Autumnal November winds have stripped the last remaining colour from the landscape. Colourful trees that days ago where a riot of colour, are now dark almost lifeless statues in the landscape. At this time of year in Ireland the landscape takes on almost dull sodden appearance. My cue to hit the beach for some seascapes.

One thing this time of year brings is sunrise at a respectable hour. Rising at nearly eight a.m. it’s nice to get out of bed at a respectable hour.

Beaches are a wonderful place to photograph. No day is ever the exact same, with each new tide it brings shifting sands with small streams coming and going. Throw in a nice sunrise and the magic begins. A nice challenge for a photographer.

Foreground can make or break a photograph. Take the first image below. It’s taken on the beach at Laytown Co Meath Ireland. The foreground is the pivotal factor in the image. It begins in the bottom left of the frame and as it curves into the frame it leads your eye through the picture. Giving it a flow that works.

With the next picture on the right the foreground is used in a different way. It's taken on a fairly dull day on the beach at Baltray Co Louth Ireland.

The ship was beached in 70s. Depending on the story you believe it happened for tax reasons, drunken crew, or simple pilot error.

In this image I have endeavored to use the texture of the sand to add interest. But have also used the flow of the patterns in the sand to grab your eye and lead it into the picture. The sepia toning gives an old world field and brings life to a fairly flat sky.

So there you go my words of wisdom for this month. Hope you get something out of what I was trying to achieve.