Sunrise - David Mathre Photography

Five-Years Ago (10-January-2013) — Florida

Gone to See America. January 2013 Florida Road Trip. Day 7: Merritt Island and Ponce de Leone Inlet Lighthouse.

Before starting my drive back to New Jersey, I spent the morning on Merritt Island. First for sunrise at Playalinda Beach at Canaveral National Seashore, then for a drive through Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge — both along Biolab Road and Black Point Wildlife Drive. The previous day there was heavy fog in the morning so I didn’t go to Playalinda beach. This beach is favored by surf fishermen. While driving north I also stopped at the Ponce de Leone Inlet Lighthouse near Daytona, Florida.

Rather that using the big telephoto lenses, all of the images on this day were taken with a Nikon D700 with a 28-300 mm VR lens, a Leica X2, or a Nikon 1 V2 and 18.5 mm f/1.8 lens. All hand-held, no tripod.

Ponce de Leone Inlet Lighthouse near Daytona, Florida. Image taken with a Nikon D700 and 28-300 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 40 mm, f/11, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)

Lighthouse Replica at the Hidden Treasure Rum Bar and Grill. It is right across the street from the real Ponce de Leone Inlet Lighthouse near Daytona, Florida. Image taken with a Nikon D700 and 28-300 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 300 mm, f/13, 1/400 sec). (David J Mathre)

Five-Years Ago (08-January-2013) — Florida

Gone to See Florida 2013 Road Trip. Day 5: St. Petersburg and Merritt Island.

I started the day at Fort De Soto park for sunrise. There is a small beach at the end of the road where you can watch the sun rise under the Sunshine Skyway bridge. I then drove across the state to Merritt Island to spend a couple of days at the National Wildlife Refuge.

Sunshine Skyway Bridge at Sunrise from the East Beach at Fort DeSoto Park. Image taken with a Nikon D800 and 300 mm f/2.8 VR lens (ISO 100, 300 mm, f/11, 1/320 sec). (David J Mathre)

Dawn from the East Beach at Fort DeSoto Park in Florida. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V2 camera and 18.5 mm f/1.8 lens (ISO 160, 18.5 mm, f/4, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)

Hawk on a Palm Tree in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V2 and 180 mm f/2.8D lens (ISO 800, 180 mm, f/2.8, 1/640 sec). FOV = 486 mm. (David J Mathre)

Wood Stork in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. Image taken with a Nikon D4 and 300 mm f/2.8 VR lens (ISO 1600, 300 mm, f/2.8. 1/160 sec). (David J Mathre)

Three-Years Ago (04-January-2015) — Argentina

Gone to See Antarctica 2014/2015. Hurtigruten Christmas Voyage. Day 19: Beagle Channel on the way to Ushuaia and Debarkation.

Although everyone was celebrating late into the night, I still got up early to check out the clouds at dawn. I knew we were approaching the southern part of Patagonia, and I was not disappointed. Even better, I was the only one out on the upper deck, and didn’t have to worry about the rude passengers from China with their bigger lenses walking in front of me while I was taking pictures. Shortly thereafter, the spotter for the Chinese tour group showed up and got on the walkie-talkie telling folks to come up. By the time they got on deck the colors were gone, but I had my picture.

Final Dawn Clouds, Beagle Channel on the way to Ushuaia from the Upper Deck of the MS Fram. Image taken with a Leica T camera and 23 mm lens (ISO 100, 23 mm, f/4, 1/125 sec). Raw image processed with Capture One Pro, Nik Define, and Photoshop CC. (David J Mathre)

Six-Years Ago (28-December-2011) — Florida

December Road Trip to Florida in 2011: Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge and Canaveral National Seashore

I spent one final day at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, and Playalinda beach at Canaveral National Seashore.

Sunrise at Playalinda Beach on Merritt Island in Canaveral National Seashore. Image taken with a Nikon D3 and 70-200 mm f/2.8 VRII lens (ISO 200, 100 mm, f/11, 1/400 sec). (David J Mathre)

Wednesday (27-December-2017) — Florida

Gone to See Florida 2017/2018 Road Trip. Day 7: Sunrise at Fort De Soto Park.

I began the day early at Fort De Soto park with my brother to watch the sun rise under the Sunshine Skyway bridge. The sky was just starting to show some signs of light when we arrived. There was a line of clouds above the Skyway bridge, and it looked promising for the sun to come up under the clouds. I set up two cameras, one with a 16 mm wide-angle lens, and one with a 500 mm telephoto lens to do time-lapsed sequences of sunrise.

Cameras set up to photograph the sun rising under the Sunshine Skyway bridge from Fort De Soto Park in Pinellas County, Florida Image taken with a Leica T camera and 11-23 mm wide-angle zoom lens (David J Mathre)