The Story Behind... Blue Hour at Cowes Jetty

Back from my holiday in Phillip Island, I posted this new photo in my 500px gallery (http://500px.com/photo/65154481), titled "Blue Hour at Cowes Jetty"

Blue Hour at Cowes Jetty (c) Gilles Royer 2014 - Nikon D200 / AF-S Nikkor 18-70mm / 24mm / 3sec / f/3.8

Phillip Island is situated east of Port Phillip Bay, and is famous worldwide for hosting the Moto GP in February. But as I discovered this week, it is a beautiful spot, only 1.5 hour or so from Melbourne, and full of stunning landscapes and outdoor activities. 

On Wednesday morning, I got up early to have a go at the sunrise. Staying in Cowes, on the North side of the island (and being the main town thereof), I decided to go close, to the jetty. I took a few shots, from the beach on the western side of the jetty, then moved to this side (east) as I thought the long jetty would block most of the sun as it rises behind it. I therefore settled at the start of the jetty, and waited for the sun to point its nose over the horizon. This one was taken in the blue hour before the actual sunrise.

I had my tripod, and screwed on a polarising filter in front of the lens, and set it for a long exposure - 3 seconds - at ISO 100, to get maximum details, and get that smooth effect over the water. The light on the bottom left-hand side of the shot, on the stones, comes from the street lamp over, and helped me bring the textures of those beautiful bluestones.

Quite a few people were also walking on the jetty, so you can see some silhouettes there. That's the perfect time for fishing, not just taking photos!

Unfortunately, the sky was quite cloudy above the horizon, so I didn't get (looking towards the east - or to the right of the photo) a good sunrise. When the sun pierced through the clouds, it was already high above the horizon, and to bright to take directly. 

Hope you enjoy it. When I have a bit more time, I'll post more photos of the Phillip Island trip, as well as my (not happy) story re my jammed lens...

Thanks again for your visit!