Saturday, September 5, 2009

Florida Keys Day 1, Part 2 | Spending too much time with marvels along the way

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The streak in the lower left portion of this image is actually a bird that was flying around in view of the camera, as I was photographing Interstate 75's Sunshine Skyway Bridge over Tampa Bay.


I've been taking an unexpected amount of time getting to the Florida Keys for vacation, mainly because there have been too many distractions along the way.

When I embarked on this journey from Melbourne to St. Petersburg, then to the Keys, I was worried that I wouldn't find enough things to photograph. Ironically, the truth has been the opposite: So many photo ops presented themselves Friday that I likely will fall far behind in my editing. Just to hint at what I saw: Heavy thunderstorms criss-crossed my path as I traveled along Interstate 75 through the Big Cypress National Preserve, a route also known as Alligator Alley. And when I finally made it to Key Largo, the excitement didn't stop. And when I arrived in Islamorada, where I would spend the night, the excitement continued.

The photos in this post, however, come from Thursday night, after I watched the Red Sox win their series against the Rays. As I approached the Sunshine Skyway Bridge over Tampa Bay, I couldn't help but to exit Interstate 275 in hopes that a view from a nearby fishing pier would offer some interesting photos. At the gate to the pier, the attendant said fishermen usually have to pay an entrance fee, but since I was just a photographer, he let me in for free - "as long as you're quick," he said.

An hour later, I came back through the gate with these photos on my camera. The effect of the cloud cover created a halo around the full moon, as the lights from the bridge shot upward, illuminating a low deck of clouds.


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Clouds get in on the action. The bird again makes an appearance in this photo, along with a stream of scum in Tampa Bay, illuminated by lights from the fishing pier.

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In this close-up, the lights from the Sunshine Sky Bridge cast rays into the humid midnight air.

1 comment:

Thomas Damgaard Sabo said...

The ride between Melbourne and St. Pete is full of photos ops...especially on the back roads. Great shots of the bridge, looking forward to pics from the Keys...have yet to make the trip (although my wife is a native).