First Light at Peggy's Cove

A white lighthouse stands atop rugged, dark rocks under a deep blue twilight sky. The light of sunrise glows warmly, casting a soft illumination on a side of the lighthouse and subtly revealing the red  top of the structure. The scene conveys a sense of calm and isolation, with the lighthouse serving as a solitary beacon against the vastness of the sky and sea.
The first light of sunrise appears and splashes onto the side of the Lighthouse at Peggy's Cove. — J. Matthew Buchanan

I woke up at stupid o'clock to capture this image of the first light of sunrise hitting the eastern facade of the Peggy's Cove Lighthouse. I wanted to capture the early light of blue hour, which was set to begin just after five o'clock. This meant leaving our hotel in Halifax just after four in the morning. I second guessed the plan when the alarm sounded at 3:30, but I shook it off, rolled out of bed, and started to get ready. By four o'clock, I was ready to go and excited about the plan.

I made the twisty drive from Halifax to Peggy's Cove in forty minutes or so, and was scaling the rocks at the base of the lighthouse right on schedule. I had everything in place for just a few minutes as I noticed the first hint of sunrise creeping over some of the rocks to the east. The light splashed against the lighthouse, pulling it from the darkness of night. I captured this and a few other photographs, then stood and watched what was, unquestionably, one of the most beautiful sunrises I've ever seen.

Stupid o'clock is (almost) always worth it.

Technical Notes

I forgot I had a circular polarizer on my 15-35mm lens until I was nearly done with the entire shoot. I think the slight banding in the light at the upper right of the image is a result of this; a rotation of the filter likely would have eliminated this.

Metadata

Published
May 26, 2026
Camera Make
Canon
Camera
Canon EOS R5m2
Lens
RF15-35mm F2.8 L IS USM
Focal Length
24mm
Aperture
f/8
Shutter Speed
1/50s
ISO
ISO 100
Captured
May 22, 2026, 5:02 AM
Exposure Program
Manual
Metering Mode
Multi-segment
Flash
No Flash
White Balance
Auto
Creator
J. Matthew Buchanan
Sublocation
Peggy's Cove Lighthouse
City
Peggy's Cove
State
Nova Scotia
Country
Canada
Copyright
Copyright 2026 J. Matthew Buchanan
Rights Usage Terms
All use of this image requires a license from the copyright holder.
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