Guiding Light Photo

Photographer’s Note

Dedicated to Igor, Wishlist. Thanks for the list of songs.

Yaquina Head Light house.
Yaquina Head's rock outcropping and 93 foot tower are visible for several miles along the Pacific Coast Highway. The light was completed in 1873 and is a classic example of the towers of that period. Inside the lantern is a huge 12 foot high First Order fresnel lens.
The history of Yaquina is as shrouded in mystery as the cape is in foul weather. A persistent myth is that the lighthouse was mistakenly constructed in the wrong location, but mislabeled government survey documents seem to be responsible for this historical inaccuracy. In any case, Yaquina Head Light was built just north of Yaquina Bay Light, dooming the smaller tower to obsolescence.
Today the lighthouse is the centerpiece of Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area, and is one of the most-visited lights on the west coast, with over 400,000 visitors each year.

ISO: 400
f/7.1
1/15
Lighten slightly and saturation, sharpened after reduced to TE size.

Floydian, avene, fulvio52, MarianneS, niphredil76, PixelTerror, casperduppy, wishlist, zmey, paololg, gary91, didemay, Kielia, zeca, Dpbours, Wanda1 has marked this note useful

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clio (22605) 2008-09-16 10:38

Hi Way,
I am happy to be your neighbour this evening for a photo taken at the same moment of the day in two very remote countries. It is a beautiful back light full of sweetness which you present. I like very much the flight of birds.
Congratulations
Diane

Floydian (30970) 2008-09-16 10:38

Hi Way,
Nice, very nice. Not only the composition, but more that colour palet and details (the 20D still does a nice job) what is still there on the lighthouse.
Purple toning in the water looks very beautiful with as a nice twist those birds flying in formations on the right...well done, good timing.
Regards, Henk

avene (10944) 2008-09-16 10:57

hello Way,
I've always felt that the horizontal lines convey peace, calm, harmony, and that's exactly how I feel about this particular shot where you have several strong lines - the horizon, the clouds, the shoreline. the colours certainly add to the tranquil mood of the moment, as does the soft light. as others have remarked, the birds are great accent. beautiful photo, my compliments.

best,
Kristine

fulvio52 (8314) 2008-09-16 11:09

Wonderful moody shot, buddy!
Those hues are superb, and the atmosphere (which is what I REALLY LOVE in a shot) absolutely unique.
Top notch in every possible respect, my compliments!
Have a great day, see ya around.
Fulvio.

dta (5000) 2008-09-16 11:16

Hello Way ,
A wonderful picture , with nice tonalities , and an excellent composition . I like a lot the birds , making a curve in their flight , and the light tower , with a strange ray of sun on it .
Cobgratulations
Denis

MarianneS (14264) 2008-09-16 11:29

Hello Way,
A very nice composition, enhanced by lovely sweet colours.
The whole gives an incredible sensation of quietness... thank you for sharing the view.
Regards,
Marianne

rodgerg (23849) 2008-09-16 11:55

Hello Way,

Really a very good image full of pretty colors very well collected. A composition well balanced with the lighthouse well located on the left side of the image. A coloured sky with some clouds and some birds. An another superb work in your gallery.
Congratulations and good evening,
Roger

PixelTerror (86058) 2008-09-16 12:27

Hi Way,
On the left the sun is a bit too present but right of the lighthouse the pastel tones and transitions are just plain wonderful, superb place this looks like.
Have a nice day JY

casperduppy (1464) 2008-09-16 14:19

Absolutely stunning Way. Amazing light and colour. The tones are so delicate and the way the shot is divided by the various lines is magnificent. Simply stunning photography! Great one.. Casper

wishlist (4133) 2008-09-16 16:59

Way,
thank you for this amazing picture! I'm honoured and you really made my day with it. The view of the lighthouse is simply stunning and you delivered a great result well managing the light coming from the left which brought a marvellous atmosphere. The blue tone of the sky fading to the pink tone with the soft clouds painting the sky is pure poetry and you've done a great job writing it on the sensor of your camera. A very fine work indeed, I like it a lot.
Thanks again my friend and take care,

Igor

MarcT (21097) 2008-09-16 21:48

Hi Way,
Very nice light, superb colours and good use of the placement of the sun.
Beautiful scenery too.
Cheers
Marc

emka (21261) 2008-09-16 23:00

Hi Way, Beautiful view of the lighthouse. Wonderful sunset colours. I lie the composition very much.

Warm regards

Malgorzata

jimkilgallon (0) 2008-09-17 0:29

Hello Way
These are my favourite colours from a sunset, a off purple/reddish colour and a gentle cyan to compliment. The haze effect is just pure genius from yourself with the lighthouse reaching out to the sky. I went to this lighthouse myself when in Oregon but the weather was not a delight like this. You handled the exposures of the sun very well. Great work again
PS -the Pacific Northwest would be where I would live if I had the chance to live in the U.S.
Jim

mark_mk (246) 2008-09-17 6:48

Hi Way,
when first looking at the image I thought it was taken in Michigan, I saw so many spots like that in Michigan, you`ll find such lighthouses everywhere in Michigan, but as it seems also in Oregon. It`s indeed beautiful, nice sharpness and colors, but your handling of the exposure is what I like best here. Shots against the sun are always tricky, so therefore, hats off mate! Thanks for sharing, it`s indeed beautiful!

Take care
Mark

lrw1966 (1630) 2008-09-17 7:25

Way Hi:
Amazing colors - magnificent presentation
Wonderful educatonal note, as well
Congratulations, very very well composed and presented
Larry
USA-tfs

zmey (7244) 2008-09-17 8:51

hello way

perfect misty morning capture. the rising sun is exposed perfectly and i love the overall purplish mood! well done!

regards,
kristaps

Crosman (113) 2008-09-17 9:46 [Comment]

Show Comment

baba_flies (7969) 2008-09-17 9:58

Hello Way! I like the misty view the sea produces and how it softens the environment before the sun goes down. I love lighthouses and the stories that go along and sometimes I wish this time would stand still a little longer but GPS has come instead and I wonder if they produce new history as much as these towers did. Wonderful calm mood of a great evening along Oregon's coast line. I like it, I really do. Barbara.

leo61 (43336) 2008-09-17 10:01

Hello Way!
Great light indeed and wonderful pink and purple tones/The few birds are nice details/
Greetings from Turkey
Leo

bracasha75 (22017) 2008-09-17 12:35

Hi Way
Excellent photo with all needed elements for profesional work.Extraordinary...
Excellent used light and great choised angle
Very very well done
TFS
Cheers,Braca

paololg (13643) 2008-09-17 14:15

Ciao Way,
amazing mix of colors, with a suggestive halo of light that puts in evidence the silhouette of the lighthouse. This image is really a lesson of cromoterapy, accompanied by a perfect management of the light and the sharp. You have made a masterpiece of beauty.
Ciao
Paolo

gary91 (15321) 2008-09-17 15:01

Hello Way,
I am glad not to be the only one finding purple colors in the natural skies ;-)
You did here a wonderful job and the mastering of light management you demonstrate here is purely outstanding.
The composition with the light house stuck on the left and the bunch of birds occupying the other side of the image is great.
But what I really love here is the hazy foreground translating perfectly the enormous amount of light.
Your gallery demonstrates every day a little bit more your great talents, thank you for this!
Have a nice day.
Best regards, Christian

didemay (2431) 2008-09-18 4:09

Way Hello,
Burgundy, pink, violet, blue...beautiful soft tones. Veryy romantic and simple composition. Best Regards,
D:)

Ptitcaid (632) 2008-09-18 7:50

Bonjour Way,
Belle photo avec le phare qui est bien (même trop) éclairé par le soleil qui va au lit :-)))
Un beau ciel qui va bien avec ce bel avant-plan.
Salut! P'tit Caïd

Kielia (8401) 2008-09-18 12:05

Hi Way,
a phantastic composition. Due to the amazing colours you have created a very special atmosphere. Thanks for sharing this very pleasant shot!
Warm regards
Harriet

zeca (20026) 2008-09-19 20:39

Beautiful photo, Way! Lighthouse is one of my favorites themes. I like the lun lights burning the air on left. Very good job!
Regards,
Zeca

Dpbours (218) 2008-09-20 20:53

Oh wow, the light is really on the edge here! In various ways. Nice to see the off-center light and placement, giving it a nice gradual toning. And on the other side, there should not have been more light, which would have given vignetting. So it's spot on as it is. Nice

Greetings,
Dennis

Wanda1 (10923) 2008-09-21 22:06

Hi Way,
The light coming from behind the lighthouse is magical and together with those beautiful pinks and purples creates a peaceful and relaxing image, a feeling of winding down the day and taking things easy. The lighthouse is well placed off centre in the composition and the tiny dots of birds complete the image.
Regards
Wanda

rgarrigus (0) 2008-09-22 21:52

Hi Way,

Soft and serene. I love the small group of gulls flying on the right hand side of the image.

Cheers!

Bob G.

mikele_pl (2304) 2008-10-11 2:58

Hi Way,
what makes this image very special is obviously the light and colors. I try to imagine how would it have looked like, if you moved some distance to the left, so that the lighthouse and the sun would be placed in opposite sides of the picture (the lighthouse would end up on the right side). Maybe we could see some more details of the building then, and the composition would have been more balanced in my opinion. Anyway, this is a great job!

have a nice weekend Way

michal

sacimar (7381) 2009-09-04 7:15

Hi Way,

this is another great picture, the atmosphere is wonderful, colours and light management are perfect, I love the tones we can see in the image, excellent composition with this interesting lighthouse, well done my friend!

Have a good weekend!

Sergio