The Story Behind The Image; The Beach At The Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge

The Atlantic Ocean looked angry on this day! (click to enlarge)
Olympus E-M1 Mark III; 300mm f/ PRO lens + MC-14 1.4x Tele-Converter (840mm~);
1/2000th sec. @ f/8; ISO 200

If you think it looks very windy in the image above, you are 100% right!  I made this image a couple of weekends ago while my good friends and I were on our annual wildlife and bird photography trek to Virginia's Eastern Shore.  We arrived Friday morning and the weather was lovely.  By Friday night a nor'easter had formed.  When we awoke on Saturday morning the wind was blowing out of the northwest steadily about 30 mph and gusting to, I would guess, about 50mph.  The rain was a driving rain, which actually stung when it hit my face.  With this in mind, I set out to see what I could photograph.

One place I wanted to go was the beach at the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge.  The beach is on the Atlantic Ocean.  Waves were pounding against the sand.  The wind was blowing against the direction of the breakers.  I like it when the tops of the waves are blown backwards to the wave motion.

I stood on the sand dunes above the beach trying valiantly to hold my Olympus E-M1 Mark II with the 300mm f/4 PRO lens plus the MC-14 1.4x tele-converter attached (840mm~) and pointed it south, then north, then south again, pressing the shutter as I watched the waves, all the while trying to hold it steady as the gale force winds pushed against it from the west.  I had set the shutter speed at 1/2000th second to try to counteract the left/right movement of the camera caused by the gusts.  

I thought if I could pull this off, I might actually be able to make an interesting image.  I really didn't expect any to be worthwhile as the camera's AF squares were hard to put somewhere, anywhere, it would pick up a target and focus on a side lit incoming wave as the turbulent water was moving continuously one direction as the wind was blowing in the opposite direction.  I made about 50 images and picked out four or five that are my favorites.  The one above is my overall favorite.

Some of the best images can be made in bad weather.  So get out there!

Join me over at my website, www.dennismook.com.  

Thanks for looking. Enjoy!  

Dennis A. Mook  

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