Are you looking for something entirely new and different to photograph along Florida’s sunny coastline? Would “king tides” work for you? Take yourself, your friends or family, and your favorite camera outdoors to any of your special places along Florida’s Gulf or Atlantic coastlines and you’re in for a new experience this week.

The Gulf and Atlantic coasts of Florida will be inundated with extraordinarily high tides, or “king” tides during the last week of October. King tides occur when there is close alignment between the sun and moon on one side of the Earth and their gravitational forces combine to pull extraordinarily high tides – two feet higher than normal high tides in this instance. While these tides are completely natural occurrences, they provide us with a glimpse of what our landscape will have to contend with in the coming years as the sea level rises.

Along the Atlantic coast tides will peak October 26-28. Tide tables for the Atlantic coast can be found by clicking here.

Since scientists started collecting data about 85 years ago, mean sea level along the Atlantic coast of Florida has risen about 12.5 centimeters, or about 5 inches, higher than it was 50 years ago. At Crescent Beach, the king tide on Oct. 28 will occur just after 11 a.m., at a height of 6 feet above mean sea level. This will be more than two feet higher than the lowest high tide of the month, which occurs on Oct. 18 (3.95 feet). At Ponce Inlet, the king tide of 4.29 feet will occur at about 10 a.m. on Oct. 28.

On the Gulf coast, highest tides will occur between 11 am – 2 pm EDT October 25-27. Tide tables for the Gulf Coast can be found by clicking here.

Water levels in Tampa Bay already have risen about an inch a decade since the 1950s, and scientists expect more dramatic increases in the future. You can help us show what our future may look like by participating in this photo-documentary effort.

Where To Send Your Photos

Send one of your best photos to FLConservation@audubon.com.

Send a set of your best pictures via email to fltidewatch@yahoo.com. Those with a Flickr account can directly upload them to the Florida Tide Watch Flickr page, where photos taken by Tide Watchers all around Florida's Gulf Coast will be showcased.

Tips For Taking Photos:

• Be sure to record the exact time and location of your photos
• Try to capture areas inundated with water such as parks, shorelines, flooded roads and ponds.
• Be creative and HAVE FUN!