I went up to Newburgh to do a bit of seal-watching. They are, of course, utter cunts who know exactly when you're pointing a camera at them. But it was amusing to see the seals shooed off the beach by the armada of ducks. It was a lovely afternoon. I was there for low tide. There were people swimming and playing in the water: they got out when the tide turned!
I was up there just last week for work. On a truly awful shitty day that turned nice as soon as I left the place! Best time I've found to go there is a low tide early in the morning - All sorts of interesting wildlife abounds and you can get pretty close to the seals. This wasn't early but it was the last time I was down there on a good day with a camera.
Its probably thinking "Its one of the guys with the strange machines. Nooooooo....!" The seals will often respond to a whistle, like dogs and swim much closer. I would be wary of approaching a hauled-out one, especially with young nearby though. They can get quite aggressive.
