wild seas cover the beach in frothed foam during squall, Wombarra, NSW Australia
Parking the car was fraught with danger, as above towered a Norfolk Island Pine, it's extremities violently swaying in the roaring wind. Looking east to a non existant sunrise, dark cloud smothered the light, while an endless sea of white caps josled for position in a steel grey ocean. Fighting the wind to open the door, I'm blasted with spray, and then the heavens open and it poors horizontally. I think to myself I must be mad, but wild weather images dont come about sitting in the car sipping tea. I gather my gear, deciding to leave the umbrella. Besides being useless in such conditions, I'm not one for doing Mary Poppins impersonations at the mercy of the wind. As I walk around the headland secure in my waterproof jacket the wind slams into me with double force. There's nothing here between me and wind, and the wind knows it. Stopped in my tracks, leaning slightly forward I behold a Wombarra I've never seen before. Foam floats past in the wind, splotching against my jacket, and its everywhere, the beach is white with it, rocks are covered in it, and it moves and pulsates as the wind whips it still. This is some violent squall. I find a a patch of rocks, bare one minute, covered by a sea of foam the next and setup. By now the rain has stopped and even the sun might poke out. Quickly I compose, open my jacket and use it as a wind break, and wait. Time slips past and eventually the cloud partially parts to reveal a hint of sun, and I begin capturing moments. Seas roaring, waves breaking, foaming seas cover the rock and in minutes are blasted away by the wind. Its an ever changing environment. My legs and arms ache from trying to hold my footing without hitting the tripod. Finally the cloud swallows the sun, sombre fury returns and it rains. I return to the saftey of the car, and once inside, the elements subdued by the confines of a metal and glass box, relax, watching in a detached way the maelstrom happening outside. The feeling of wildness is not the same, I wish
Size: 4741px × 6461px
Photo credit: © Matt Smith / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: cloud, coast, foamy, illawarra, moody, ocean, place, rain, rough, rugged, sea, seas, squall, swept, weather, whipped, wild, wind, wombarra
