Last Thursday I released the first image from my trip to a new spot in Bray, Co Wicklow, entitled First Light on Bray Head. I, at the time referred to it as Bray Head and while that was not incorrect a very nice chap over on Google+ let me know this particular location is called Naylor’s Cove, and then went on to offer some additional insights about the location. This is why I love Social Media, not only does it offer the ability to share my work with such a broad audience but the potential for these kind of local insights.
By the time I returned to the location at 11am the sun was fully up and the clouds had moved in and it had started to spit a little (that
As I explained in last Thursday’s post First Light on Bray Head was captured almost 40 minutes before sunrise. This image however was captured less then 20 minutes after Sunrise. And from a very different location and perspective. I had spotted this location from the beach during my initial rece in the near dark, and once I had captured the pre-dawn I made my way up to this viewpoint. Not knowing the area I took the only route I saw, up the side of a cliff. Feeling all rugged and brave when I made it up to the top I must admit to feeling somewhat deflated when I looked to my right and saw a nice safe set of steps back down to the beach.
Anyhoo where were we, ah yes Sunrise. For any of you that have shot a sunrise will know the light changes very quickly so I had no time to waste. After walking the area and weighing up a couple of possible compositions I finally chose this one. This composition is all about lines, in particular the remains of an old wall coming in from the bottom right and the cliff on the left. These lines are then echoed in the rock face in the bottom mid-right of the frame. Using an ultra-wide angle at 20mm really adds a sense of drama and helps to exaggerate those diagonals lines. And they all seem to be working in concert to point the viewer to the tiny vertical strip of white cloud. Meanwhile the sun has reached sufficient altitude above the cliffs to start to throw some soft golden light upon the sea and beach on the far right of the frame.
Being very conscious about your composition and a how you position components of the scene in, and indeed out, of the frame is a critical step in advancing your craft. I hope these mini-insights in to my thought process are helpful.
