No. I'm not still in Destin. But one can dream and think back a couple of weeks...

It was sunrise. The beach was bathed in orange, gold, and pink. 

Words can't ever quite express the feeling of standing on the beach at sunrise watching the world unfold in front of me. The waves crashed on the beach releasing a fine mist into the air.

The tangy, fishy aroma drifted past my nose. 

Every second the light and color changed. 

The rising sun reflected off the water in a riot of color.

I shot the above photo with my Sony a6000 at 1/50th, f5.6, ISO 100. I didn't bother with my tripod that morning, so I held my breath and braced my arms against my sides, making sure I didn't get any camera shake. 

With the Sony, I can take photos at a slower shutter speed and still get a sharp image. Without the mirror in the camera, there's less camera shake. Plus the camera is so small and light. 

I only made a few basic edits to this photo - a little sharpening, since I shoot in RAW. I brought the exposure up one stop since it was still pretty dark out when I took the photo. I should have shot on ISO 400 instead of 100. 

Bringing up the shadows and exposure causes similar issues to shooting with a higher ISO. But with today's modern cameras, shooting up to almost 1000 isn't the problem it used to be.  

Some photographers hate noise in their photos. I actually like a little noise in my photos because it helps give them the painterly look for which I'm aiming. 

There was only a little bit of noise in this photo, and it was confined to the sky. I softened it a little and was pleased with the look.

The sand glimmered pink and orange. That's how it looked in the early morning sunrise.

Stunning. 

I stared at the colors reflecting off the waves. I sat down in the sand, closed my eyes, and listened to the waves pounding the beach. The birds were up and a chorus of caws filled the sky. 

Nature never ceases to amaze me. A walk on the beach is balm for the soul. So is a stroll around a lake or a hike in the mountains. 

Here's to more balm for our souls! Have a great rest of your week. 

See you between the raindrops!

xoxo,
Susan 

Need a colorful beach print of your own? Find the cover photo and others here.