Focus Ball Sunset with Skip Cohen

The sunsets here on the Gulf Coast of Florida are spectacular, but I wanted something different. A while back I bought a focus ball, but had never used it. So, off I went to Nokomis Beach with camera, focus ball and a few conch shells we've collected.

The image was captured with a LUMIX G9 and the LUMIX G Vario 14-140mm F3.5 - 5.6 lens, a Platypod Max and a focus ball. The image was tweaked slightly in Luminar using the clarity booster tool.

What the image doesn't capture is the storm that came in seconds after I clicked the shutter. The rain came down so hard that I was afraid of losing the camera, as I made a mad dash for my car! Being only a mile from my home, I had taken the camera, already set up on the Platypod Max, and never bothered with my camera bag.

When the skies opened up, I tucked the setup under my t-shirt and ran! The image was shot at f22 @ 1/13 ISO 200, which I never could have done handheld - the Platypod gave me the ability to be as low as possible and right on the beach.

You can find Skip at SkipCohenUniversity.com