Colorful Beach Reflections (Cuba) • PhotoTraces

After visiting Cuba for many years, I have my favorite time to visit the island, and I also have my preferred places to go.

I prefer to visit Cuba in September and October when the summer season is over, but the weather is still great. And the place I love to visit is Cayo Sant Maria. It is relatively remote and unpopulated islands where you can still find the spots where you can walk for hours along the cost without meeting a soul.

This time, we went to Cuba in February to a place we never visited before; the island of Cayo Coco. It was a different experience. It was windy, the sand on the beaches in the morning was cold, and the water was colder compared to summer, around 25°C. But we did not complain because in Canada it was -20°C.

The highlight of the trip was beautiful beach we discovered in one-hour walking distance from where we stayed. The beach was the part of the deserted resort, and for the entire week, we had it for ourselves.

Shooting

Just before leaving for Cuba I bought a new compact travel tripod Sirui T-025X. I left my full-size Feisol back at home and put Sirui to the test. I loved the experience. I could carry it for the entire day without even noticing it, and it was stable enough for a mirrorless camera setup.

Editing & Processing

It was a simple and uncomplicated single RAW processing workflow.

Lightroom (90%)

First, I used the Crop Overlay tool to make sure the horizon was straight and I also slightly cropped the image.

I used the process I outlined in the article: How to Straighten a Photo in Lightroom.

Next, I used the Natural preset from my Landscape Preset Collection as the base for Lightroom Rapid Editing. Then I used TOOLKIT to boost the Contrast and the Clarity.

The Lightroom Preset Editing Formula: Natural (1, 9, 32)

Photoshop (10%)

In Photoshop all I had to do was to boost the details and reduced the noise.
Plugins: DeNoise (noise reduction), Topaz Detail (local contrast boost).

Total Time: 10min

Before & After Transformation