Sunset Cliffs Beach “Endless Summer”

This was the last day of summer 2013. It was a warm and mild evening as I sat on a knit blanket at the Sunset Cliffs Beach with two of my most favorite things in the world: my camera and my husband. As I looked around, I was completely taken in by this moment: the colors, the clouds, the sailboat in the distance. A group of people were dancing around a small bonfire making music with their guitars - their movements and their notes almost rhythmically aligned with the sound of the crashing waves. I could smell the faintest scent of ash as the wind carried the burning fire our way, and it mixed well with the salt from the ocean and sand. The wind was so warm and gentle that night and its sound so perfect that I just sat there mesmerized by it all. Seconds later, I turned my gaze slightly to the right to witness these two playing in the white water. At this singular moment, I felt that all of these elements somehow began to merge, becoming one. I wanted to visually convey this feeling so I used a very long exposure to allow the elements to literally merge into one another. When I look at this moment, I can still remember the taste of the ocean salt.