I was uncertain about the cloudy sky, unsure whether the Sun would peak through; I had already checked out several locations on the island. While much of the shore is privately owned, I managed to locate this public boat ramp with a colorful man-made rock wall. I imagined the rocks being a layer in the photograph, however, the sky was the unknown. I tried several different perspectives, one where I set the tripod on top of the rocks and another with it in front of them. I selected the latter and used a wide-angle lens, plus a tilt-shift adapter, so I could shift the lens downward to include the rocks.
I chose a long exposure to smooth out the water and give the clouds a swept look; to achieve that effect I used a 0.6 neutral density filter to reduce the overall light plus a 0.9 graduated neutral density to darken the sky (this combination of filters also reddened the photograph). I focused on the farthest rock because the water and sky would smooth over time and my exposure was one 1 minute and 4 seconds at f25.
I was not satisfied with the result in the LCD; I then used my high-powered LED flashlight to brighten the rocks during subsequent long exposures. By sweeping the light across the rocks while the shutter was open, I accentuated the foreground which otherwise would have been very dark. It was dark and chilly after my last exposure; I packed up and drove off.
Ultimately, after careful consideration, I felt my efforts with Shore Rocks did not produce a photograph that was commensurate with my artwork; the colored rocks were not enough of a subject, therefore, I decided not to include it in my Catalog of artwork.
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