When I’m not writing I’m taking photographs of Fort Lauderdale beach. It is an iPhone photo project that started out as a quiet walk along Fort Lauderdale beach. Now I can’t stop talking photos of the dawns here.
I love the natural & ecological aspect of our shoreline. It’s amazing what the beach is like before the people arrive.
All my photos are taken with an iPhone4. I like the iPhone because it is light (don’t like to carry much, especially when its hot and humid), robust (I’ve destroyed four name brand pocket digital cameras over the last 12 months) and can I can adjust the image right there on the beach and upload.
It’s now become an important part of my day to see just what a new dawn has in store. I love artist like Constable and Turner who could see the beauty in a cloudscape, Expressionists like Mark Rothko , Kandinsky and Die Brüke who had such impact with color and shape; Abstract Colorfield painters, and Caribbean folk art of eastern Cuba and Haiti are also a strong influence. , A walk along the beach is almost like experiencing a great work of art every day.
It is so beautifully quiet early on. There are lots of dedicated joggers along A1A – Fort Lauderdale Beach is one of the finest places in Florida for a good run – but I like to be down at the shore with sand in my toes.
Meteorologists would know for sure but Florida has such a big sky compared to the low northern skies I grew up with. The cloudscapes seemvast and full of life. That’s why I like cloudy days because that’s when unexpected light effects can happen. That’s when the dawn can take your breath away.
My favorite images of the last few years feature silhouettes of people but I respect the private nature of a beach walk and don’t often take photos like that. But every so often there’s a beauty in the scene and I just take a snap.
As I use an iPhone for most of my photos I can take a snapshot without being too intrusive. I feel quite strongly that everyone comes to the beach in a private way and this photo captures that. One of the nice things about my beach walk is coming across a sandcastle or a lost toy or a shoe – a small reminder of the joy, fun and creativity that’s had on the beach by so many people.
What I like best about the beach in the morning is just how quiet it all is! It’s genuinely like a walk in the country. I drive to my favorite spot and usually there are very few folks around. On more than one occasion I’ve walked my usual two or three miles and met not a soul.
‘Five Palms’ is a particular favorite spot. I feel that they have a strong aesthetic quality that brings me back – they are my Easter Island statues I think. I have to leave the beach, but come rain or shine they’ll be keeping an eye on things. That’s just me though – I think everyone who goes to a beach regularly feels at home there.
