Changes

Today was one of the days in years past I would avidly stay in, clouds, rain, wind, with a touch of chill in the air. Here I am now, looking forward to these stormy days. I set out, drove through a blinding downpour, dense fog, and people swerving. Truly, a difficult drive to my beloved parkway. Thankfully I was rewarded for my efforts, not at first mind you. At first I was chasing a rainbow, literally. I spotted it off a overlook early in the drive, and made several attempts to shoot it, handheld, in the rain. Such is life as a photographer, you wait for those moments, and when they do come you need to be ready. Of course this issue was only compounded by the fact I had forgotten to pack my poncho. Finally I arrived at one of the locations I enjoyed, good angle, lovely mood, the sky was moody, clouds drifting, leaves changing. A good day.

Landscape photography is unique in that you spend your time waiting for days some would consider miserable. The light is your friend and foe, the rain only gives you momentary pause, and the clouds taunt and tease you with light. That’s the deal, you go, you hope, you shoot. If you get wet? Big deal, if your cold, wear a jacket, too hot, suffer through it. We specialize in misery, we revel in it. I didn’t always agree, I used to think I could be different and avoid all this discomfort. Avoid it while missing shot after shot. So, change the tune, grab your camera and march gleefully out into those rainy days.

After I shot this location I came across another photographer who’d been at it for years and years. I explained I had hoped for some dusk lightning as the weather forecast had predicted it might come. Turns out he didn’t know how to capture lightning. Now, this is something I learned early on, however I learned it because someone had imparted that wisdom onto me, and now I am imparting it onto all of you. You have a digital camera, you only need two [sometimes three] things. A stable tripod, and for your camera to be in focus. The rest comes down to setting your camera into intervalometer mode. Infinite shots, as close together as your camera will allow with a long exposure. [Some cameras will require you to have a dongle to achieve this.] That’s it, that’s the secret behind shooting and capturing lightning.

Until Next Time!

Aperture: f10
ISO: 640
SS: 1/250th
Focal: 22mm

Fujinon 16-55mm