[Keith Alan]

Taken during my work-related visit to South Padre Island last weekend. (Port Isabel was the actual location)
Other than resizing for posting here and a minor levels adjustment this is exactly what came from the camera.

[EnglishBob]

Love it, grat composition.

[Schellamo]

Postcard perfect!

[Petographer]

Ahhh rest and relaxation. Nice photo Keith.

[matthew]

Very nice.

From the map, this must have been a sunrise. It must have been tough getting up that early while you're on vacation.

[Keith Alan]

Thanks, y'all.

Very nice.

From the map, this must have been a sunrise. It must have been tough getting up that early while you're on vacation.

Now Matthew, you know me well enough to know that the only sunrises I see are right before I go to bed.

I was in Port Isabel, 7.5 miles from Mexico at the southern tip of Texas.
On my map, the camera was aimed somewhere inside the vectors I drew, towards the mainland in a W-NW direction. You can see the land 5-6 miles away across the Laguna Madre, which is the body of water shown.
The sun has already crossed over us here in south Texas, so sunsets are to the north of due west.

P100 is the Queen Isabella Causeway, a 2.5 mile bridge that is the only way to get to South Padre Island.
Combined with the rest of Padre Island (a man-made ship channel separates the two) it's 130 mile long and the largest barrier reef in the world.

In the pre-dawn hours of September 15, 2001, a string of barges heading north on the Gulf IntraCoastal Waterway hit a bridge support, and a section of the roadway fell 85 feet into the water.
Some cars drove off into the gap, too.
8 people died, and the island was isolated except for boats for months.

This disaster would be well known had it not occurred when it did, right after the horror of 9/11.

This is a fascinating area with true stories of pirates and conquest.
Spanish gold and silver coins wash up on the beaches of Padre Island daily, from centuries-old shipwrecks just off shore.

[Banded Drake]

this is a very nice image , i like the comp. and i really like the fact that its not Photoshopped ( much at all ). Great work ...


.......... Shawn

[matthew]

Now Matthew, you know me well enough to know that the only sunrises I see are right before I go to bed.

I know, but I didn't want to be the one to say it. (I was forgetting about the latitude difference, as the sun rises southerly here.) I thought you must be shooting toward the shipping channel.

gold coins, eh? I know where I'm going for my next vacation...

[Keith Alan]

Thanks, Shawn.
The minimal editing needed was an unexpected bonus that made me proud.
(Getting a level horizon was easy with my homemade hotshoe-mounted bubble level.)

Matthew, sorry to tell you this but the coins belong to the state and keeping them is against the law.
And the last thing you want is to get in trouble with the authorities in Texas.
We execute people for nearly every offense, judging by what I read in the NYTimes...

[Banded Drake]

(Getting a level horizon was easy with my homemade hotshoe-mounted bubble level.)

thats cheating LOL , i want to cheat can you show your level ? you might be on to something here . some people just dont have a " level " eye and its tough to get level.


...... Shawn

[Keith Alan]

Hotshoe Mounted Level

The best thing about it is that after using it for a few months, my hands became 'trained' to hold the camera level.
Before, I always needed a degree or even two of CCW rotation.
After using the level constantly for a while, without even looking at it I'm usually within a few hundredths of a degree.

There are commercially available ones, but I didn't like them.
Mine was designed with my particular camera in mind, but will work on most others.