- [Announcer] Funding for "Viewfinders" is provided by Troncalli Subaru, located on Highway 9 in Cumming.

Visit Troncalli Subaru or find out more online at troncallisubaru.com.

(bright music) (upbeat music) - [Announcer] Here at United Community Bank, we are committed to doing the little things to earn customer trust, one customer at a time.

(upbeat music) United Community Bank is a proud sponsor of "Viewfinders."

(wind howling) (seagulls squeaking) (wind howling) (waves roaring) (poignant music) - [Narrator] The Georgia Coast, 100 miles of natural splendor that is filled not only with incredible beauty but a ecological significance that should truly be appreciated.

There is roughly 500,000 acres of marsh that provides a habitat for a variety of plants and animals and also helps to protect the mainland from approaching hurricanes.

Of course, the best way for us to truly appreciate a location such as this is to explore it, experience it photograph it.

The result is a two-part series on Georgia's slightly more hidden Coast, including islands that many have never set foot on or perhaps even heard about.

(joyful music) Part one is a showcase of Ossabaw Island, a true jewel amongst the 15 barrier islands comprising the Georgia coastline.

Part two takes us to Wassaw and Blackbeard Islands, two highly-remote locations that have no ferry service, no roads, and almost no people at all.

(bright piano music) The Georgia Coast is a little slice of paradise, so settle in and enjoy the superb beauty that it offers.

(bright piano music) (waves roaring) (inspiring music) (inspiring music continues) (inspiring upbeat music continues) - A hundred miles long, with 15 barrier islands, - One of the most productive ecosystems in the United States.

- Over 400,000 acres of marsh.

- This is Georgia's coast.

- I'm Chris.

- I'm Paul.

- [Both] And we're the Viewfinders.

(chill fiddle music) (chill fiddle music continues) (chill fiddle music subdues) (energetic upbeat music) (energetic upbeat music continues) ♪ We're leaving the party now ♪ ♪ Can you show us out, the sky looks cooler ♪ ♪ We're sitting on the roof ♪ ♪ And when you raise the roof we'll be that much higher ♪ ♪ Oh ♪ ♪ Yeah ♪ ♪ We've taken to the stars ♪ ♪ For a night that's ours ♪ ♪ Under skies of glitter ♪ ♪ We've got our head in the clouds ♪ ♪ So when you see the clouds ♪ ♪ Baby, don't be bitter ♪ ♪ Oh ♪ ♪ Whoo ♪ ♪ All my friends are animals ♪ ♪ Running free ♪ ♪ Out on our own ♪ ♪ We don't need your skin and bones ♪ ♪ We're animals ♪ ♪ All my friends are what we are ♪ ♪ Living wild and made of stars ♪ ♪ Dancing to our bleedin' hearts ♪ ♪ We're animals, we're animals ♪ (energetic upbeat music) ♪ We're animals ♪ - I'm Elizabeth DuBose and I'm the executive director of the Ossabaw Island Foundation.

Ossabaw is one of Georgia's barrier islands.

It's actually the third largest barrier island.

Ossabaw is about 26,000 acres, and of the 26,000, about 11,000 of that is uplands or the area that we can walk around on.

Ossabaw is owned by the state of Georgia.

Ossabaw is managed by the Department of Natural Resources.

And the Ossabaw Island Foundation, the organization that I work for, is a nonprofit, and our mission is to uphold the heritage preserve designation that was bestowed upon the island in 1978 upon its sale.

That designation states that Ossabaw shall only be used for natural, scientific, cultural, research, educational purposes.

We provide the public access to the island.

Each year we host about 21 public education days, some of them are overnight, others are just day trips.

They're open to the public.

So you can sign up and visit Ossabaw Island, or a group or school groups can come and stay on the island as well.

♪ If you're lonely ♪ ♪ Or you're too far from home ♪ ♪ Don't know where to go ♪ (calm ethereal music) ♪ You thought you found a road ♪ ♪ But now you're on your own ♪ ♪ Subject to the fall ♪ (inspiring ethereal music) ♪ So, if you feel it start to pull you ♪ ♪ Just keep holding on ♪ ♪ All we are is endless sand ♪ ♪ Falling from the open hands of fate ♪ ♪ Far away, far away from home ♪ ♪ And as we understand all we are ♪ ♪ We're not far away, far away ♪ - [Chris] So you're getting these old tools right here.

- Yeah.

Trying to get a little bit more intimate with this area here.

This just has personality for me.

- Yeah.

- This is just- - [Chris] I mean, this whole house has personality.

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

- You're not gonna get this anywhere.

This is like museum-quality stuff that you're getting firsthand.

- It's just, to me, the tabby architecture is so interesting.

Like the walls are super thick and it's predominantly just crushed oyster shells.

- Yeah.

- That are, you know, what this house is comprised of.

So, that with the light coming through the windows, it's old, the wood, these tools, it just is all coming together to create a really cool scene.

- Yep.

I mean, this to me, like I said, this, I look at this more from a historical aspect.

I mean, I'm just thinking, "What have these walls seen?"

- Yeah.

- What have these tools been used for?

I mean, just so- - So much.

- Who's touched them?

Who's- - Hundreds of years.

- Been here.

Exactly.

- Hundreds of years.

You know, it's just wild to think about, and here we are in it.

Nobody else is around, it's ours to enjoy.

- No tourist to fight off.

- Yeah.

It's just- - Nobody to.

- What a cool spot.

(camera shutter flicks) (inspiring piano music) (inspiring piano music continues) (inspiring piano music continues) - We are here at the Torrey West House, and this home was built starting in 1924, and it was completed in 1926.

And this was the Torrey's winter residence.

They were from Grosse Pointe, Michigan, originally, and they came to Ossabaw Island approximately every November through sometimes Easter.

This is where they spent their winters.

When Eleanor Torrey West was about nine years old she first came to Ossabaw Island, she was tutored with her brother here.

So they ultimately had the outdoors for their classroom during their winter stays.

Starting in 1961 they invited artists, and musicians, and mathematicians, and linguists to come and stay in this home.

From September to May each year you could come for a week, two weeks, but Ossabaw was your place of inspiration.

You were not required to complete any certain project but you were required to be inspired here.

So our organization is an outgrowth of Mrs. West Ossabaw Island project and her first organization.

We're a little bit different, we're not a private granting foundation as she was.

We're a public nonprofit, and we raise our funds from donations that people give to the Ossabaw Island Foundation.

Use fees that people pay to come, and visit, and learn about Ossabaw, and a fundraiser that we hold once a year on this front lawn.

(upbeat music) ♪ Fell down the rabbit hole ♪ ♪ Lean in close ♪ ♪ To see a monster ♪ ♪ We're drinking to the ghost ♪ ♪ Raise a toast ♪ ♪ To a kindred spirit ♪ ♪ Oh ♪ ♪ Yeah ♪ ♪ We're passing through the flames ♪ ♪ Forgot our names ♪ ♪ Sang a song of honey ♪ ♪ We're laughing with the doves ♪ ♪ Took a bite of love ♪ ♪ While the world was running ♪ ♪ Oh ♪ ♪ Whoo ♪ ♪ All my friends are animals ♪ ♪ Running free ♪ ♪ Out on our own ♪ ♪ We don't need your skin and bones ♪ ♪ We're animals ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ All my friends are what we are ♪ ♪ Living wild and made of stars ♪ ♪ Dancing to our bleedin' hearts ♪ ♪ We're animals, we're animals ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ We're animals ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ Eh, oh ♪ ♪ We'll take in your kindred soul ♪ ♪ Eh, oh ♪ ♪ Don't forget you run the show ♪ ♪ Eh, oh ♪ ♪ We'll take in your kindred soul ♪ ♪ Eh, oh ♪ ♪ Fall in love with animals ♪ ♪ All my friends are animals ♪ ♪ Running free out on our own ♪ ♪ We don't need your skin and bones ♪ ♪ We're animals ♪ ♪ All my friends are what we are ♪ ♪ Living wild and made of stars ♪ ♪ Dancing to our bleedin' hearts ♪ ♪ We're animals, we're animals ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ We're animals ♪ (upbeat music) - We're here.

- Yeah.

- Made it through the rain - Ossabaw Island.

What do you think?

- I like what I've seen so far.

- I like it.

- It's fantastic.

It's, I mean, it's wild.

There's not- - I think we've touched places that I think neither one of us have touched before and probably not many humans have touched.

If you ask me, what we've been told.

I'm enjoying it.

- Well, it's just we have it to ourselves.

- Yeah.

- Which is cool.

- And there's like, it's full of history.

- Mm-hmm.

- It's beautiful.

We're hoping for good light.

We've had it.

- [Paul] Yeah, fingers crossed.

- We've had a little everything.

We got rained on.

- [Paul] Yep.

- It's now, it's extremely sunny with not many clouds left, but who knows what's gonna roll in later today, or tonight, or tomorrow.

- Yeah.

- But, like, things like this though, to me, are just like- - [Paul] A lot of personality in the building.

- They're just calling- - Yeah.

- [Chris] For their picture to be taken.

So it's just been fun exploring and seeing so much of the island so far and knowing there's still more.

- Yeah.

- And like the beach.

- Yeah.

- And some of these massive oak trees, with the Spanish moss that's just kinda swaying, it's- - Yeah.

- It's really pretty.

- Ossabaw Island means place of the Yaupon Holly.

This plant is the only plant native to North America that has caffeine and theobromine.

The native Guale Indians would roast the leaves and drink this tea.

It is a great boost.

It's kind of like a green tea and a black tea together.

So there must have been holly bushes abounding on this island.

And yaupon would've been used to trade with other native populations that didn't have it natural to their area.

- What were you expecting coming here?

Because you haven't been down to the islands in a bit, right?

- Nah, it's been a while.

Obviously I've never been here.

- Yeah.

- But from the geographical location, I'm thinking, "Okay, I know to expect some Spanish moss."

- Right.

- But that's really it.

I wasn't sure what kind of wildlife will be out here.

- Right.

- I brought the lens to shoot some wildlife but I wasn't sure what's gonna be out here.

- [Chris] Yeah.

- I haven't been disappointed by the clouds.

I think we worked with them well earlier.

I haven't been disappointed by Spanish moss.

I mean, we've got a boat load - We got it in spades.

- Yeah.

- We got it in spades.

There's Spanish moss everywhere.

These big, big trees too.

- Yeah.

- I mean, they've been here 500 years, maybe 600 years.

It's crazy to even think about.

- [Paul] And buildings with personality, I like to say buildings of personality.

It's like, you can tell they've been around a while, if the walls could speak, you don't know what kinda stories you'd hear.

- [Chris] Yeah.

- [Paul] I like to shoot stuff like that so- - Yeah.

- It's a really special place to have it in Georgia, to be here right now, and be exploring, and to be able to explore it, it's fun.

I know I've gotten some images that I'm happy with so far and I've, you know, we don't even have the sunset yet, we don't even have the sunrise yet, we don't know what's ahead of us but- - We'll see what's happening for that.

- It's been super cool.

- Ossabaw also has a unique population of miniature Sicilian donkeys that Mrs. West brought over for her youngest son's Christmas and birthday present.

What we have left today are about six donkeys out of the population that eventually grew to 150 donkeys across the island.

Mrs. West found new homes for those donkeys in the late 1990s.

What we have today are some that didn't quite make the adoption list.

They're quite friendly and when you come to Ossabaw they would be happy to receive a carrot from you.

- Sometimes it's kinda hard to to remember that you're you're still in the state of Georgia when you see something like this.

- Yeah.

- Like, when we drove in, I mean, we saw the flatlands but we saw, you know, the palm trees.

A couple of trees.

- Yeah.

- That you're not used to seeing in Atlanta.

- Right.

- At least I'm not.

- It's real different.

- Yeah, it's totally different, but it's the same state.

- Yeah.

I think that's what's cool about Georgia.

- Yeah.

- Like, you can start out in the mountains and then be someplace like this.

- Yeah.

- And it's just so different.

Yeah, you don't feel like you're in Georgia anymore.

- [Paul] Almost down to the beach- - But- - It's really special.

And I don't know about you, I wanna get some images of this place.

- Yeah, let's go.

- Let's make it happen.

(poignant piano music) (poignant piano music continues) (poignant piano music continues) (poignant piano music continues) (poignant piano music continues) (poignant piano music continues) - Well, the Georgia Coast is just so beautiful.

It's very unique.

One of the things that differs here is we have the barrier islands.

They're beautiful.

We have the saltwater marshes and, anyway, which is a great part of our ecosystem, and because everything depends on the marsh.

(poignant piano music) (camera shutter flicks) (poignant piano music continues) (poignant piano music continues) (poignant piano music continues) (poignant piano music continues) (ominous ethereal music) (ominous ethereal music continues) (ominous ethereal music continues) (ominous ethereal music continues) (ominous ethereal music continues) (ominous ethereal music continues) (ominous ethereal music continues) (ominous ethereal music continues) (ominous ethereal music continues) (ominous ethereal music continues) (ominous ethereal music continues) - I just gotta tell you, I'm super excited, this might be my shot.

I got the sun coming up in the tree, the tree's, like, cradling the sun.

I'm real low so that I can put the orb of the sun up a little bit, and I'm just firing away.

I'm taking lots of different images, Ima take the best one when I get back, but I'm really excited about this shot.

It could be my favorite of the entire trip.

(ominous ethereal music) (ominous ethereal music continues) (camera shutter clicks) (ominous ethereal music continues) (ominous ethereal music continues) (ominous ethereal music continues) (ominous ethereal music continues) - (sighs) Ossabaw, man.

- Yep.

24 hours.

- It was, I thought it was great.

You know, I- - Yeah, the sunrise this morning.

The sunrise was so good.

(Chris laughs) How did that go for you?

Like, what were you focusing on?

- You know what, I hate to be, I hate to use cliches, but I was like a kid in a candy shop.

I mean, everywhere you turn there was a different shot.

There was nothing that can go wrong.

You know?

- Those trees were so good.

- Yeah.

- [Chris] And they were spread out enough- - Yeah.

- That we weren't kinda like hogging the same spot.

- Exactly.

- Like we were kinda doing our own thing.

- You could do- - There was a lot- - Anything.

- Of comp.

Lot of compositions.

I got a couple I think that I really like.

I can't wait to get 'em up on the screen, but just, it was real pretty.

There weren't any clouds.

- Right.

- I was hoping for clouds.

We didn't get 'em.

- No.

- But that kind of- - The colored sky though.

- That really colorful, the pink, and red, and orange hues as the sun was getting closer to the horizon, it really turned out well.

So I'm excited about that.

- Me too.

And I'll tell you what, all the years I've been photographing, I've never gotten a beat shot with, like, those ridges- - Yes.

- Created, you know, in the sand.

- Yes.

- By the- - [Chris] I noticed that.

- Yeah.

- And I got it today, so I'm really anxious to see what that's gonna look like with the trees that were in the water.

- [Chris] Yeah.

- And then the water itself behind, and then the sky behind that.

I mean, layer upon layer upon layer.

Yeah.

- There were like textures in the sand.

- Yeah.

- And you know, and then the depth of having those in the foreground maybe with a tree.

- Yep.

- And then the distant water being lit by the sun as it was coming up.

I got one shot where the sun was kind of holding.

It was kinda in- - (laughs) Being grabbed- - [Chris] Broken branches.

It almost looked like he was being hugged by the tree.

- By the hands.

Yeah.

- I'm real hopeful that that came out.

But yeah, like, we got some different shots.

Was there anything else that stands out in your mind that you think you might have turned out?

- Yeah, yeah.

Yesterday the interior shots that I got at the tabby houses.

- Yeah.

- Those I kinda liked.

I got the emotional, the drama feel inside there.

- Sure.

- And then the sunlight coming in, contrast against the darkness that was around it.

- [Chris] Yeah.

- I think that's gonna work pretty well.

And it's usually not a shot that, you know, it's not something that I normally photograph.

So I was kinda, you know, anxious to get, and that's why I wanted to spend a lot of time in there, which we did.

- Yeah.

- But I'm kind of anxious now to get those home and get those up on the computer and see what we got 'cause I think I got some winners on those.

- You know, last night we were tired, we came back, we're like about ready to just crash.

I was like, "I'm gonna go out" 'cause those tabby houses are pretty close.

- Yeah.

- Like, "I'm gonna try a little light panning."

So I went out with my camera and set it up, and I used my LED and I kinda did a bit of little creativity with them and was shining my light through one of the windows out into the night sky, and I was kinda trying to expose for the stars too.

So I'm kinda hopeful that that came out.

I'm not sure if it did, but I've got, I think it has promise at least.

So we'll see what that looks like when I get it up on the screen as well.

But yeah, man, it was fun.

- Oh no, yeah.

- It was fun.

- This one was good.

- You know, it's cool, we got some more islands.

- Yeah.

- Ahead of us.

So- - Yeah.

- [Chris] And what are they gonna hold?

- [Paul] I'm surprised with this one, we might be surprised again, so let's see.

- There could be more beauty.

Georgia's coast is special and it's really cool being able to explore it and to capture it- - Like I said, hard to believe that you're still in the state of Georgia when you're out here.

- Yeah.

- Really hard to believe that, so... (poignant string music) - All right, are you ready to go to the next island?

- Let's go, man.

- Let's make it happen.

- All right.

(joyful music) ♪ Hollows in the woods call out ♪ ♪ Trails up mountains climb ♪ ♪ Waves and sand keep beat and time ♪ (joyful string music) ♪ Mossy blankets, swirling streams ♪ ♪ Over rocks and dirt ♪ ♪ Run at pace with all the earth ♪ (joyful string music) ♪ Could we capture nature's wonder ♪ ♪ Find our way to getting lost ♪ ♪ Freeze a frame to save forever ♪ (joyful string music) ♪ Adventure worth the cost ♪ ♪ Bees and dandelion grain ♪ ♪ Dance in sun-soaked fields ♪ ♪ Wind and gleam together yield ♪ (joyful string music) ♪ Pocket worries fade to dim ♪ ♪ Wait on focus new ♪ ♪ Wild is coming into view ♪ (joyful string music) (joyful string music continues) (joyful string music continues) ♪ Hues on fire in the clouds ♪ ♪ Perfectly exposed ♪ ♪ A song first played, and then composed ♪ (joyful string music) ♪ Day is dying, dark will come ♪ ♪ Still we look for sight ♪ (chill guitar music) - [Announcer] Funding for "Viewfinders" is provided by Troncalli Subaru, located on Highway 9 in Cumming.

Visit Troncalli Subaru or find out more online at troncallisubaru.com.

(chill guitar music) (upbeat music) - [Announcer] Here at United Community Bank, we are committed to doing the little things to earn customer trust, one customer at a time.

United Community Bank is a proud sponsor of "Viewfinders."