The night before Christmas, I went for a walk with my daughter Ocean Rose along the boardwalk by the winter-wind swept beach where we live. This year our neighborhood covered a selection of trees along the beach in lights dubbing it “Light Up The Beach.” I snapped this while Ocean stood gazing up at the glimmering display around us.

I used my Lumix GH4 with a Metabones MFT Mount to add a Canon 16-35 Zoom to the setup. The Zoom meant I could remain at a distance to grab the full tree and watch Ocean as she wandered, and the 4k on the Lumix is fun for keep-able home video style shoots.

I chose this shot, not because it is particularly brilliantly resolved or focused, It’s stopped down too much, the colors blend or buzz, and the faint, creepy, fading trees in the background are hazy, but the overall effect captured the mood, and that’s what counts. The beach was slightly foggy, and the glow made a spooky and magical display. The trunk of the tree splits the image in half and this is a bit of a framing no-no, but somehow the dark and back lit outline of the tree just feels so slinky and mysterious. It works.

The beaches are strewn with these bedazzled trees making for a walk like out of Middle Earth’s Elven realms. Ocean also helped snap a shot or two. We start them early in the Reichmann household. She is just three.

I find this time of year the perfect time to walk aimlessly and shoot. It’s a great way to make space from an overwhelming family or from the consumerism and tension or exhaustion that the holidays can present. Or to switch subjects from snapping family pics.

From Irene and I and our entire family and the Lula team, we wish you a relaxing and peace-filled Christmas, Channuka, or holiday wherever you are and however you celebrate.

Josh Reichmann

December 2019