Photo and caption by Richard Hirst

An incredible moment on a Sydney beach as a lone surfer ponders his entry into the surf, engulfed by nature's beauty at sunrise on the day of the Winter solstice. On this shortest day of the year where the sun is at it's lowest, the cloud formations and colours create an awesome spectacle. For a moment in time the unknown surfer is frozen in a natural spotlight. The bizarre and extremely rare speckles in the cloud above give the impression of movement and blur, but in reality are neither as it is a very still morning, completely devoid of wind.

Location: Bondi Beach, Sydney, Australia