Flying High in a Bright Blue Sky

Have you ever snapped a picture and been pleasantly surprised with the resulting image that you captured?




Last weekend, my wife and I made another trip to the beach--this time on the "Gulf of Mexico side" of the state. It was perfect beach weather. I had taken my Canon Power Shot camera with me and as we relaxed on the beach, I tried to take some pictures of the seagulls that were pestering some neighboring beach goers for food.


Because the sun was bright and my eyes are advanced in age, I wasn't sure that I had anything worth keeping, but that is one of the nice things about digital photography. You can push the shutter as often as you like without incurring a great deal of expense, and then just delete those shots you don't want to claim as your own!


I clicked off five shots before the seagulls went off to find more willing patrons, not realizing until I got home that in my last attempt I had captured the image that I had been going for.


It reminded me of a time when my college roommate (the now famous photographer, Gary S. Chapman) and I went to the beach and tried to capture photographs of seagulls back lit by the sun. (If I remember correctly, he got the shot he wanted and published it in a supplement to the university newspaper.)


No award winning shot here, but a nice reminder for my wife and myself of how perfect the day was for "beach going."


And even more amazing--the photograph was captured without either one of us getting pooped on!