
It is super-convenient to have a sunrise location close to home. This is a popular place to watch the sun come up with lots of opportunities to create compositions with the rock formations.
Surf’s Up at the Pier
Juno Beach surfers were riding the waves while I tested my new camera and auto-focus tracking, a view from the pier.
Moonset Over the River
How to get the perfect moonrise? Try moonset! There’s a lot of planning that goes into this, and it doesn’t always work out.
Under the Pier
Including a pier in a photo is an excellent way to add leading lines to your composition. On this day I also had Sahara Dust as a diffuser.
Shooting from the Bridge
This is not an activity for the faint of heart… nor for those who are afraid of heights or falling. It is still a desirable angle for photographing the lighthouse.
