It's not often you see a deserted beach in Florida. But drop the temperature down to about 48 degrees and crank the wind up a little bit, and none but the hardiest souls endure.
There have been several times in the last few weeks that I've come out of work near the end of the day, and kicked myself for not being in the right place at the right time with my camera. During these fall and winter months, the sunsets can get pretty spectacular. For starters, it's the only time of year that the sun sets over the water. Since we are on the northern Gulf coast, most of the time the sun is going doing right over the beach itself, or farther inland during the summer months as the sun moves into more northerly latitudes.
The other contributing factor is the atmospherics. I don't know all of the meteorological conditions that must be present, but the high stratus clouds that we get this time of year make for outstanding shooting opportunities.
I've taken lately to keeping a very close eye on the sky during the day and if conditions seem favorable, I try to make sure I have my camera in the car with me as the end of the day approaches.
Today was just such a day. Got to the beach about 30 minutes before sunset. I took a whole bunch of pretty typical sunset on the water pictures. And then this guy showed up. These herons that hang around our beaches and docks are pretty accustomed to people and if you move slowly you can get pretty close to them.
Fortunately I had my entire gear bag with me so I pulled out a flash unit, fitted with a Cybersync remote radio trigger, and held it in my left hand at full arms length. Took a few shots to dial in on just the right balance of flash/ambient and a good aim point. But this gentleman was very patient and cooperative, letting me shoot for about 15 minutes without hardly moving a feather.
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