As the weather warms up, more clients are thinking about doing their photo session outdoors, especially on a beach.  Although any beach can be a beautiful backdrop for a family photo, I always try to find something special in addition to the ocean & the sand.  When I arrived at the Fitzerald Marine Reserve, I fell in love with a gorgeous pathway with flowers and rustic fence even before I got down to the water!

 

 

 

 

Fitzerald Marine Reserve is on Hwy 1, just north of Half Moon Bay Airport.  Easy to get to, easy to find, and importantly, easy to park as there is a big parking lot very close by.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There's such an energy about this place!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once I made it down to the water, it was quite something to see all the rocks exposed during the low tide.    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I didn't see any cool creatures in the water between the rocks.  And when I looked up, I saw the seals! That was amazing!  I switched to a longer zoom lens and was able to see there were a good number of harbor seals hanging out on the rocks.  Later a lady told me that the seals just had their pups in the last month or two.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After checking out the beach, I headed up the bluff trail on the other side of the parking lot to find a dense forest of trees.  The trees almost looked dead (hope I'm wrong!) and gave such an other-worldly feeling up here compared to down by the water.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But it was gorgeous looking back down on the ocean!