Life's a Beach: The Wild Wave Riders of Spring Lake



The Wild Wave Riders of Spring Lake, photographed August 2011 Spring Lake, New Jersey
by Shannon Finney

The trip to Spring Lake, New Jersey is an annual summertime ritual for my family.

It's a special time, with all day sessions in the sands and sea on the Jersey shore.

It's a Snooki-free day at the beach where my nieces and nephews are the stars

of the show. This is one of my favorite shots from a perfect day at the beach.

Life Is a Beach: Hot Sand, Blue Sky

From the Life Is a Beach series, photographed August 2010, Spring Lake, New Jersey by Shannon Finney

The sun, sand, sky and sea often combine to make the most interesting

pictures. I know that shooting in the bright, midday sun is usually viewed as

an exercise in frustration. The best books on photography characterize a

photographer's relationship with direct sunlight as adversarial, so I decided to

embrace the sunlight in this photograph. It's a lot of fun to break the rules,

and it seems that there's no better time than while on vacation:)

Life Is a Beach: Beach, Bucket, Baby

Photograph by Shannon Finney, Summer 2008, Spring Lake, New Jersey

While most of the United States is in the grip of one of the

worst heatwaves in history, it's nice to be reminded of cooler

times and ocean breezes. This is one of my favorite

reminders of the joys of summer:)

The Boys of Summer 2011

Photographs by Shannon Finney, Shot on location, July 5, 2011, Washington, DC

Summer in the city is usually a series of mad dashes along the crowded, fire-hot sidewalks into the crisp air-conditioned cold of an office building or the sticky

steaminess of a subway car. But for the city's smallest citizens, summer time is

the time for endless days, swimming pools, and the intense delight of a sudden

downpour. Children see summer through ice cream cones and frozen pops, and the

feeling of fresh, wet grass under their bare feet. On a trip to the National Zoo

the other day with my nephews, I forgot the boiling hot sun and simply enjoyed a

day filled with shaved ice, amazing animals, and memories of my own carefree

summer days.



Coming Home

Photographs by Shannon Finney, June 27, 2011

In honor of Veterans' Day, here is a repost of one of my favorite
Shannon the Photo Gal moments:)

Monday morning was one of the best mornings I've had in a while. I skipped

my usual double espresso and, instead, headed out to the airport to

witness the arrival of my friend, David, from a yearlong military

deployment. Looking at his wife Julie and their daughter, Evie,
throw their arms around each other, I wondered about this
innate impulse every creature has for home. Home is a place of
rest and a place of joy, and on days like today, I can't help
but feel that this longing for home isn't God's way of showing us
a glimpse of God's nature. So welcome home, David, and to the
hundreds more who are taking this same journey.

Selections from the Summer, Sand, and Sea Series

"A Prayer", Photo by Shannon Finney, April 2007, Outer Banks, North Carolina

When I'm at the beach, my favorite time of day is early

morning, before the brightly colored umbrellas begin

to dot the sand scape, before the first sandcastles of the

day have been constructed, and before the screams and

giggles of the children at play on a day at the beach. In

the morning, the only sounds are waves and gulls. On

the morning that I snapped this photo, I had noticed this

lone surfer striding down the beach, board in tow, each

step more deliberate than the next. And then he stopped,

and stood looking out. I don't know if he was praying or

meditating or just simply looking out, enjoying the view.

But for that moment, the beach was transformed into

sacred space.



Portrait of the Artist: Composer/Conductor Julian Wachner



Photograph by Shannon Finney, July 2010, Washington, DC

It's always fun when a portrait shoot takes an unexpected twist, and when

the shoot involves Julian Wachner, well let's just say that it wasn't all

THAT unexpected:) Julian sports lots of titles: doctor, maestro, composer

organist, pianist, professor, and, the most recent addition, Director of Music

and Arts for the renowned music program at Trinity Wall Street Episcopal

in Lower Manhattan. But behind all of the genius is a generous man

with a great sense of humor, and hence the photo above. While it

may not make his next CD cover, it's got a place of honor on my wall.