If you spend any time looking for advice on shorebird photography, you’ll hear it over and over: “don’t chase, just find a [safe] spot on the beach and wait for them to come to you.” I’ve tried it over and over, and it’s never really worked. I’ll plop down on the beach, watch the birds wander away, and eventually get chased off by a big wave before they wander back. I’ve long suspected this advice works best on the east coast, which has wider beaches and calmer waters.
At last, I’ve figured out how to apply this advice on the west coast. The first step is to wait for a low king tide, something that only happens on three or four days per year. Next, check the weather. You want scattered clouds at the end of the day, the kind that will really cause the light to pop off at sunset. Finally, find a comfortable spot on the beach and try to line up a scenic composition across the mudflat, with a distant plover silhouetted against the many-hued clouds illuminated by the setting sun. Then, and only then, will the little jerks walk up and pose for a portrait right in front of your lens, tantalizingly outside of the frame you envisioned ever since the forecast first started coming together at the beginning of the week.
I still love these adorable little avian snowcones. Maybe they, the tides, and the clouds will all line up for me next year.