Growing up on Europe's beaches and having traveled to Africa's coasts, most of the Caribbean, the Hawaiian Islands including Midway , I've been very lucky to have strolled on quite a few beautiful beaches in my life so far. But I discovered my favorite beach pretty much by accident. During the late fall of 2014, my wife Cathy and I were on a two month long photo sojourn through the back alleys of Deep South (TX, LA, MS, AL, FL) when our brand new RV broke down with electrical problems. We had to wait for parts to arrive from the manufacturer and were forced to stay a few days in the vicinity of Pensacola,FL at a place called Fort Pickens. And we will be forever thankful for that unscheduled break: When we walked down to the beach for the first time we were absolutely speechless - snow white sand, crystal clear water with that special emerald hue (hence "Emerald Coast) and not a single person anywhere in sight. Pure bliss. In fact, we became so mellow over the course of the four days we stayed at Fort Pickens, that we never took our good, professional gear along on our twice daily, long walks on that deserted fantasy beach. It was all about "Relax, don't work, just enjoy. Maybe we'll take some photos tomorrow..." So, just on the very last walk I ended up taking a couple of shots with my inexpensive, go-to hiking camera, that's always with me. And yet even in the attached photo - for which I walked out into the water and just stood there, smiling, for a long while - this beach looks like paradise to me. But I also realize what "makes" this images (beside the stunning scenery): The sun reflecting a gazillion times in the water.

Equipment: Panasonic Lumix FZ-1000

Settings: Lens at 25mmm, f/7.1, 1/250 second, ISO 125