northern california Pigeon Point 135th Anniversary Lighting

Every year, on the Saturday closes to November 15th, the Pigeon Point

Lighthouse in California is lighted with the original fresnel lens

which provides 24 beams of light from the top of the lighthouse. They

turn it on for 2 hours, the first 5 minutes the lights are static and

provides the best opportunity to capture it this way. After that, the

light starts rotating. You have to make the best of those 5 minutes,

this year the fog was really heavy on the lighthouse, and it was kind

of hard to get it from far. This is my best result.

This image just jumps right out at me. I love the composition, but those lights are captured in such an extraordinary way, that I have to almost make myself pay attention to the rest of this lovely scene. I love that you told the story about it - I crave learning about a place. Just a joy to view.

Hi Edward:

 

(You just commented on my shot from the bluff a distance south of the lighthouse. Once I got set up and saw all the fog it was too late to move...)

 

Very nice shot! Did you put the light on the fence yourself or was it from some other source nearby. This is the kind of image I had in mind when I drove over there... a bit too late to get up so close I'm afraid. The multiple light beams were never visible from my position.

 

Congratulations.

The fence was painted with light by a photographer friend. This was a 1 minute exposure, and during that minute the fence was lighted along the length to provide some detail in the foreground. As you did, I initially setup on the south side of the lighthouse from a cliff, but soon realized that the fog was going to hide the lighthouse, so I quickly move up closer.

Thanks for the comments and rating.

 

Beautiful work, Edward! Thanks for sharing the story behind the image too; makes it mean even more. Gorgeous light and effects you've captured here. Wonderful image! A 7/6 anonymously. Cheers! Chris

Absolutely fantastic shot Edward! Superbly composed. exposure is perfect. The light painting was definitely a nice touch.

Amazingly beautiful and haunting at the same time. Very impressive.

Great! I love the lighting of the wall in the foreground effect. It makes an otherwise boring photograph into a really nice image. Well done!

Amazing shot. The light painting works a treat.

I think this is great Edward - unique and beautiful. I think you handled the expsoure wonderfully.

thank you for the detailed description. When I first saw this shot I though 'Oh no he's used a star burst filter!'. The fact that these beams are for real together with your great composition (especially the light painted fence) make this one hell of an image!

 

Mike

Ed,

 

IN-CREDIBLE!!! Great insight into the weather to get the shot and perfectly captured under pressure. I read your interview in Pop-Photo. I can't believe how good you've become so quickly! Fantastic.

This is mesmerizing! A lot of thought went into getting this shot and it paid off for you. Thanks for all the details of how you worked this image and added the 9 second shot for the details at the top. Great capture!!

Edward, I think this is the most elegant lighthouse image I've ever seen! You've managed to capture not only an incredible light with those magnificient beams, but also you've created the foreground detail beautifully. Outstanding composition, exposure, and creativity! Congratulations on a very fine image, Kristy :)

Interesting that you were "worried" about the fog. It made the picture! Really nice!

Excellent work with superb result.

Breathtaking!! Beautiful composition.

What an amazing shot! I've never had the pleasure of seeing a lighthouse lit up in this manor. Beautiful exposure and gorgeous colors. I don't think the fog was a determent, I think it enhanced the shot to give it a mystical quality. Very nicely done!

Regards,

Amanda

Cracking good shot!

This is way too cool! Everything works and I would call it the " Total Package ". DOF, Composition, colors and this is a definate 7/7 only because we don't get to do 10/10's. Kudos for a great capture...RAY

This is a awesome image with some very interesting lighting. Well done!