How I saw it
I was stood on a cliff top in Cornwall, looking out across the sea as the evening light began to fade. The air was still and the whole scene was peaceful, and then I saw this simple, stripped back seascape. No land in the frame. Just the horizon, the open sea, and that beautifully muted sky. The colour gradient was what caught me – soft oranges near the horizon slowly fading to blues and colder tones above, with scattered clouds carrying that same orange light. The sea below mirrored the sky in tone but added its own texture – gentle waves giving the surface real depth and character, that leads you into the image.
See more seascapes
Why I photographed it
It was a gut instinct moment, what I call a “moment of inspiration”. I knew straight away I wanted to compress the view and isolate just this section – sea and sky – nothing else. I used my 200mm prime lens to zoom right in and completely remove my surroundings. It’s a tight, considered composition. And yes – I put the horizon smack bang in the middle. I know people love to say that’s not allowed. “Too static,” they say. But in this case, that central horizon line makes sense. There’s equal interest in both halves of the frame: the sky has great texture and subtle colour shifts, and the sea below has its own rhythm created by those textures. There’s a natural balance, and I took full advantage of it.
Read more about why I sometimes break the rule of thirds
How I processed it
This was a quick one. I imported the file into Lightroom and simply pressed the Auto button. I find it’s a great way to get a ‘second opinion’ – like asking Lightroom, “What do you see here?” The auto settings brought out the colours just enough, and from there I only made very minimal tweaks – just a touch of extra contrast. I didn’t want to overwork the image; the natural light and tones already said enough. The result feels honest to the moment, and I’m really happy with how it turned out.
What about you?
Let me know what you think – do you ever break the “rules” like this and centre your horizon? Or do you tend to keep to the rule of thirds? Let me know what you think in the comments. Always keen to hear how others see and shoot scenes like this.
