Throwing rocks at the sunset.

I needed some fresh air and exercise after a day inside making a sheath for my knife. Close to where I live is a natural harbour. I was walking around this when I decided to stop to take some pictures of the sunset, using a mini-tripod this time. My friend Ben from Eagle River, Alaska had reminded me about using the timer to eliminate shake when activating the shutter. I had taken a few shots when I was struck by an idea- if I could coincide throwing a rock into the water with taking a picture then I could get some interesting shots.

I never did complete the walk.

The ultimate picture requires a near perfect co-ordination between 3 factors- the camera, the rock and the stopwatch. This is a challenge for a man who regularly falls off the pavement/over his feet/off chairs! The camera is consistent, 13 seconds from pressing the button to taking the picture. The rock is more variable, averaging 2.5 seconds flight before splashdown. The co-ordination between pressing the buttons on camera and stopwatch (left hand and right hand together!) got harder as my fingers got colder, and it wasn’t easy to begin with. But probably the most challenging part was throwing the rock in the right direction!

After taking 35 shots I was freezing but calmer and ready to call it quits. Here are five of the best: