Waterscapes

The Hazy Coast

The long Olympic coastline is characterized by sandy beaches interspersed by rocky headlands replete with sea stacks topped by wind-sheared trees, natural arches that are slowly eroding away, and rocky cliffs withstanding the onslaught of the steady march of the waves. And in the winter, storms in the Pacific create surges of waves that blast the irregular shoreline. As the waves march towards the land, the strong winds catch the waves and spray it far, leading to a haze that is often characterized as the salty atmosphere of the wet olympic coast

I tried to capture its spirit in this scene that is typical of the beautiful coastline of this region.

Olympic National Park
WA USA

Basking in the waves

When I hiked to this remote beach in the Virgin Islands, I wasn't expecting much. Barely a couple of hundred yards long, this small beach sandwiched between the a tropical forest and the gentle waves wasn't much to look at. But being a mile away from the nearest road meant that I had the place to myself for a while.

Walking on the soft white sand while listening to the soothing sound of the waves, and basking on under the warm sunlight instantly made me forget about my worries and just enjoy a grand vista of puffy white clouds and azure blue waters. Because there’s nothing more beautiful than the way the ocean refuses to stop kissing the shoreline, no matter how many times it’s sent away.

Virgin Islands National Park
USVI

Where the Mountains meet the Sea

The march of the waves is incessant and steadfast. For years and decades and centuries, the swells brought on by the strong Pacific winds have crashed against the Tillamook headlands. Over millenia, this has slowly etched away at the rocky leaving behind the seastacks this region is so well known for, including the famous Haystack Rock of Cannon beach

From this vantage point in Ecola State Park, you can watch this erosion in action, albeit at a glacial timescale. The morning light, combined with the sea spray that hangs around above the water, yielded a blissful scene that was imprinted in my mind.

Ecola State Park
OR USA

The Texture of Sunset

It had been a long and cold day, and my energy was sapped the lack of any sunlight on that long drive down the Oregon Coast. As the sun disappeared behind the grey mass of clouds, I thought it was going to be the last light of day, and I was getting ready to turn back.

And it was around then that I started seeing tinges of color on the horizon, a pale pink that was slowly starting to spread over, seemingly breathing blood to the the sky. And within a span of minutes, the western horizon was laced with a kaleidoscope of reds, yellows and pinks. On the smooth surface of the sand bar that only appears at low tide, the colors of the sky reflected like a Roarsch painting in vibrant technicolor.

A seagull braved the cold winds to pose for me (or so I like to think) for this colorful sunset on the Oregon coast.

Tillamook County
OR USA

,

Seeking Solitude at Sunrise

,

The solitude of the morning spread over the land like the morning fog, its silence disturbed only by the calls of the waterfowl lazily swimming in the mist. The sun had just started to rise up, a great big ball of fire whose light pierced through the fog, setting it aglow over the tranquil wetlands.

I was just beginning to enjoy the serenity when it was marred by an approaching speedboat, its staccato engine noise engulfing the tranquility of the still dawn. I couldn't have cared less for it, but those were the cards I was dealt with. Hence I tried to frame it as part of the scene: a pastoral sunrise disturbed by a touch of man-made monstrosity...

Astoria
OR USA

Beckoning Sunrise

I never expected to have a beach all to myself, especially in the crowded island of Maui during its peak tourist season. But nevertheless, I found one such beach in the eastern side of the island, far away from the oft-touristed locations.

I wandered its shores, listening to the rhythmic crashing of the waves, some breaking over a jagged line of rocks offset from the beach, and others gently caressing the red sands over which I tread. The sun was yet to crest the horizon, but I waited, wading into the cool waters of the Pacific, hoping to find a composition that worked for this unique location.

I am not yet completely satisfied with this framing, and will likely experiment more with this image in the future.

Maui
HI USA

Island Paradise

Life's needs are simple: food, water, shelter and clothing. But in the process to procure these needs, we humans engage in an activity called work. And for most of us, our work consumes more than half our adult lives, and its tedious monotony necessitates another need: physical and mental well being. And so, we have invented the concept of vacations where we escape the reality of our everyday lives and try to experience a different existence. The whole leisure and hospitality industry is built around this.

As condescending as this may seem, I too need such an escape to a different destination, a place where I would rather be than where I am....

Virgin Islands National Park
USVI

,

Sunset in Blue and Gold

,

During the dark and dreary winters in the PNW, I often reminisce my time living in California. There were many things I complained about my past life there: the heavy traffic, the car culture, the high cost of living and much more. But being able to get to the blissful Pacific coast in under an hour and capture the vestiges of a summer sunset after a hard day of work more than made up for the hardship of living there.

To make a jaunt to the coast worthwhile, I first scour the webcams pointing to the west to watch the cloud patterns and the inversion layer over the ocean. And once in a while, the conditions become favorable, as it was in this case where I drove to a cliff overlooking the calm waters of the Pacific

Davenport

CA USA