Posted by Dave Bull at 7:37 PM, November 14, 2008
Weeks have passed since the end of the printing work on the previous print, but there has just been so much other stuff getting in the way (mostly for the Gift Print stuff ...). I had some time yesterday and today though, so got down to work on the first steps on the next one, which will be the Seacoast in Winter.
Bit of a problem with this one - there is a bit of a disconnect between what I want to do, and what the place was actually like during my visit. The Pacific coast of Japan can be a pretty wild place, and I have to use common sense when taking the tent down to 'my' beach to spend the day and night there. On gentle summer evenings, there is no danger of course, but when things get stormy, it's a different story!
When it came time to make the trip for this chapter (some years ago), I had to balance my desire to see a 'wild' view of the shore, with considerations of safety. I watched the weather forecasts carefully, and chose to make my visit on the day after a very heavy storm. I thought that this would give me a view of some good crashing waves, yet not be particularly dangerous.
It turned out well. I had a good visit, and was able to write a (hopefully) interesting story. But in those days, I had no good camera at all (this was pre-digital), and came home with only the most basic snapshots of the kind of scene that (now years later) I need for the print. Stuff like this:
So I could certainly use a pile of better photos to help with the design, but here in mid-November, it's still too early in the season to think about making another 'stormy' camping trip to get some more, and anyway, I have to get going on it now. So I'm going to have to build the design I want by myself.
Here's a shot taken during one of my more recent trips to the coast - on a pleasant summer day:
My challenge is clear; create a good composition of rock/wave/sea/sky ... and then 'energize' it with the stormy mood to match the story ... More later ...
The thread continues in [Seacoast in Winter - 2] ...