When I can, I love to leave the family sleeping at home and go catch the sunrise at the beach in Surf City. It is a short walk from our house and the beach is usually pretty empty. Letting the light conditions of the moment fuel my decisions, I change up my settings and lens to see what I get. These different choices will make for completely different results. It's why I know that two photographers side by side, with the same equipment and looking at the same scene, will produce completely different images. Therein lies the art, and I never grow tired of pushing those creative boundaries. 

3 Little BirdsStraight out of the camera!

This image, for instance, is straight out of the camera, and I love that I achieved the look I wanted with zero post production. Generally, the goal is to do most of the heavy lifting in-camera to save on editing time later. This was shot with an 85mm f3.5 1/1000s and ISO 250.  Same with this one...and it just makes my minimalist heart sing:

With the exact same lighting situation, I also shot these which are stylistically very different:

Morning SunriseSunrise from the sand dunes in Surf City NC

These last few images all had some minor tweaking in post, because I have perfection issues (I'm working on it! hahaa). The last one was shot on a 20mm lens, rather than the 85mm, and in this case stopping the aperture down lends itself to those starburst rays of light. Making intentional, artistic decisions is a pretty powerful tool!

Anyone else relish quiet walks on the beach first thing in morning?