Friday, January 19, 2007

Endless waves


Rolling surf
Lake Worth, Florida, December 2006 [Click to double the wave height]

The ocean looks different every time you see it. Time of day, weather, waves and wind influence how the water dances with the atmosphere, and how it all hits your eye.

But how to capture it? I had no idea when we first got to Florida, and I didn't feel I was any better informed when we left. I must have taken hundreds of pictures from the sandy shores, but I didn't have a eureka moment where I felt I suddenly knew how to confidently shoot the surf.

But that's fine by me, because it gives me another reason to go back. To here. To another beach. Wherever. As long as I feel humbled the next time I feel sand under my feet, it'll be worth the trip to get my family there.

I like this image because it illustrates the various shades of green and blue in the water. It was the first thing my wife noticed when we first arrived, and as soon as she said it I knew I needed to capture it in some way.

Your turn: How do you feel when you first get to the seashore and you see and hear the waves?

29 comments:

Anonymous said...

I LOVE the surf and the waves.....Carmi your photos are making me want to pack up the van and head down I-95 tonight!!

Anonymous said...

It effects me differently now that it's not 10 minutes away. Before I took it for granted. It was right there whenever I wanted it.
Now it's "home". I feel at peace there. It's calm and happy. I can truely relax while there.

Anonymous said...

When I get to the beach (which isn't very often) I feel at home. One day my husband and I will have to leave the landlocked midwest and live somewhere in close driving range to a beach. It's where I'm meant to be...

srp said...

Wow! Around here that surf would only be seen if a storm were off the coast. My geologist major daughter tells me the difference is due to the ocean floor depth.. some places have more shells wash up along the shore but here not as much.

Along the Mississippi coast, that surf would mean one thing... hurricane.

Anonymous said...

OH MY. WEll, when I get close to a beach and close my eyes, it brings back memories of my childhood. All the way until my first son was born. I remember all the good times and bad, and all the parties and broken hearts. Man I am from the beach and the ocean brings me back to that time, when days lasted forever and my life was so easy. I didn't have that many worries back then, but it's not the feelings that I feel, it's the memories. I love the Outer Banks of NC!!!

Wow, I had to come back to reality right then. I haven't been by here in soooo long! Glad I made it back:)

Anonymous said...

I love the different shades of blues and greens here...you wouldn't notice them as much if it weren't for the white in the crest of the wave. Nice one.

Anonymous said...

this picture is gorgeous, Carmi. i love the ocean. i always feel more grounded when i am near it.

michele sent me this morning.

Anonymous said...

I love this picture - it reminds me of when I used to live next to the sea and how I miss it now!

When I see the see I instantly feel at peace with myself - it takes away the claustrophobia of everyday life.

Michele sent me.

kenju said...

I feel serene,though small and insignificant at the ocean side, Carmi. The colors here are wonderful and you captured it very well.

Anonymous said...

Michele sent me back Carmi but it was no hardship as I got to see that great pic again. You really have captured the view from the shore very well. I love the colours. So restful.

Anonymous said...

I love the ocean, but most of my experience is with the cold, grey Pacific. These waves look so exotic - and warm!

A Army Of (Cl)One said...

I have lived most of my life within the sight or smell of the sea shore. My feeling towards the sea depends on the weather. Cold clear days remind me of beach day with my family in northern California, peanut butter and honey sandwiches and my parents chasing us with seaweed. Hot day and the sea make me think of summer in Hawaii with my mother (she lived there for 5 years) or sunbathing in Santa Barbara during collage, Cold grey day remind me of hiking, climbing and picnicking with my father and brother in and around the San Francisco region.

Sadly now I live away from the shore and no long hear the call of the seabirds. So mostly I expect the sea reminds me of youth.

Hi Carmi, haven’t popped by in a while. Hello from Michele

Anonymous said...

The same way I feel whenever I'm overwhelmed by Mother Nature's majesty. Awestruck. I leaves me thinking, "Ya, know... I can't make that from scratch, and I don't know of anyone who can."

via Michele,


Mike

Anonymous said...

Makes me sea sick

Anonymous said...

I feel an overwhelming sense of - this is home. I'm happy, relaxed and wish I could stay forever. I miss living on the West Coast because I prefer the Atlantic to the Pacific, though the Oregon Coast is one of my favorite places.

utenzi said...

There's a deep contentment when contemplating the ocean. I suspect the sounds we hear subconsciously bring us back to the womb but even just the conscious sounds as well as the tang of salt in the air and some organic items rotting bring you to a new reality. The reality that was our existance for so many many years. Or something like that.

Michele sent me to visit the Ocean, Florida, and you Carmi.

Anonymous said...

Wow, gorgeous photo! You are very talented.

Anonymous said...

Your picture of the waves brought feeling of elation from deep within me. I long for the aqua colored water of the south. There is nothing that makes me feel so calm, peaceful and fullfilled.
Everyday I think about the beach, about the water, the sound, smell and feel of the water lapping around me.
Here the water is grey, choppy but my paradise (Santa Lucia Cuba) is aqua, lovely and soothing to the core.

Anonymous said...

It's just so peaceful. I find myself immediately relaxing. I love the ocean...I'm so lucky that my kids do too! Ah..I can't wait until we can go again..once the weather warms up. Which beach in Florida did you go to?

Anonymous said...

Ooopsss...left the wrong URL...this one is right.

Anonymous said...

How does it affect me? - It makes me feel like I am home.

Michele sent me.

Anonymous said...

I always feel fresh and clean and closer to mother earth ;)

Here via Michele

Anonymous said...

I love the sea, it calms me, it makes me think, it lets me think, puts things into perspective, lets me breathe. We can see it from our bedroom, but I'll often go down to be close to it. Whether it's dark and rough or clear and blue, it's awesome - I found you via awareness and will be back

Anonymous said...

When I see the Atlantic in NJ for the first time after a year away...it's almost a religious experience.

Michele says hi!

Anonymous said...

I love to look at the sea, but have never been too fond of the beach. ;) I prefer rockier coastlines, with their nooks and tidepools and lighthouses and tales of pirates and smugglers' caves...

Anonymous said...

A calm starts to take over. I absolutely love that feeling during the first few moments when you arrive at the beach.

Anonymous said...

Gorgeous pictures! What amazing color...

I love the ocean. I enjoy just sitting and watching and listening. There's something amazing about the power and the serenity of the sea.

BTW, thanks for stopping by my blog and your kind words. They were appreciated.

Anonymous said...

I can watch the ocean for hours - love it.

Anonymous said...

I wish I were a poet, and able to capture with words how I feel, but since I'm not, I'll quote Walt Whitman:

Walt Whitman
On the beach at night alone

On the beach at night alone,
As the old mother sways her to and fro singing her husky song,
As I watch the bright stars shining, I think a thought of the clef of the universes and of the future.

A vast similitude interlocks all,
All spheres, grown, ungrown, small, large, suns, moons, planets,
All distances of place however wide,
All distances of time, all inanimate forms,
All souls, all living bodies though they be ever so different, or in different worlds,
All gaseous, watery, vegetable, mineral processes, the fishes, the brutes,
All nations, colors, barbarisms, civilizations, languages,
All identities that have existed or may exist on this globe or any globe,
All lives and deaths, all of the past, present, future,
This vast similitude spans them, and always has spann'd,
And shall forever span them and compactly hold and enclose them.


That's how I feel.