Manhattan Beach at Dusk, a photo from California, Ouest

Photographer's Note

Manhattan Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, 19 miles southwest of downtown Los Angeles on the southerly end of Santa Monica Bay. It is about 3 miles south of Los Angeles International Airport.

The pier showing in this picture has a length of 928ft, or 283m. At the land end of the pier is the “bay watch” station. At the far end of the pier is a small aquarium, mainly designed for children.

Manhattan Beach is one of the highest household income cities in Los Angeles. The average house income in Manhattan Beach is more than double of average household income in Los Angeles County.

This picture was taken right after the sunset a few minutes after the lights on the pier turned on.

aloyho, Emile, caspita, ChrisJ, maphoto, Fixfocus, jhm, ChristianS, nwoehnl, Jeppe, AmiBe, papagolf21, jjbach, singuanti, LEA trouve(nt) cette note utile

Critiques | Translate

aloyho (6798) 2005-06-04 1:49

Hi Wes,
I love shots taken at this time of the day. Somehow it gives a special kind of feeling - relaxing and letting go of the worries of the day. The lights are very inviting despite the strong wind. I also like the three palm trees, it balance out the composition beautifully. Great shot!! All the best.

Emile (20352) 2005-06-04 2:24

Very nice place, looks very peaceful at this time of the evening. Beautiful colors and contrasts.
You got an excellent compo with the palm trees on the right side and the pier with the lights on.
Very well done Wes.

caspita (395) 2005-06-04 4:09

Hi Wes. There are so many amazing tings about this shot. The burst of the pier lights compliment the setting sun on the horizon. The palm trees and the flag blowing in the breeze create a dramatic effect. A nice anle of the pier. The people both on and off the pier add a touch of daily like to your well composed work. Thanks.

greg64g (11193) 2005-06-04 5:19

Hello Wes,

Woow this is the californian dream, it's make me think to a movie : pointbreak, i can easily think this beach are their territory.
colors are beatuiful and i can feel the wind on my face thanks
greg

maphoto (8082) 2005-06-04 9:24

Very nice composition Wes, the long exposition gives a very moody picture, we can feel it with the flag and softness of the breaking waves. Great angle and nicely framed with the palm trees, nice view on the horizon, well seen & done.

Fixfocus (9385) 2005-06-04 11:05

Hi Wes!
A great shot with well balanced light mood.
Beautiful colors in this crisp and clear image.The motion blur of the flag is a nice detail.
well done,
hermann

cessy (13647) 2005-06-04 11:31

wow so beautiful Wes
Love the atmosphere, could stand there for looong time

jhm (211734) 2005-06-04 11:40

Dear Wes,
What a moment for this wonderful picture of the sunset, splendid perspective and excellent depth, I like this specially for the lighting!
Well seen!
John.

Galmeida (12559) 2005-06-04 12:23

Hi Wes,
Now my last critique to your recent good one, so well captured and framed. Excelent guideline notes and a so well picture made with this special time and light conditions. A really great work and a nice Beach view that you capture in great quality conditions.

Very nice, wonderful like I like beaches, and a missing surfer that you can't capture because he his missing not by your fault but by surfer hour, momment and day.

Great WORK!
Congratulations.
Fernando

ChristianS (2997) 2005-06-04 12:32

Hi Wes, a very serene scenery, with superb light and very nice colours. I like the blurred effect on the flag due to the longer exposure, it seems that it was rather windy. Well done!

Regards, Christian

premels (2400) 2005-06-04 12:35

Hi Wes, The 4 sec pause smoothed the waves alright. It also gave that strange vibrating look to the flag. The walking shadows complete the moody picture very well. Dusk and dawn are certainly a good time to walk with ones camera.

bantonbuju (51815) 2005-06-04 13:15

hi wes, this is a cool picture - the flag being unsharp incicating the wind being quite actice, the peer hitting the sundown, and the palmtrees leaning towards the middle of the frame; colors are the bonus;
nice work, bw, jerzy

nwoehnl (122) 2005-06-04 13:26

This is wonderful, Wes, one of yours that I like most I would say. The long exposure really renders a soothing mood here and a great repetitive detail from the illuminated lamps along the pier. I also like how the movement of the flag in the wind came out. The compo is well done with the diagonal pier pointing out towards the sea, and the ensemble of trees at the right. Very nice.

Jeppe (18654) 2005-06-04 13:49

Oh - I can now see why I need a new camera ;-) I miss aperture over f8.
I like the motion blur of the flag and the palm trees. The soft look of the water, gives a fine mode together with the lamppost - thanks Wes for sharing this "typically" type of pier (well known from many movies)

AmiBe (6042) 2005-06-04 16:33

Hi Wes,
nice shot, I like the pastel colors of the sky.
Nice long exposure effect on the flag.
Good exposure, I like the lights on the pier.
Good composition with the diagonal pier and the palm trees.
Well done.

papagolf21 (152605) 2005-06-04 17:15

Bonsoir Wes,
Le temps s'est arrêté pendant quatre secondes, mais quelles secondes ! Cela nous permet de voir des ombres fantomatiques traverser la composition. J'aime la mer qui prend des reflets inconnus.
Très belle réussite.
Philippe

jjbach (9326) 2005-06-04 17:59

Wonderful night shot Wes. Excellent light management and good use of slow shutter speed. Beautiful colours and amazing clarity!!
Magnificent work !!

Regards John

Kenny10pin (19301) 2005-06-04 20:16

very nice shot, I like the balls of light here, very ncie effect and the palm trees on the right, very well placed and included, well done

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singuanti (15250) 2005-06-04 23:00

Hi Wes, another spectacular California shot! I think it was an outstanding idea to do the 4 second exposure to get the movement with the flag like that. I also like the way you fit the pier and the palm trees into the shot. The lights on the pier are the icing on the cake. Well done Mr. Wes!

ChrisJ (171146) 2005-06-05 3:39

Hi Wes

I like the linear perspective of the pier, the blurred US flag, & the silhouettes of the the palm trees. Good sharpness & color. Well done!

LEA (5006) 2005-06-05 16:06

Hi Wes,
a wonderful picture ! Colors are superb and the framing ideal. Great work !

toni_al (15875) 2005-06-05 19:04

HI Wes
Très joli cadrage. Les lumières et le drapeau sont du plus bel effet
Amitiés
Toni

Kolyamour (1760) 2005-06-06 3:14

Beautiful evening picture. I like this place. Colours of the sky, lights and palm silhouettes look great. Especially I like how this flag whips in the wind.
Thanks for share.
Nikolay

kclai (2267) 2005-06-06 3:49

Hi Wes
Great shot, Calm and tranquility with the sun slowing setting creates a romantic atmosphere.
Love the bulb light which balanced up the whole scenario.
Well done.
Eric Lai

kent_s (1911) 2005-06-07 4:15

Hi Wes
A nice clear shot of this peer at dusk giving the sky sensational colors
Well done
Hälsningar
Kent

danielswalsh (13597) 2005-06-08 4:16

Nice shot Wes & Interesting note;

I like the slightly longer exposure capturing the movement of the flag in the wind, the palm trees, the waves, and the people. Nicely captured mate..

Cheer!
~ Dan

sarju (5324) 2005-06-09 15:08

Hi Wes
nice shot here ... seems like you posted quite a few very nice photos since I came to your gallery last time ... good work
I really liked this shot ... only reason I had resisted critiquing this photo was because of my prejudice against the US Flag I guess ... I am sorry if I offend you, but it is kind of hard not to hate the US flag if you are outside the US of A (I mean people don't hate US or its people, just its foreign policy .. ha ha) ... and everybody wants to end up there too .... btw I always feel that Cali and NY are the best places in US ...

neways lets talk about the photo
You must have got a pretty good wind to get such a good impression of the flag (for shutter speed of 4 sec) ... and the people on the sand also seems to be pretty still too.
very nice moody shot indeed
thanks for posting .. cheers
sarju

john_c (24666) 2005-06-09 21:53

Hi Wes. An outstanding night shot. The symmetry of the strongly lit lamps straddling the pier is excellent. The water texture is smooth and full of reflections near the shore. I very much like the blurred effect on the flag. Well composed, with strong balance provided by the palms on the right. A satisfying capture.

tlivanios (175) 2005-06-10 1:48

Nice colours with nice white water, i like what you done with flag. I luv LA even though i havent been there.

Stepan (27210) 2005-06-16 15:45

looking really american, but looking like a wonderful moment too.
Thanks for sharing it.
Stéphane

mumek (20226) 2005-06-19 21:19

Super evening shot Wes!
Very good light, the colours and the details.
Excellent work. Thanks for sharing
regards
ziggy

jbweasle (9393) 2005-06-25 9:20

Hello Wes - another great evening shot you have here. The colours are great and I love the detail of the pier. The silhouettes of the trees are fabulous. This is one of the few cases where I think a cloudless sky actually works very well. I like the graduation from pink to blue.