Photo of the Week 2024-08-26

For the fourth week, I'm presenting images selected from the sunset series captured  over a period of more than 40 minutes on 2024-08-02. The progression of colour and texture in the sky was sublime, subtle across the passing of seconds, dramatic overall.

 

In the final stages, the cloud structure softened as if by the touch of an artist blending bands and patches of pastel ...

' subsequent softening '

 

' subsequently softened '

I am obsessed with the sunsets over Lake Huron as seen from our shoreline. They are stunning from any location and so seductively available with just a short walk down to the water.

Here's a screen capture from my Lightroom catalogue of images illustrating the progression that always pulls me in.

 

 

DJE

Photo of the Week 2024-04-29

 

Hello darkness my old friend ... 

' enveloping '

Sunset with the ice gone and the water calm ... 

 

The sunlight reflecting off cottage windows on the far side of the bay drew me out from a comfortable chair after a long day of work on the shed rebuild project.

DJE

Photo of the Week 2024-04-22

 

' 2024-03-01 18:16:02 '

 

Still on hiatus from normal photo activities, so enjoy another late winter sunset ...

 

DJE

Photo of the Week 2024-04-08

 

Still working through the shots from sunset in the icy waters of Hay Bay just over a month ago ... 

 

' spring breakup '

 

Breakups are hard ... but saying goodbye to scenes like this for another year are especially tough ;-)

From a series of images made working the sunset on 2024-03-01

Photo of the Week 2024-04-01

 

Spring may have arrived and we may be entering April, but I am still working on late winter images. In particular, I have a set of images from Sunset on March 1st that have me remembering ... reliving ... a glorious display of fire and ice.

 

' sunset on the wing '

DJE

Photo of the Week 2024-03-25

 

From a November sunset session along the shore of Hay Bay, Lake Huron ... and I perhaps a little photo insight into how I spend my time from arrival to conclusion of the shoot.

When it started ...

' 2020-11-07 17:32:20 '

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The end result

 

' 2020-11-07 17:37:13 '

 

 

While waiting for a final flourish, I worked the scene, zooming in to isolate the colourful horizon with and without distant shore references for context.

 

' 2020-11-07 17:33:16 '

' 2020-11-07 17:33:35 '

' 2020-11-07 17:36:03 '

' 2020-11-07 17:36:44 '

... and that's how it goes, for me anyway.

DJE

Photo of the Week 2024-03-18

 

' 2024-02-08 17:23:04 '

Just over 35 minutes of working this sunset resulted in 60 exposures of which I selected 9 to process and publish online. That's more than one might expect, but my recent mindset had been to create a series showing the stages and progression as I work through positional and compositional variations.

While some of the "old school" might approach such a shoot with one or two exposures in mind (hearkening back to their film days), I scout the scene and make note of locations that might present an interesting point of view and work through as many of those as possible in the time I have.

Above is a screenshot of the RAW captures out of camera. Some followers had previously commented that they enjoyed seeing the range of captures I get from a session like this. It began just before 5:00 pm local, and with official sunset at 5:42, I didn't even shoot until sundown :-/ Oh well, it was time for dinner and the warm comfort of the cottage.

 

DJE

Photo of the Week 2024-03-04

Wow! 

 

March already! 

Spring will arrive in just over two weeks and it seems like winter never really arrived here in Southern Ontario. That may please some, perhaps even many, but it causes me concern over what the summer may hold in terms of temperatures and water levels. I expect it will be hot, damned hot and dry, damned dry and that there will be complaints about that, likely from the same group that complains about winter, but I digress ...

 

...  I've not had as much "winter" to photograph this year. Though I've had both stints visiting Matt & Claire at their farm and many more at our cottage, it wasn't a "real" winter this year. Facebook has reminded me of that with memories showing deep snowdrifts along the cottage road and a deck drift from 10 years ago the blocked out view of the bay from the picture window.

 

That's not to say there were no winter photo opportunities, they just weren't as dramatic or intense as I would have preferred. Sunsets always provide opportunity for a striking shot. Not every one of course but I do have the fortune of having a place to see regular end-of-day displays.

 

' burning through the ice '

I submitted the image above to a monthly challenge for a photo group and it was selected as the March banner image for their home page.

https://guelphphotographersguild.com/

 

 DJE

Photo of the Week 2023-05-08

 

' below the surface '

I've been working to improve my sunset photos by including more foreground elements into the compositions. At first, I found it challenging from positions along the cottage shoreline. Last week's photo used a pair of chairs as foreground which worked fairly well, if a little cliche. Subsequently, I published an image using the silhouetted shoreline rock to add some foreground interest.

For this week's POTW, I chose to show the rock just below the surface of the water since it really is a defining characteristic of our shoreline and the waters of Hay Bay. I think it works quite well and intend to try it again when waters are this calm.

 

DJE

Photo of the Week 2023-04-17

The Hour of Colour

 

' Main Event '

 

I've written about photographing sunset many times for this blog and yet here is another ...

 

Depending where you are, sunsets can offer over an hour of colour, perhaps even two hours for those intent on taking in the full show. It all really gets started just before the main event (official sunset time) and carries on for quite a wile after.

 

At our little vantage point along the shore of Hay Bay, I've noticed others who've come to watch the show. They often leave after the sun's orb disappears below the horizon, They are cheating themselves out of some of the best a sunset has to offer.

 

Next time hang around and enjoy the full show ;-)

 

DJE
 

Photo of the Week 2022-12-12

 

A corruption to my Lightroom catalogue file had me scratching my head trying to figure out what had happened and during the recovery process I found some unfinished work from early October of this year ...

 

' Tranquility Base is right here ... '

 

A three frame stitched panorama depicting the end to a fall sunset on Hay Bay, Lake Huron, Northern Bruce Peninsula ON, my 'Tranquility Base'

Oh ... the corruption issue, it's fixed. Thankfully I know my way around a computer well enough to fix most things like this. My backup process came in handy again, though now that it's fixed, I think I could likely have got by without one. However, having multiple backups sure helps me to stay level headed and focus on the fix rather than what I've lost.

Again I'm reminded to go back through my catalogue of images to see what I've overlooked or forgotten about as I continue to add more and more and more ...

 

DJE

Photo of the Week 2021-10-25

 

' Huron Sunsets are Just Ducky '

There's often an additional little something in the clouds ...

Seeing faces, animals and familiar shapes in the clods is a form of pareidolia, and something that frequently occurs with me. Those following this blog will know that I frequently photograph sunset and the skies over Lake Huron. During my most recent visits to our northern retreat, things did not change.

The October skies over the Bruce Peninsula and Lake Huron are often very dramatic. Approaching weather phenomenon, storm fronts, cloud formation and clear blue sky make a wide variety for the atmosphere and appearance of the images I capture. So far this month (October 2021) has done it's best to stir my desire to pick up the camera and catch what I see through the lens.

 

DJE 

Photo of the Week 2021-10-18

 

 

' Green Flash and Kayaker '

I have tried many times to catch the 'Green Flash' as the sun dips below the horizon at to conclude sunset. It requires specific conditions to occur and is a fleeting phenomenon when it does. For those not interested in following the link provided above to research for themselves, it requires a clean, clear, unobstructed horizon, frequently over a large water body. The atmosphere causes a refraction effect and green is the last colour that can be seen, just as the last of the sun's orb drops to the horizon line. In the case of this photo, the distinct cloud line off in the distance over Lake Huron proved enough.

 

I've mentioned this to others observing sunset with me and some of the looks and reaction I have received are comical. But it is a "thing", explained by science. Captured by others in video and still images ... and now by me (though it was the very beginning of this very brief phenomenon).

Green Flash - enlargement from photo above

 

DJE