It was cold and foggy. Just another mid-July morning on the Oregon Coast. We had stopped for a night in Newport on the way up the coast, and wanted to take a short stroll on the beach before continuing our journey. Everything was bathed in soft morning light. A featureless expanse of sand spread before us as we made our way down a steep wooden staircase. The tide was out, and the ribbon of ocean in the distance seemed to meld with the indistinct horizon line just beyond.
As our feet hit the sand, the magic began. The landscape was not as plain as it had seemed. Abstract patterns created by wind and water appeared out of the mist, stretching uninterrupted into the distance. A shallow stream meandered across the shore, etching mountain ranges into the sand.
Rocks and shells were scattered about, wet and glistening with color. Clumps of seaweed and kelp pressed into the sand, like dried flowers between the pages of a book. Everything lay stranded where it had washed ashore. Patiently waiting for the waves to return. Or perhaps waiting for someone to take notice before it returned to the sea.
Our quick stroll turned into an extended exploration. A long stretch of beach is a wonderful place to lose yourself. Our feet were pulled along by our gaze, the fresh scent of salt air filling our lungs. Time slowed down, then disappeared. We spied a few other humans and dogs off in the distance, but the sand was mostly untrammeled by footprints other than our own.
My eyes were cast downward, searching for natural compositions in the sand. Sand patterns and ocean detritus can often be difficult to photograph, marred by footprints or harsh, overhead light. But occasionally the conditions coalesce, and I can spend hours searching for ephemeral vignettes that have washed up on the shore.
I am drawn to create images like this that reveal the transitory beauty we often come across and overlook in everyday life. Every once in a while, that beauty demands to be noticed. All you have to do is look.
Nye Beach, Newport, Oregon, July 20, 2023. You can see more of this work in a portfolio of images I call “Beach Scene.” It is very much a work in progress, and I am curious to see where it leads.