The Iconic Split Point Lighthouse At Night
Actually our landscape photography workshop concluded at dusk, but a few of the group agree to stay on with me for an impromptu night photography session.
That’s when I made this photo of the iconic Split Point Lighthouse, lit with red light, at night.
I remember how cold the night became.
Nonetheless, I always find that making photos is so much fun that any physical discomfort is greatly minimized by the intensity of the experience. You’re really in the moment when you’re making photos.
The results can be amazing, but don’t underestimate the value of the actual experience of making photos when the light is right. It can be a transformative and, on occasions, a transcendental experience.
What’s more, it’s legal. Now what’s not to like about that.
Ultimately, you do have to suffer a lit bit for your art. And I’ve missed loads of nice dinners when traveling around the world to make photos.
“You can always eat tomorrow.”
I don’t know how many times I’ve had to reassure myself with those words.
No doubt you’re wondering how I went about making this very usual night photo of the Split Point Lighthouse.
I guarantee there’s no photoshop hocus pocus involved.
Being white, the lighthouse was going to reflect quite a bit of the light that reached it. However, given that it was nighttime, there just wasn’t all that much light reaching it.
As a result, I had to think creatively. That meant finding a relatively portable, diffuse and bright lightsource that could be directed onto the surface of the lighthouse.
I parked my car, a Subaru Forester (to date, the best car I’ve owned), in such a way that the lights from the back of the car would illuminate the lighthouse.
For an even more evocative effect I asked one of the participants to hold down the break pedal on my car to illuminate the lighthouse, with red light, while I made the photo.
Of course, that was after I’d done the same thing for the rest of the group.
The photo was made with a Canon 24 mm f/1.4 L series USM lens mounted onto my then Canon 5D camera. The exposure was made with my camera set to a relatively modest 400 ISO, a shutter speed of 30 seconds and an aperture of f/4.
I think this photo is a great example of how creative photography can be when your primary motivation is fun.
Outside of the creative approach, to illuminate the lighthouse with the red colored light emitted from my car’s break lights, I’d say the photo came about as a result of the following:
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Being prepared to accept physical discomfort for the sake of your art
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A willingness to experiment
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A cooperative approach to making photos