I always feel a sense of serenity when I gaze at dreamy sunset ocean scenes like this.  The cool blue water polishes dark stone as it washes back to sea, while the sun turns into an orange fireball and bathes rocky sea stacks with the last warmth before the cool night sky sets in.  But the reality is that the ocean is a cruel beast.  Tempting you with beauty, all while wreaking havoc on your camera.  I dropped my tripod to only a foot high to let my Nikon 14-24 capture the gorgeous foreground.  Every incoming wave splashed salt water toward the front of the lens, constantly threatening to make me wipe the lens clean again.  I held up the lens cap while the water rushed in to keep things dry, and then quickly shot as the water retreated to the ocean.  It was its own beautiful moment, but far from calm at the time!

Capture and Post-processing:  Photographed with my Nikon D810, Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8, and Really Right Stuff TVC-33 tripod and BH-40 ballhead.  Blend of six exposures to capture the nuance of the water.  All exposures shot at around 0.5-1s to capture the essence of the flowing water.  Blending, dodging and burning, and color grading done with Lumenzia.