May 2009 Photograph of the Month: Sunset at Pigeon Point

Sunset at Pigeon Point

This month’s photograph is titled “Sunset at Pigeon Point”

In my work I am usually facing the wrong direction to see the sunset, so this is a somewhat unique image for me. I shot this image as part of a series I was working on at the Pigeon Point Lighthouse; it has turned out to be my second best selling stock image. The Pigeon Point lighthouse is unique in that it is the only “classic” lighthouse on the West Coast. Its tower-like structure is required due to the low cliffs that are available at this location, while elsewhere along the coast the cliffs provide the elevation required to lift the lighthouse up out of the fog on the surface of the sea.
This was a difficult image to create because I wanted detail in the lighthouse without creating a solid black silhouette. To achieve this I needed to wait until very late in the sunset cycle, beyond what most people see as complete darkness, and then I light-painted the lighthouse with a two million candlepower spotlight from the camera position. The result was the perfect combination of darkness and light to capture the mood of the scene.

It was challenging not only because of the technical and creative obstacles I needed to overcome, but also because once it was done I was 100 feet from the beach  negotiating rather treacherous wet rocks covered with seaweed in the dark with my camera bag & tripod, the tide was rapidly advancing and I had a 25 foot cliff to climb. I made it out safely and now have both an interesting story to tell and a wonderful image to share.

I hope you enjoy this month’s photograph.

All images in my “Photograph of the Month” series are sized and formatted as a screen saver or computer desktop wallpaper. You can click on the image to open in a new window or download; please, share it with your family and friends, with my compliments.