HOW I GOT THAT SHOT

The photographer wanted to capture the sense of speed from the upper helm of a fast 37-foot triple-engine center console. By JESSICA HAYDAHL RICHARDSON

We were on our way back to Venice, Louisiana, after a great day of fishing the offshore rigs. The day had been sunny, with no chop, and the yellowfin had been busting on top. We took two nice tuna on popping plugs and spinning outfits. Everyone was pretty excited.

I had the idea of making a long exposure while the boat was running. The idea was to shoot at a slow shutter speed to make the water smooth and glassy, accentuating the sense of speed. The tricky part was finding a shutter speed that was slow enough to create the water effect I was after but fast enough to avoid things becoming too blurry.

I climbed to the upper station of the 37-foot Seavee and balanced the camera on the helm seat. Holding it firmly in place, I took about 10 exposures, including this one.