May 12, 2020 — San Mateo County Coast, California
Driving has always been allowed in California. There is simply nowhere worthwhile to park. All state beach (meaning “beach”) parking has been blocked. But there had been rain (finally) and the sky promised to be interesting, I drove to the coast to try my luck. I was expecting reasonably good surf for wave photos. Six to nine feet was the forecast. I was pumped. The very last existing copy of Sirens, Rachael Talibart’s brilliant book of towering waves had just arrived in the mail and, suitably inspired, I wanted to shoot some waves of my own.
But when I got there and pulled off to the side of the road north of Pescadero, the Pacific was being… Pacific.
So, shooting not what was expected but what was presented, I shot this.
(Nikon D850, Nikon 24-120mm f/4G VR. RAW processing in DxO PhotoLab 3.2; Editing in Adobe Photoshop.)
More seascape horizons: www.amagaphoto.com
AMAGA Photography Blog 
Simply clean.
These days, with some restrictions, and being an islander, I need to go to swim to the ocean… so, I’m really expecting this ends quickly to start swimming in the ocean.
Great photo!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you. I wish you the ability to swim in the ocean soon.
LikeLike
You learned how hard it is to be specific about the waves you’ll find in the Pacific.
And there are those 50 shades of gray again.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Another day, another ocean, and another shade of gray.
LikeLike
Ah, Michael, you may have missed the waves but oh, how good this is… and those tiny white sparkles…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you. And it turns out there were some waves. There might be a good shots in there. We shall see.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh, I’m pretty sure there are…
LikeLiked by 1 person
We will see. I am very picky.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve noticed… 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
I find myself — after a journey of forgotten moments — being invited, by the clouds, to continue onwards to a new horizon. Yet, the calmness of the water…it’s stillness becomes a shelter that forbids me to, “Go west, young [woman], go west.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
It is not always still. But there is always a horizon.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I need a boat…
LikeLiked by 1 person
From a boat on the open ocean, the horizon is always the same distance away. On land, from a high vantage point, you can see farther. This is sort of a metaphor.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The toning is perfect here.
Hardly any colours, but still fully realized.
In a word: Perfect!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, my friend. I am honored. This is a perfect example of mother nature giving me the inspiration, but it took more work to bring out what I saw in my mind’s eye. In post processing, I would adjust the tones and then go away from it for a while and then come back. Working on it for too long at any one stretch of time ruined my judgment. The simplest images are often the most difficult, because there is no leeway on the balance. And still, WordPress messed with the colors. The more subtle the image, the more WordPress distorts it. It’s a shame. Anyway, thank you, thank you very much.
LikeLike
Yes, I know. Even adjusting things in a photo can take ages, if you take everything in consideration. I also worked on it a long time.
How does WordPress mess up the colouring and toning? It probably is the web that doesn’t show some tones or maybe the browser. But the photo is not changed in WordPress.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you very much. Saying that word press change the picture was sort of a short hand on my part. It’s how WordPress processes the colors after I upload the picture and WordPress actually displays it. I think they use a compression algorithm that is not very kind.
LikeLike
I have not put this photograph on my regular website, but the ones that I do have on my regular website do not suffer the color distortions that are seen in WordPress.
LikeLike
That could be, that they compress pictures. I haven’t thought of it.
I usually post pictures in 1200×800 px with 72 DPI. They are usually not compressed. (I think at the moment I use 100 or 150 DPI, but it still is way beyond printing quality.)
LikeLiked by 1 person
I do 1500 on the long side. For this purpose, the number of pixels per inch is not important. It is simply the pixel dimension.
LikeLike
I know. But it makes the files smaller.
Do the pictures still get compressed with 1500 px?
LikeLiked by 1 person
It does make the file smaller. I don’t know if they still get compressed at 1500. I’m going to research this and see if I come up with something. It drives me crazy. There have been several instances where I have posted something, seen a color distortion, went back and altered the Photoshop file to try to compensate, re-posted only to see a different color distortion. (Imagine the sound of hair being torn out.)
LikeLike
The bits of sparkle keep me interested, and that greenish cast to the sky in the distance. Soft and lovely. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you very much. That greenish cast is courtesy of WordPress. The actual cast is a very soft dove gray.
LikeLike
Then I understand your frustrations with WP and subtle images. 😦
LikeLiked by 1 person
😖
LikeLike
Wonderfully mute, calm, subdued scene – real peace. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Does for me what the Levels do for you.
LikeLike
Capturing what is presented and not necessarily what was imagined ahead of time is a talent and that is evident here. It is indeed a pacific Pacific image. I like the bits of light here and there on the small caps.
LikeLiked by 1 person
You Gotta know when to hold them and when to fold them.
LikeLiked by 1 person