It was a dark and stormy night… well, not really. It was actually a beautiful night, aside from the temperature and the wicked wind blowing off the lake, that is. However, a storm had just passed over earlier in the afternoon (which allowed me to get this shot ) and I was hoping for a pretty epic sunset as the last of the clouds receded. Since the days are getting so much longer now, I decided to hit the road to The County to see what I could find. If you’ve ever been to Sandbanks Provincial Park, you may have sat on the bench overlooking this scene and watched the sunset yourself.

On to plan B… which is to say, I was winging it.

Why Do I Bother Planning Anything?

Normally, I’d wander the back roads waiting for something to catch my eye as I sped past, but on this night I had a particular location in mind. I found this spot over the winter, on a particularly cold, windy, and snowy day which kept the camera in the car. But I filed it away as a destination to hit some other day as soon as I spotted these rocks just offshore. On a calm day, the waters here are a clear blue/green and it’s a sight to be seen… One that I was kind of hoping to see. But I didn’t realize just how windy it was, so I was little surprised to see the size of the waves hitting the shore and breaking over the rocks. It wasn’t what I was expecting, and the clouds had all disappeared by now. On to plan B… which is to say, I was winging it.

Somebody’s Watching Me

Do you ever get the feeling that you’re being watched? Since there were no clouds and the huge waves had turned the clear water into a turbulent whirlpool beneath me, I changed my plan and decided to wait until the sun had set to get a long exposure shot. So I sat on the bench and waited. In an attempt to stay warm, I got up to walk around and nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw four kids (I sound old… they could have been in their 20’s, but they’re still kids to me now…) walking up behind me. I took their photo with their cell phone… well it was more of a silhouette against the setting sun… but they insisted the sunset be behind them, and they were on their way.

Anyhoo, the point is: remember this song by Rockwell? I sing it in my head all the time when I’m out shooting alone (especially at night). Just one of the many songs that make up the soundtrack of my life.