Bliss

Manteo Lighthouse Sunrise Roanoke Island Outer Banks NC

A spectacular sunrise over the Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse in Manteo, NC, on Roanoke Island near the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Just a short drive from Nags Head in the OBX, Manteo is a historic harborside village on Roanoke Island and is home to this wonderful little screwpile lighthouse along a public waterfront park and boardwalk.

The textbook definition of bliss is to "reach a state of perfect happiness, typically so as to be oblivious of everything else". As a landscape photographer, you can't help but think of certain things when you sit down to review your images from an adventure. When you finally capture a particular shot that you've been chasing, sometimes for years, it's easy to reflect on all of the effort it takes to be standing there in front of these scenes when they happen. The time, money, and energy it takes to plan the trips, the countless 4am wakeup calls, the disappointment you can feel when all of your efforts repeatedly end in seeing nothing worth shooting.

And then there are mornings like this one, when the reason we do it all becomes crystal clear, and you end up standing in front of this incredibly beautiful display of light and color that makes it all worth it. It can be difficult to define how it makes you feel, but bliss seems to sum it up pretty well.

Tags: manteo, outer banks, roanoke island, lighthouse, sunrise, scenic, obx, shallowbag bay, north carolina, nc, ocean, coast, landscape photography, east coast

Share this image!