Folly Beach

Falcon Heavy Fly-By

The SpaceX program and their apparently bold and limitless imagination as to what can be achieved is so admirable. To me, it represents the brightest and best of American ingenuity and I plan to visit Cape Canaveral soon to witness a launch in person. In the meantime, I went out to Folly Beach on the evening of December 28th to see if I could spot Falcon Heavy fly by. Launch time was 20:07 and the trajectory was showing that it was passing up the eastern seaboard. I took my camera along for fun, and captured this shot of the separation from the boosters as the rocket continued on its journey into orbit. What a thrill!

The Edge of America

Summer is almost over and most vacationers have returned to their homes. I don’t enjoy Folly when it is crowded but love to spend time there out of season. Yesterday was a beautiful warm evening and it felt good to walk the beach again. I have so many images of this shoreline, as do many of us locals, but it never tires, and they are never the same.

Three Generation Family Reunion

I had fun photographing a family of three generations who spent a week at Folly Beach celebrating the grandparents’ 50th wedding anniversary. It was hot, and it’s sometimes challenging to accommodate the spread of ages in such a large group, but these guys were troopers and we came away with lots of images that will provide happy memories for years to come.

Summer Family Portraits

This young family was visiting Charleston from North Carolina last week and wanted some portraits taken at the beach. The little girl was a real trooper and quick to oblige with all ideas and suggestions for activities. The baby was somewhat overwhelmed by my camera lens and sobbed inconsolably every time it was pointed in her direction. This called for some sneaky creativity on my part, but on the whole we managed to produce a series of images that they loved. I did add in one of the outtakes just for fun – there were quite a few!

Just love Family Portraits!

Studio portraits are great because you can exercise so much more control over the environment, lighting, background, etc. Conversely, outdoor portraits are fun because there is an embedded potential for unpredictability, especially when smaller kids are involved! The weather was kinda blah, and the wind was howling, which made for some interesting hair effects. Some images had to be trashed because of Marilyn Monroe type flying hems, but overall I think we captured the essence of family, which after all is the point of the shoot.

After the Storm

Mine was one of very few cars driving through a downpour headed towards Folly Beach yesterday evening. On the other side of the road, cars packed with kids and beach umbrellas were gridlocked as they tried to make it home. I’m sure it had been a wonderful day, but aside from the storm, it was dinner time and the kids were tired. I had been watching the radar and knew that it was clear on the other side of the storm cell so I was hoping for some dramatic evening skies. I was not disappointed, and I pretty much had the beach to myself!

Goodbye 2019

As we roll over another year and look ahead to 2020, may we learn from the mistakes we have made and make amends where appropriate. Life is like potpourri, the good all mixed up with the ugly and the bad. Take the good and build on it, leave the rest behind. This was the western end of Folly Beach last evening, CCPRC’s Lighthouse Inlet Heritage Preserve. Dominion Energy lit the lighthouse from 6pm until 10pm for New Year’s Eve.

The Calm After the Storm

Well Dorian took it’s sweet time to get here, after decimating the Bahama Islands. So grateful that we didn’t suffer the same damage, and so grieved for all those whose loss is incomprehensible.

Lighthouse Inlet Heritage Preserve, Folly Island

I visited the Folly Beach area yesterday evening to see what erosion damage had been done by the seasonal king tides combined with the hurricane, and found nothing too shocking. This little barrier island is morphing all the time, its shape determined by natural forces, and this was just another small adjustment. It will always be beautiful.

The Calm Before the Storm

So today a mandatory evacuation order goes into effect for pretty much the entire southeastern coast ahead of monster storm Dorian, still a powerful category 5 hurricane after roaring through the Bahamas. As I start to pack stuff up and move things to more secure locations on higher ground, I thought I would post these images taken a couple of evenings ago out at Charleston’s Folly Beach. A few clouds scudding across the sky, but a beautiful balmy summer’s night, the calm ahead of the storm. The last stars we will probably see until the storm passes. Prayers for safety for all.

The Wild Side of Folly

Some of my favorite times to experience Folly Beach are when it’s wild and gray and gusty. Sunny days with children paddling and colorful beach umbrellas are great, but so are the days when storm squalls race across the sand and you know you have no chance to outrun them. The clouds are unruly and the sand is stinging, but it’s wonderfully beautiful all the same. This was such a day.