In a few short weeks, I will be taking what has become, over the last two to three years, an annual trip to St. George Island off the Florida panhandle. The island is very quiet and tranquil, especially at this time of year. It is also one of the few places that are dog-friendly.
As you cross the bridge onto St. George Island, one of the first things you see is the iconic Cape St. George Light, a 72-foot tall lighthouse first built in 1833. The lighthouse originally stood 65 feet high and was constructed on the island’s western end, but it’s location made it difficult to see by ships coming in from the east. When storms damaged the lighthouse in 1846, the decision was made to rebuild it on the island’s southern cape.
The new lighthouse was completed in 1848, stood 75 feet tall, and used much of the materials from the original light. However, this lighthouse only lasted three years before a hurricane blew it down in 1851. Rebuilding was completed in 1852. The new light stood further inland and was 72 feet tall. The lighthouse’s foundation was constructed of pine pilings that were buried deep in the sand, and this was thought to provide a long-lasting footing.
Time, hurricanes (especially Hurricanes Andrew and Opal), and natural erosion began taking their toll on the lighthouse over the years, and the lighthouse began developing a lean that reached as much as seven degrees from vertical. Efforts were undertaken to save the lighthouse, and, in 2002, the work was determined to be complete.
But, once again, nature was not kind to the lighthouse as beach erosion caused the lighthouse to end up standing 20 feet out into the water. Eventually, the action of the waves weakened the concrete base, and, on October 21, 2005, the lighthouse collapsed once again. Using salvaged material, it was rebuilt for the third time at its current location in the center of the island. Construction was completed and the lighthouse opened to the public in 2008.
I shot the image above a few years ago. Because it was early evening, I didn’t have to worry about contrasty lighting. My main consideration was ensuring the shutter was open at just the right moment to capture the glow of the beacon at the top of the lighthouse. To capture this glow, I watched the light a couple of times to figure out the timing of the light. Once I did that, it was just a matter of pushing the shutter button at just the right second to get the shot.
My settings were 70mm, 1/8 sec, f/8, 400 ISO.