Sometimes getting the perfect shot can be a little frustrating and take quite a bit of patience. Most (if not all, I’m not sure) digital cameras have a significant delay between the moment you press the shutter button until the point at which the camera responds to the command. As a result, I have a library of photos taken just after the expression, or the smile fades, or the bird flies away, or in the case of these photos, just after the wave crashes.
Photographing a wave crashing means you need to pay attention to the timing of the waves. Spend some time just watching them crash over and over. What sounds does the ocean make at each point in the wave’s lifecycle?
Then take lots of pictures trying to hit just before that perfect moment to accommodate the delay in the shutter response.
And don’t be afraid to get your feet wet.
Then the blanket your husband is wearing as a cape because he forgot to bring a coat shows up in the picture.
And the cape is still in the picture when you finally get a shot of the wave crashing.
So you reposition to get an angle that does not include an ancient airplane blanket and try to pick up the rhythm of the ocean again.
every once in a while you get a cool shot, but it may not be exactly the shot you’re trying for.
so you keep trying
Well, I got a little splash there.
Oh, that’s a little better.
And finally, I got the shot I was waiting for.


































I was just trying to explain the lag time on a digital camera to my MIL. I feel like I miss so many moments because of that lag, but sometimes what I do capture is pretty cool too.
Your wait was worth it! Your post is great. Enjoy your SITS day!
Unknown Mami’s last blog post..Change
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Good job!
Janna’s last blog post..Not Me! Monday!
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Patience is good…great shot!
Jamie
Jamie’s last blog post..These are the days…
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Cute post! Try getting the perfect shot of twin 2 year old boys
OY!
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I’m not that patient. If I don’t get what I’m after in the first 5 minutes, then I tend to give up and move on. But you’re right – patience obviously does pay off, what a great set of wave photos!
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Perfect way to tell the story.. and love that last shot!!
~Tabitha~
freshmommyblog.com
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I’m always in awe of awesome photographers. Thanks for explaining a bit
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I love this series! Its so much like I was before I got my dSLR camera! I particularly love that you kept the shots with the “cape” hehe!
Candy @ Serendipity Mom’s last blog post..Shopping Stinks
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Wow, those pictures are amazing! Thank heavens for digital cameras, hu? They sure make picture taking a whole lot less painful.
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the photo was worth the wait
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Oooh NOW what you need to do is go to picnik.com…upload your picture and add a cool effect. Give your picture that polished professional look. I swear, you’ll be addicted to that website if you try it.
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beautiful pictures…Contrats on your sits day!
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Beautiful!
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That’s too funny. I take most of my pictures with my iPhone and I have to definitely do that delay thing for pics of my son on a swing, running, even turning around to look at me. I have lots of “smeared” images… too many to even count.
My stepdad has a digital camera that acts like a film camera. Unfortunately it cost +$1000.
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Nice progression! Great job on your pictures!
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I would have patience if I lived near the ocean.
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Patience definitely paid off! Great pics!
Melissa’s last blog post..What Have We Done?
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Wow, you are patient. Far more patient than I am
Then again, while I do try for the good pictures by taking many of them — I also then immediately delete all the ones I don’t like! I love the ocean and waves crashing on rocks… maybe that I could enjoy enough to keep taking pictures!
Michelle’s last blog post..Tasty Tuesday!
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I love that you shared the process that can be so frustrating!
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What a fun post… and all the photos were amazing.
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You are a patient person!
Jessica’s last blog post..Good Things Utah!
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Great pictures!
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Beautiful! It was worth waiting for!
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How beautiful! I love pictures of the ocean!
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that is a great shot!
Visiting from SITS!
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Great post! The last picture is fabulous, and I totally know what you mean about the stupid digital camera delay. It makes it really hard to get any pictures of my son smiling since he moves 100 miles per hours at all times.
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this post has inspired mealot. i’ll agin onwards try to be more patient
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those photos are wonderful
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Not sure where you are, but I’m pretty sure I have the same exact set of photos from the coast of Maine
Zillion and zillions of “missed the wave crash” pixs
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