Shark Fin Cove is located in Davenport. It's a town about 10 miles from the surf and University vibes of the more well-known Santa Cruz city. When you first arrive at Shark Fin Cove, it’s unclear if you’ve just walked into a post-apocalyptic movie or a hidden beachy paradise. Its unpredictable landscape and remoteness have become one of my go to spots for seascape photography.

Shark Fin Cove offers something different for the people who are willing to make a slightly longer trek up Highway 1. For photographers, you don't get a better spot then tucking your tripod and camera underneath the arches of a gorgeous rock formation and watch the veracity with which the waves try to sneak into the cove. It is exhilarating and scary at the same time. Yes, people have washed out to the sea and some have drowned.

I arrived on a windy afternoon with 15-foot waves breaking into the rocks. I positioned my camera underneath the arch and waited for about an hour until the light got good enough for me to start taking some test shots. With a line of tourists often asking me to take their selfies in against the backdrop of the sea stacks, I obliged to as many as I could before I had the cove all to myself. I crawled into the space where the view would give me the colors and the two sea stacks that I wanted to include in the frame. I took a few shots and waited for the right wave to come and break on the beach. Soon it did and voila – I got the shot that I wanted.

The charm of Shark Fin Cove comes from its remote (but not too remote) nature and its scenic views that really come out to play on a sunny day.