Basking

Minutes before sunrise, just off the beach, 6:42am 2/28/23.

 

 There is something about sunrise, especially when it's the first-time your vantage point is brand new.

 

 Sunday and Monday were overcast, so I knew when I woke about an hour before sunrise there was nothing to shoot.  Tuesday was a different story when I saw stars twinkling above me when I walked outside just before 6.

 Camera in hand, I walked out with a small group of people headed to the beach at 6:35, ten minutes before sunrise.  It was warm, a welcome feeling for late February, I think it was in the mid to upper 50s.

A very shallow 'skin' of water covered the beach like glass five minutes before sun up. 2/28/23 dwm

My first position was kneeling near the water line.  After a few shots, I noticed if I got a little closer I could get a mirror image of the sky as the earth rotated quickly to reveal the sun.  A tern was standing in the water fifteen-feet away.  Perhaps the bird was sleeping or waiting for some food to swim or crawl past; maybe the bird likes being photographed, I wasn't sure.

Good Morning, Myrtle Beach!  Sunrise 6:45 am 2/28/2023 dwm photo

When the leading edge of the red disk becomes visible, it feels like the sun speeds up as it appears to clear the horizon in a matter of moments.  I worked fast, framing different shots as light conditions changed rapidly.

The sun rises, the tern turns into the sky.  2/28/2023 dwm photo

The tern I was shooting must have seen what it was waiting for as it opened its wings then rose and disappeared from the frame with a few flaps.  I moved as well, looking for objects to frame this magnificent view of another day in creation.

 

Usually the subject is to the right or left but when it's the show it's center stage. 2/28/23 dwm

Admirers enjoy witnessing sunrise and a much warmer day than they'd have back home.

Back to the area where the top photo was shot. 2/28/2023 dwm photo

The sun was out of the Atlantic now, so there weren't many more sunrise photos left to shoot.  I retreated to the pool deck on the east side of the Hilton Myrtle Beach Resort for a couple dozen more shots.

Kneeling between two swimming pools on the deck. 2/28/2023 dwm photo

From the Beachcombers bar area of the pool deck. 2/28/2023 dwm photo

The sun is up - time to get cleaned up and start my day.  2/28/2023 dwm photo

It was magnificent performance.  Different than the usual view of sunrise in Wisconsin, even sunrises over Lake Superior and Lake Michigan felt different than this; I'm blessed and thankful to see the last day of February begin on my last full day in South Carolina.