It is low tide in the early morning and fishermen unload their catch from a boat beached high and dry1 on the shore. Some people enjoy a meal. Others prepare the catch for sale. This human activity contrasts with the stillness of the glassy sea which， like a mirror， reflects the hazy sunlight. The silvery-white sheen of the water complements the gold-tinted clouds. The pale yellow sun is not yet hot enough to burn off the sea mist—the ‘vapour’ referred to in the picture’s title—which gives the large warships in the background an almost ghostly aura. On the horizon （centre right）， you can just see a faint plume of smoke as a ship fires a morning gun.

清晨低潮时，有条渔船被拖上岸，渔民们忙着卸下渔获。有些人在吃饭，还有些人在收拾渔获准备出售。人类的忙碌与大海的平静形成了鲜明对照，海面波平如镜，反射着朦胧的日光。银白的水光与染金的云彩相互映衬。浅黄的太阳还不够炽热，无法蒸发掉海雾——即画名中提及的vapour——这给背景中的几艘大型军舰蒙上了一层幽暗的光影。画面中央偏右的地平线上，可以看到一缕薄烟，那是一艘军舰刚刚鸣放了晨炮。

A drawing inscribed ‘Study / Calm’ in his ‘Calais Pier’2 sketchbook of about 1802–5 shows that Turner settled on the painting’s theme and composition early on. A ‘calm’ （a smooth sea） was a favourite subject in Dutch marine painting. As a study of a calm， Turner’s painting was a departure from the wild storms of his earlier marine pictures such as Calais Pier.

在透纳大约1802年至1805年有关《加来码头》的速写本上，有一幅题写着“习作/静海”的素描，这表明透纳很早就确定了此画的主题和构图。