Yawn Patrol
Ah, Sunday morning!
A chance to sleep in, perhaps? Maybe a lazy morning watching cartoons with the kids? Or a late, leisurely breakfast with the family?
Nup! The alarms goes off when it’s still dark outside. A quick coffee is gulped down before driving to my favourite local beach.
The morning chill nips at me as I unload plastic, camera, towel and other odds and ends from the car. The oddly spaced stairs leading down to the beach induce the familiar, awkward gait as I rush down before the sun cracks the horizon. The deserted beach ensures I don’t have to trek far to find unspoiled, footprint free sand. The unsullied sand is however deceptively sodden from the ebbing tide. There’s a frantic scramble to set up multiple shots, each adjacent to the next, in the hope of capturing the rising sun in multiple shots and angles, before it rises to high. LEGO is dusted, positioned, checked. LEGO falls. Muttered cursing fractures the cockcrow hush. LEGO is re-dusted, re-positioned, and re-checked.
And then I wait.
Point Addis beach, 06:10, arrival
As the sun begins to emerge from behind the horizon, so do the people. People. Surfers. Dogs. All of them threaten to mar my pristine vista.
The sun obliges me, breaking through before these new arrivals have time to reach me. Lying down in the wet sand, the towel does little to keep me dry for the first photo. By the second photo, the towel is sopping and discarded. By the third, I too am soaked. Beyond that photo, I give up on the idea of a dry, comfortable drive back home. Four. Five. Six.
And then it’s time to pack up.
Plastic bags contain sandy LEGO awaiting a wash, a dripping towel, a camera that in all the commotion has managed to sidestep sand and water, and my shoes and t-shirt that now co-mingle with the equally wringing towel.
Point Addis beach, 07:45, departure
My quest for “all” might sound like it got off to an arduous, sodden start, but as I walked back up the sand, from my post-photo shoot swim, to the plastic bags filled with the aftermath of the morning’s adventure, I wouldn’t have wished it any other way.
Thou shalt not allow anything to deter you in your quest for all
All!
Descendents – All-O-Gistics
Hopefully, this early Sunday morning sets the agenda for future photography ventures. I’d like them a little less soggy though.
@-ST @ dawn
Lilo Ren
Pen-quins
Great post, and a well worded insight into your morning.
There is something really special about being up before everyone else and taking photos. When we did this in Hamburg on the toy safari last year, it just felt magical watching the sun come up as we looked for the perfect photo to capture it! I’m hoping that 6am photoshoots in London this spring can capture that magic again!
(Also, I’ve said this before on Instagram, but Lilo Ren is just an amazing photo!)
Oh I couldn’t agree more. Deserted locations at sunrise are magical! Sunsets attract more people, yet those of us brave (or silly?) enough to get up before dawn reap the benefits of both the sunrises and the solitude. Hopefully London delivers some amazing sunrises for you this spring!
The morning light is just as important as that golden hour of the evening. I think what makes it unique is not enough people have enough self control to get up and capture it in the morning. Kuddos to you for doing it and sharing your experience! Such fantastic shots too.
Thank you! As painful as it is when that alarm goes off on a Sunday morning, the rewards of a deserted beach and a sunrise, soon erase any pain. The soggy drive home is also forgot in a warm shower. I love the morning light! It probably has something to do with living on the south-east coast. Finding the right location to capture the sunset from the beach requires a much further drive, and an earlier alarm!
I’m soooo jealous you have an east-facing beach to drive to for sunrise photo shoots! Lovely images, Brett.
I’m very lucky! It’s my favourite place to be. Point Addis never fails to impress me. Plus it’s “clothing optional” which comes in handy when getting soaked lying in the sand taking LEGO photos! 😮
I’m usually more a sunset person than a sunrise because I’ve always had this bad habit of going to bed (very) late and because I like to sleep a lot. So I usually have a hard time getting up for sunrise. The only times I find the motivation to give me the necessary kick in ass to go to bed early and/or to fight against tiredness, is when I know if I don’t do it I’m going to regret it. Among my greatest sunrise experiences are New York, Venice and of course Hamburg. (And now also living 200km below the Arctic Circle but that’s kind of cheating when the sun rises either late in the morning or barely disappear under the horizon around midnight.)
I too am a night owl, but the promise of a deserted beach and a sunrise is always motivation to drag me out of bed. I know the feeling of debating hitting the “snooze” button, only to dread that if I do, I’ll probably miss the best sunrise of the year. The fear of regret is a great motivator to get out of bed. That, and coffee!
I think sunrise gives different light to sunset. It’s softer and the colours of the clouds are often more pastel-like.
We have all been rewarded with the output of your early morning soaking. Thanks.
Thanks Tony. I agree, sunrise feels softer and somewhat ‘cleaner’ to me. It’s like the day hasn’t had a chance to dirty up the sky. Sunsets feel like a reflection of the day, both good and bad, to me. Whereas a sunrise splashes across a clean canvas. It feels new. I’m glad my soaking wasn’t in vain!
Wow you are dedicated! You must show me your ways when I visit. Also the image “Lilo Ren” is one of my favorites; I love that photo! fabulous job showing the young ‘uns hows its done. 😀
Thanks Shelly. A pre-dawn beach trip is definitely on the cards when you visit. I’ve already started making a list of places to visit/shoot toys, and Point Addis (this beach) is at the top of that list. The idea for Lilo Ren actually came to me as I waited for the sun. Luckily I had the rubber ducky, the hair piece and Kylo with me (sometimes it’s good to over pack!), otherwise my alarm would be going off early again this weekend! 😮
This makes me want to get up early this weekend and head to the beach! Love the AT-ST shot. Simply beautiful!
DO IT! Despite the annoyance of the alarm going off on my one day to sleep in, I love early morning beach ventures. There’s something magical about a deserted beach as the sun rises.