Inspiration at Blowing Rock

Being around water is one of those things I do not get tired of. It doesn’t matter if it’s the ocean, a spring, or a river they all call to me. I have about as much chance of keeping my feet dry when near a puddle as a 3-year-old. Don’t judge – you know rock hopping across a stream is great fun, and as long as you don’t hurt yourself (or your camera/phone!) falling in is all part of the fun.

Living in Florida for several years gave me the opportunity to get some great ocean photos; there is really nothing quite like the Keys if you are a fan of the bluest blue waters. One thing Florida beaches don’t have is dramatic rocky beaches. Unless, of course, you can find a place like Blowing Rock Preserve. It’s amazing!

I was super excited to see and photograph the water rushing up through holes in the rocks. I didn’t give a thought about timing, when I went it was a bit overcast but I was only in the area for a few days so I was going to go see it regardless. What I also didn’t think about was if it was low or high tide. I accidentally went at low tide, and I was glad that I did. Especially since I had another day to catch it at high tide when you get to actually see the blowing rocks blowing.

Because it was low tide I was able to walk between the water and the rocks. There were parts where I had to wade through the water, but of course, that just added to the appeal. There was just one thing I didn’t love about it. After winding through several kind of tight squeezes where I was bumping against the rocks on both sides I realized that there were kind of white-translucent bug-slug-shrimp things all over said rocks in some places. I did get a lot more careful about what I touched after seeing those.

I already decided after the first day that I wanted to do a series of photos of this place, it’s just too dramatic not to. But going during high tide on the second day sealed the deal. If you happen to visit Blowing Rock try to go on a weekday and right before the highest of the high tide, that is when the splashing is at its highest. Pretty spectacular!

So far I’ve only worked on one of these photos, I’m sharing a super chopped ‘creation of’ video below. I will have to perfect the art of making a quick editing video. I certainly don’t quite have it down yet, but it gives you an idea of how I spent last the week. These pictures take quite a lot of time! I’m hoping to start completing a piece a week, but as one of the full-time employed I may have to modify that goal a bit.