dawn of a new day…………………

Those of you who have been following this blog before this little excursion to the Alpujarras, would remember the time this blog spent in Agulhas, before we fastened our seatbelts and headed off overseas. Well, sadly that little holiday excursion came to an end with yesterdays post, and seeing that we are all still adjusting to the idea of not being on holiday and making the long trip home, I figured why not just go back to where the trip started. So, once again, fasten your seatbelts, we’re heading towards home, thats right, not home yet, but towards home, yep! South Africa.

Whether you’re travelling First Class, Business or Economy I suppose will depend on where you’re reading this, either on your luxury office chair in A grade airconditioned office space, with foamy cuppachinos available at a finger snap, or maybe at home on your trusty old chair with the mangled cushion at your computer, or sitting on your bed, with the laptop at your side, or maybe just sitting at the bus station with your android powered device (or on your Iphone – not looking to offend anybody :-))  , or maybe at a terminal at the library. I’m happy with economy in my trusty old chair with mangled cushion :-), we’re all heading south, yep! way down south to the southernmost point of Africa.

The visit to Agulhas a few months ago, was partly documented a few blogs ago, so this is just going to latch into those. SanParks (South African National Parks)  have built some really cool timber chalets that are neatly positioned just above the dune, very much with the environmentally friendly concept of touching the ground lightly, one of these was my lodgings for the time there. They are placed pretty close to the shoreline, close enough that you can hear the thundering waves through the night. This is the Cape of Storms after all.

 As I had made a detour to the village when I first arrived, I got to the chalet when it was dark. I knew the sea was in front of the unit, though it was difficult to assess how far. The sound of the sea was loud enough that it felt like a couple of hundred metres. So, I set an alarm for about half an hour before dawn, and discovered it was still dark outside. I ventured outside, torch in one hand, camera backpack on one shoulder and headed out to try and shoot the sunrise. I used the torch to lead the way to where I could hear the waves thundering onto the shore, as I moved closer I realised that maybe the sea was a little further than I thought!!:-( and that maybe the crashing sound of the sea was deceptive.

I noticed the first light breaking through, and realised one other thing, the direction of the sunrise was a bit different to where I was expecting it. I know, no preparation!! rule one when you’re planning something like a sunrise shoot, is preparation. But, I can be spontaneous, remember, so I improvised. Got the tripod out, set up the camera and took a few shots. The foreground was still dark, and I remembered reading about “painting with light”, in low light situations, so I recruited the torch into providing some ambient lighting. Not exactly, successful I would say, but good enough for a first try. Then edged a little closer each time, heading towards the shoreline. By then, the sun was rising quite quickly, and within moments there was a glowing furnace emerging from behind the dark horizon. I really enjoy the colours in the sky just before the sun emerges, because there is this rich blue, thats enriched by this early light, and there is a fusion with this orange red that creates a palette of blues and pinks that are incredible.

I thought it was appropriate that we return to the Southernmost point of Africa for the dawn of the new day, after the little excursion in the North. The journey continues…………………..

Todays images are about those wonderful moments before sunrise……………. welcome back home 🙂

 Canon 7d, Canon 18-200mm lens f3.5/5.6, ISO 100, F5.0, 30 sec, FL=18mm

Canon 7d, Canon 18-200mm lens f3.5/5.6, ISO 100, F5.0, 30 sec, FL=18mm

Canon 7d, Canon 18-200mm lens f3.5/5.6, ISO 100, F5.0, 13 sec, FL=24mm

Canon 7d, Canon 18-200mm lens f3.5/5.6, ISO 100, F10, 15 sec, FL= 100mm