Powerfull storms hit the UK so time for some coastal photography.

As you probably know its been very stormy in England recently so I'm going to brave the conditions and head to Newhaven breakwater to try and get some big wave images. Watch this space!

UPDATE - Success!

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Tempest

Newhaven breakwater

A photograph I have waited many years to take. Iv’e been waiting for all the variables to fall into place and it finally happened.

The weather conditions required for such an almighty scene are very rare. I needed the storm to coincide with high tide being close to sunset. I wanted a dark sky behind the image so the giant waves hitting the sea defence would be visible. I then needed a miracle, the low sun had to some how break through and illuminate the scene. This light would be crucial to brighten the wave and to darken the background, that would be the only way to clearly see it. The last factor is the light house, i needed it to be visible and not hidden by the wave. I also needed it to be lit, It goes off and on every few seconds.

I have photographed this location before in stormy conditions and without the light it just doesn't work.

I am terrified of heights but i had to get close to the edge of the cliff. As the wind was blowing at 80mph I couldn’t stand up so in order to not get the ground in the shot i had to get to the edge. I set the tripod on its lowest configuration, so legs horizontal and managed to compose myself and more importantly the image.

The weather on this day was grey and horrible. I had to shield the front element with a cloth and with one hand quickly take it away while pressing the shutter release. The rain was going up at the cliff edge rather than down. All i had in my bag was a Dutch military 'head over' which i used to cover my camera. My gear was so wet the autofocus stopped working, which is a first. 

After studying the weather reports i was hoping there would be a short window of light. I waited till an hour before sunset and the lower clouds to the right opened up and lit the scene perfectly for a few moments.

I was at 200mm on a tripod. I never like to push the ISO beyond 800 for landscapes so that was the first thing i dialled in. f/10 allowed me to get 1/500 while underexposing a few stops and that was just enough to get a sharp shot with ‘mirror up’ and me holding on to the tripod with all my strength.

For me this is truly a once in a lifetime photograph.

Here is the finished image!