Simplicity rocks!

By the end of October, sunrise times are becoming quite civilised. After the lunacy of 04.30 mid-summer dawns, requiring 02.30 or 03.00 alarm calls, 6AM is a cosy lie-in for me…

Pagham Breakwater

Nikon D810, 50mm f1.4 Nikkor, 30 seconds, f11, ISO 64, 10-stop ND filter, tripod

07.43, 22nd October 2016

This is a late autumn dawn shot from Pagham.

Acquired six minutes after sun-up, the creamy sunlight is being filtered by distant sea mists that are persisting near the horizon. Oftentimes less is more in photography and I was drawn to the simple, strong graphic shape and charcoal density of the semi-submerged breakwater rocks. Water, stone and sky - that’s it for the textures in this image. Together with the soft light and muted colour palette, with a hint of peach on the horizon, its simplicity is what makes the image strong. A long exposure blurs the virtually motionless sea water and provides a candy-floss textured counterpoint to the opaque density of the rocks. There is a tiny navigation marker on the horizon, providing depth, implying distance and acting as a secondary point of focus.