Our Amazing Coast

It seemed like half of Santa Cruz went down to the beach last evening to photograph the amazing sunset! All these people with their shiny little objects in their hands held up and pointed towards the sky - a sign of the times for sure. Not to be left out (or outdone of course!) I headed down to the Rio Del Mar Beach with my latest camera the Fuji X-Pro 1. Love this camera. It is lightweight, compact, and takes incredible pictures. As expected, later in the evening sunset pictures popped up all over Facebook. Could have had a photo contest. A couple evenings ago I went up to the new Coast Dairies State Park beaches. Well the beaches aren't new but the park is fairly new. Low tide, no wind, warm temperatures and the evening light made for perfect photographic conditions.

Feel free to click on any of the social media buttons above.

Rio Del Mar Sunset

Photographers note:

This is a stitched panorama of three images

Camera settings - Fuji X-Pro 1; 1/60 sec @ F7.1; iso 400; lens focal length 18mm

Laguna Creek Beach I

Photographers note:

This is a stitched panorama of three images

Camera settings - Fuji X-Pro 1; 2.6 sec @ F16; iso 200; lens focal length 135mm

Laguna Creek Beach II

Photographers note:

This is a stitched panorama of three images

Camera settings - Fuji X-Pro 1; 1/30 sec @ F20; iso 200; lens focal length 35mm

Laguna Creek Beach III

Photographers note:

This is a stitched panorama of three images

Camera settings - Fuji X-Pro 1; 1/30 sec @ F16; iso 200; lens focal length 25mm

Birds of a Feather

Anyone who has looked towards the Monterey Bay has seen a proliferation of marine life lately. Can you say whales? Pelicans, seals, porpoise and of course seagulls, to name a few, were in large numbers. Apparently the abundance of anchovies in the Bay has attracted all this amazing marine life. A little over a week ago, it was stormy and foggy along Rio Del Mar beach. A zillion pelicans and seagulls decided to weather it out along the beach. I have lived in RDM the last 27 years and have never seen so many pelicans in one location! I headed to the beach with my 100-400mm lens and began to capture these images. Then some guy came walking along the state beach with his dog unleashed and doing its "business" along the way. And of course he didn't clean up after his dog. I asked him nicely to not walk through and disturb the wildlife while I was photographing. He ignored my plea, proceeded with his dog, and plowed through the middle of these birds. We had a few words that I cannot print. Unfortunately the ranger had just passed by moments earlier.

Pelicans

Photographers note:

Camera settings - Canon 5DII; 1/400 sec @ F16; iso 800; lens focal length 400mm

The Conductor

Photographers note:

Camera settings - Canon 5DII; 1/500 sec @ F16; iso 800; lens focal length 400mm

More Pelicans

Photographers note:

Camera settings - Canon 5DII; 1/500 sec @ F16; iso 800; lens focal length 400mm