The photo of the month for February 2020 was nearly forgotten! I have been so busy with my business that I nearly let this one slide-on-by.
February 2020’s Wild Weather
Cyclone Uesi was tearing through the Pacific Ocean during February of 2020, and this created some wild weather on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales where I live. It also whipped-up some huge swells that crashed into the coast and changed the way our local beaches look.
Taken on the 15th, here is the photo of the month for February 2020.
The Photo Of The Month February 2020
The day after Uesi had smashed through Lord Howe Island with 150km/hr winds, tearing down trees and causing damage to buildings. My family and I stood watching the waves smashing into the rocks at Woolgoolga Headland for a little while.
The section of water in the foreground churning wildly is normally quite clear. I have seen sea turtles swimming there before. However this particular day, it was a seething mass of white-water.
The spray from the wave crashing into the rocks in this photo is perhaps 5 to 10 metres high. I would have had someone stand on the rocks near the wave for perspective, but that would’ve been a little dangerous?!
What Gear Did I Use for the Photo of the Month February 2020?
I used my Nikon D5200 to take this photo with a 55-200mm lens at 55mm.
I used a shutter speed of 1/1600sec to freeze the motion of the water; an aperture of f/10 to try and get as much of the shot in focus as possible, and an ISO of 400.
The trick with a photo like this is trying to get the exposure right. As the sun was still fairly high and bright, it’s easy to over-expose the white-water and lose detail in the shadowy areas of the rocks.
I always suggest exposing for the highlights. It’s easier to bring back detail from the shadows in post processing. In addition, make sure that you use the lowest ISO possible. This makes it easier to bring back detail without too much noise being introduced.
Come Back Next Month
Make sure you come back to my blog next month for another image.
Thanks for reading my blog, I really appreciate you taking the time out of your day.
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