January 19, 2020 Glory Day

Normally by the time the weekend comes, I’m exhausted from work and just looking forward to being able to sleep in. There’s no time for rest in the winter though, with mostly cloudy skies and ENE wind on the forecast, the day started early for me. Right at the crack of dawn, I stared out my window and saw a familiar faint pink glow on the horizon. I call this the pre-burn, where the sunrise colors would appear, fade, and suddenly become intense. About 12 minutes before sunrise, I paced back and forth in my room debating whether I should run out with the camera or just launch the drone from my back porch. I decided to fly so I could get a good angle in case there were only partial colors. As I got to the outside bar, I noticed groomed peaks and said “god damn, it’s good”. The entire sky lit up, the sea turned pink and purple. The color only lasted for less than a minute and a half before it started to fade. Not too long after, the sky and water was completely drab.

The day had just begun. As the tide dropped throughout the morning, clean, lined up A frames were making it’s way from the depths. A good size crowd developed at Moraga, where it was less walled out. I headed up to the top of the hill as bigger sets hitting double overhead+ appeared. I almost exhausted my memory card within an hour. I was worried about the overcast lighting, but at times the sun almost pierced through the thick layer of clouds, giving my photos a gloomy tone. Today was one for the books.

January 11, 2020 The Intertidal

Low tide was a -1.4ft right at sunset and the swell was mellow so I decided spend the afternoon at Maverick’s Beach in Half Moon Bay with some friends. We were lucky enough to get a parking spot despite the large crowds. We started the walk out the point and the tide was already dropping fast, exposing much of the reef. About halfway to the point, anemones and mussels were visible. I tried to find the sea urchins and perhaps do a little taste test of some fresh uni. Right at the edge of the reef was where it was dense packed with starfish, urchins, rock crabs, you name it. Even though we had waders on, it’s important to be mindful of the ocean; a rogue wave landed us in over knee deep water. We couldn’t stay long, as the temperature dropped fast and the howling wind was causing watery eyes.

It was great to see the Ochre star making a comeback. It’s amazing to see the amount of living organisms in an area where it’s know to be chaotic and tumultuous. I wish I had a bit more time and calmer wind to do some macro work, more reason to go back.

January 3, 2020 Looking Forward

Risso’s Dolphins. January 2020

What did I learn from all these past years? Nothing really matters. 

I used to care about the littlest of things, like what brand of shoes I wore, spend vast amounts of money on material items or spend all my mental energy trying to prove to people what’s right or wrong. I look back at the countless hours spent texting on my phone, or watching random videos on my computer, and getting nothing from it (other than worse eyesight). There is no better time to take back control of our lives. For me it’s simple: spend more, if not all, my time doing what I love, seeing the world around me, meeting new people, and learning. If I’m not learning, then it’s not worth my time.

I started to live by a quote said by one of my favorite authors:
“9 out of 10 concerns are unnecessary” – Martin Lindstrøm

Happy New Year.

December 25, 2019 Christmas Day

Today’s conditions brought me back to winter of 2012, a day consisting of heavy rain and barrels. The forecast called for overcast clouds, rain, and moderate ESE wind. I prepared my foul weather gear in case I still had to be out there shooting if conditions were good enough. The NWS issued a beach hazard warning in advance of an incoming swell that took effect Christmas morning, but contradicted the forecast on Surfline, which said the swell wasn’t moving in til the evening. Nevertheless, it really cleaned up as the tide dropped late morning. The offshores gained momentum and layers of clouds started to appear. What was fascinating was how fast the clouds were changing, morphing into different shapes and forms by the minute. There was plenty of barrels to be had, a green room almost every wave. The lefts were peeling, the rights were draining. The sun almost poked through the thick layer of Nimbostratus clouds at times, giving the waves a classic dark green look with a dark blue background. The forerunners did not show up until right before dark, and amazingly, I was spared the rain for the day.

Merry Christmas.

November 28, 2019 Thankful

Wintergreen. November 2019

It’s that time of the year again when we’re supposed to be thankful and spend valuable time with our friends and family. Ironically, it is also the time when we’re encouraged to spend more money on unnecessary stuff because everything is 50% off or something. I looked out the window first thing in the morning and saw a familiar offshore spray; I was not expecting it to be that good since the wind was howling WNW a couple days before. This year, instead of spending all day on the internet and debating whether I should sink entire paychecks for more camera gear, I layered up, grabbed my camera and walked to the beach. Out front of my house, the waves weren’t that great; it was kind of wonky still and the tide was rising to a 5.9ft. I scoped around with my binoculars and noticed one peak way down south was continually spitting. It turns out there was an inner bar, making it super hollow, fast, and dumpy. I quickly made my way down. The sets kept coming; surfers were making it out of deep barrel sections; it was hard to leave despite my hands freezing from the cold wind and my camera battery running low. The swell wasn’t that big, but it was super clean even with the inside current ripping south. It wasn’t long before I realized I had been there almost all morning. I went home, ate a quick lunch, grabbed another battery and headed back out. Rarely does it stay consistently good from dawn to dusk, but it was, so I couldn’t leave. It was a classic winter day. 

Happy Thanksgiving.

November 23, 2019 Winter Arrival

There was something about today’s conditions that felt nostalgic to the winter of 2012. Blue skies, ENE wind, double overhead, giving OB the classic green winter look. A good size crowd was out in the lineup as well as the dunes.

October 27, 2019 Too Offshore

Is there ever such a thing as too offshore (for surfers)? The weather forecast predicted wind gusts up to 40+ mph which was bad news for the wildfires but exciting news for surfers and surf photographers. I heard the wind howling in the early hours of the morning. At the crack of dawn, I put on my wind breaker and headed out to see how the ocean looked. Most of the smoke had blown south, allowing the morning light to shine through. The wind gusts were so strong it felt like a sandstorm at the beach, causing difficulty standing up straight at times. The swell came up and I could see the inside current ripping south. A few dawn patrollers attempted to paddle out. The wind was substantial enough to create offshore white caps, and caused the lips of the waves to be very crumbly. Once in a while admits the chaotic looking sea, a gem peak or left would appear. It didn’t take long for sand to get into my eyes and all over my camera; I quickly took some shots and returned to shelter.

October 16, 2019 Cloud Fire

Another round of “nuclear or dud” commenced tonight. An hour before sunset, the sky was gray, and the horizon had a thick gray cloud layer which usually indicates a dud (i.e. not a good sunset) due to the horizon being blocked. I noticed the cloud layer seemed closer in distance than the higher clouds; there was a bit of orange color glowing from underneath. I had a hunch it was going to be a burn if the horizon was clear behind the cloud layer. After many times of missing good sunsets by being lazy, sitting at home, and hoping it was going to be anticlimactic, I decided it was best to take the camera out and see the result. As I left the house, I saw the clouds behind me light up; it almost looked as if they caught fire. I ran as fast as I could to the beach. The clouds ignited with orange and pink before my eyes, as I kept telling myself “I knew it I knew it”. I had my zoom lens on so I couldn’t capture the entire sky, but I was about to see the details of the clouds. Even though the waves were mediocre, there’s nothing like watching nature’s color show. Long after the sun went down, the clouds still had color, still burning.