Imagine standing there at Cove Bay, the air thick with the scent of salt and damp seaweed. What struck me immediately wasn’t the sweeping vista, but the intimate detail of these pebbles nestled in the rock. It was a study in textures, a microcosm of the Moray Coast rugged beauty.
I knew instantly this called for the TS-E 17mm. That lens, with its ability to manipulate perspective, was crucial for capturing the depth and intricate detail I wanted. I needed to get in close, to make the viewer feel like they could reach out and touch those stones. The wide angle allowed me to emphasize the foreground, to make those pebbles the hero of the frame, while still hinting at the broader context of the shoreline.
The light was soft, diffused, perfect for revealing the subtle variations in colour and texture. I wanted to capture the damp sheen on the rocks, the way the green algae clung to their surfaces, the smooth, worn quality of the pebbles themselves. I got down low, almost eye-level with the stones, to emphasize their form and placement within the rocky crevices.
Compositionally, I wanted to create a sense of flow, to guide the eye through the scene. The natural lines of the rock formations, the way the pebbles were nestled in the grooves, all contributed to this. I used the lens’s titl capability to fine-tune the perspective, to ensure the lines led naturally into the frame and the whole scene was in focus and sharp, drawing the viewer’s attention to the heart of the image.
It wasn’t about capturing a grand landscape, but about finding beauty in the small, often overlooked details. It was about using the TS-E 17mm to capture a sense of intimacy, to make the viewer feel like they were standing right there beside me, discovering the hidden beauty of Cove Bay.