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Call of the Wretched Sea.

Taken during a family vacation to Rehoboth Beach, DE, of all places. The entire weekend was overcast and rainy, to everyone's disappointment but mine. This was shot the morning we left... everybody sat in the car waiting while I waded out into the surf for one final attempt. Shutter speed was absolutely critical to the feeling I was trying to capture, which was the intensity of the weather & surf. Too short and the water would appear harsh and distracting, too long and everything would smooth out and become more ambient than alive. 2 seconds with an ND filter was just right, though keeping everything steady in waist deep water was challenging (even with a tripod). Anybody who shoots at the beach for any amount of time knows that you can shoot the surf for an entire hour and not get a single shot where everything lines up just right. I was in the water for about 20 minutes and it turns out that the winner was taken within the first few. Apparently the rest of the time was just spent getting wet and trying not to lose my camera to the sea.