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Thursday, July 03, 2008
Thematic Photographic 5: "Sky" v.1.0
This week's Thematic Photographic is "Sky". I have probably a hundred or more skyward glances in the archives that I'd consider for this week, but when I saw the "prompt" for this week, I immediately flashed back to a conference at Wrightsville Beach in October of 2005. This is what I woke up to on the first (full) day of the conference. Not a bad way to start the week, na?I don't always sleep well in hotels, especially when I know I have to be somewhere first thing in the morning. On this particular morning, that little neurosis allowed me to capture a pretty spectacular sunrise from my balcony. What you see here are the last three shots from what became roughly half a roll of (gasp) film. Despite appearances, the differences in lighting aren't due to a long time between shots. Mainly the difference comes from the upper level clouds moving around more than the lower ones and me tinkering with various exposures trying to make sure I got something good from this spectacle (one of the drawbacks of shooting film). I did a tiny bit more post production (read Photoshop) than usual on these, but it was still limited to color and contrast balancing. What you see here and now is pretty much what I saw there and then.As good fortune would have it, I'm off to one of my favorite coastal destinations this weekend which could yield still other entries for this week's thematic. The major reason for the trip is a "fireworks cruise" that could produce some amazing shots if I do it right. The cruise is basically a harbor tour that runs a bit longer than usual and ends with the boat stopped offshore to take in the Fourth of July fireworks displays from two different towns. (Or at least that's what I remember from the only other time I've taken the cruise. But that was 10 or 12 years ago, and things change.)So watch this space for more patches of blue (and red, and gold) and stop by Carmi's place, Written Inc. to see what everybody else is up to!
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20 comments:
mojo,
great job 'tinkering'; you've got an eye for sky. the subtle hues of the first shot make it my favourite.
timing is everything; your shots remind me of the evening I spent 30 - 45 minutes watching a sunset at Hattie's Cove (north shore, Lake Superior) after a hard days ride on the Yamaha. I think I took 50 - 80 shots of the sky, it changed dramatically every 15 seconds, an amazing evening with others on a beach just watching a spectacle of colour.
cheers, gord h.
Thanks ofr your comment on my blog about my skyscape and the tip about the polarizing filter. I have one, but I didn't have it on my camera at the time.
I've just recently bout a more sophisticated camera, and I must learn how to use all the capabilities that it has.
I love your sunrise scenes. I don't usually get up earlyh enough to see those. I live close to the gulf, so I need to go out there and get some sunset photos.
beautiful pics
and thanks for being my first last
night~~glad you enjoyed the HNT's
have a great 4th
~~PLAWYK~~~
XOXO
charlene
Oh wow, what a gorgeous photo! I love the different effects. That first one is definitely my favorite!
Great "sky" image!
@Gord: The sky is about a humbling a subject as we can shoot. The sky over a large body of water is more imposing by a power of two.
@Beverly: I'm not sure exactly where Bradenton is, but if you're close to the panhandle you should be able to get some spectacular sunsets and sunrises since the coastline runs east-west.
@Charlene: Every time's like the first time sweetheart. (wink)
@Allison: That one is pretty much my favorite too. I liked the way the color balance worked out in that one. Almost like old gold. The third one has the same kind of tint, but not as much contrast and that's the difference I think.
mojo-thx for stopping by my blog and leaving me a really nice comment. i kept wanting to take a picture of the sunset as it hits the water, but it was just really cloudy the whole time we were in hawaii. that place is just filled w 'beautiful' shots, if you know what i mean. btw congrats on your three weeks smoke-free :)
i just realized i forgot to comment on your photo! i wanted to say that i love how the sun just filters through the clouds like that. i have a shot kind of like that taken in san diego...i happen to like the colors in yours more :)
@Ciara: Thanks for the props (and the congrats!) What you discovered in Hawaii is that "cloudy" can actually be a good thing for photo opportunities. Those clouds create all kinds of textures and at certain times of day even provide one helluva fine canvas for the sun to paint on. Then at other times, they just act like a filter -- which is primarily what they did in my shots here.
But I love this effect probably more than any other thing a cloud does to sunlight. And it's not as common as you'd think. First of all the clouds have to be dense enough to block out sunlight. Second they have to be broken up enough to let some sunlight through unblocked. And third, the dividing line between cloud and no cloud has to be pretty sharp. Otherwise it all starts to "bland together" (misspelling intentional).
But when you get all those things happening the results can be spectacular!
Excellent shots - the beach is goign to be WONDERFUL this weekend - I'm envious of you and your trip.
Excellent shots - the beach is goign to be WONDERFUL this weekend - I'm envious of you and your trip.
Whenever I see pictures like this, two things happen:
1 - I gasp at such pure beauty.
2 - The phrase "hand of God" pops into my head.
Not that I want to get all religious on you - believe me, that ain't me - but pitch perfect scenes like this remind me that we're all real small, and that there's a whole lotta loveliness around us if we only take the time to look for it.
I'm glad you did, and I hope you get man more mornings in hotel rooms by the water.
(FWIW, I'm a restless sleeper when I travel, too, for precisely the same reasons. Like you, my camera provides for early morning fun when I can't close my eyes.)
Can't wait to see what you bring home from the cruise. May you have many more 4th of July holidays to capture the magic.
@Carmi: Believe me I know what you mean. There's a quote from one of my favorite Hinid movies - Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Mara (I Did Not Kill Gandhi) - that I can't remember verbatim right now, but basically goes like: "When you feel like your problems are so large, go and stand before the sea." The idea being that you (and by association, your problem) won't seem so big any more. That's sort of what I "hear" when a scene like this jumps in front of me.
I'm hoping that my newest lens (200mm f/2.8) will give me some better results with fireworks. I've never had any luck trying to capture them. But I've never done it on digital either, so the instant feedback may give me enough of a clue that I can get dialed in this time.
I guess fireworks could fit the Sky category, na?
@Tiff: You oughta pack up the Things and come on down. It's not so far.
Beautiful shots. I remember longingly my time spent in the dark room many years ago. As much as I love my 35mm I almost think the digital is more environmentally friendly as it lacks all those developing chemicals... go back and forth.
That last sentence was supposed to be "I" go back and forth. It was a statement, not a command :-)
@Slim: I know exactly what you mean. I still have my EOS A2 along with my EOS 30D though I shoot very little (almost no) silver now. Digital is greener on a day-to-day basis I guess, though there's got to be some kind of impact from producing those CF cards. But there's not ongoing depletion from the film, chemicals, etc.
I never set up a wet darkroom of my own. I considered getting a mini-lab but (a) there wasn't really a need to when I could get process-only done for $2 a roll and scan the negatives and (b)the $3500 the mini-lab would have cost would have paid for my 30D twice over.
Still... I love the smell of developer in the morning.
wow, those are amazing! i want to hang one in my bathroom now. (is that weird?)
They're spectacular photos - and I agree, the coloring is like old burnished gold. The second one is my favorite because the clouds are so illuminated with the lighting being above and below in the reflection.
Sorry for not saying where my photos were from - don't know what I was thinking.
Looking forward to seeing what photos you come back with after your cruise... I think it's quite a challenge to photograph fireworks - love the sound of your new lens too. I got sick of changing lenses while traveling and bought a one for all... the Tamron 18 - 250 and it's been so good it hasn't come off for about 3 months.
http://web.mac.com/judereid
Oh gosh I'm so jealous! We're not going to the beach this year and I miss the ocean badly.
That first shot is incredible! It is less complex than the other two, with its smoother water, monochromatic appearance, and the patch of direct sunlight only just brushing the horizon. And this is a perfect example of "less is more". I love the warmth and timelessness of the shot.
I was going to hold off commenting until I have my own Thematic Photographic post ready to go, but that'll be another couple of days, and I didn't want to lose my enthusiasm between now and then. (I'm deliberately not looking at anybody else's until I'm ready... I was here for your 55, anyway.)
-smarmoofus
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