When we look at our world, it influences our vision and photographic images. There are times when it’s easier to escape into nature, and express ourselves through the environment. After 4 years of unpredictability, it is nice to see some calm in the world. So, I’ve spent the month of January creating new images, and teaching. It’s been a nice change in the storm that keeps coming into my life.

I chased the King Tides in January, and came away with amazing images of the tenacity of the ocean. One thing that helps with creating a good photograph is having a vision. I envisioned showing the ocean and coastline interacting with an extreme tide (and hopefully big waves). I wasn’t disappointed!

This is the coastline at Kalaloch. This stretch of coastline is part of the Olympic National Park. Normally, more beach is walkable. This day, the ocean came up to the sandstone cliffs. The photo above was taken two to three hours before the high tide.

I went out to the coast the previous day to catch the incoming tide. A rain and wind storm came through the night before, and I spent the night sleeping in the car a 100 yards or so from the ocean. The sunrise case a soft pinkish cast to the clouds and ocean white caps.

The morning progressed, and the sun lit up the waves. The sound of the surf, along with the amazing amount of sea foam, created a magical scene to photograph. I think I ended up with over a 1000 frames, and several video clips. As a creative person, the challenges of the past year of a Pandemic washed away with the wind, surf, sun, and the photographs.

The image below is looking north from Kalaloch. The intense storm clouds brought rain to the north and south of this area along the coast. The sunlight added to the power of the moment, and allowed faster exposures to capture the immensity of the incoming surf.

In closing, I encourage all to venture out, and enjoy the beauty of nature. It’s times like this where seeing and feeling nature can move us forward to new visions of future photographic projects.

Happy Shooting. . .Karen