Setting Sunburst

Often you can find yourself on those windswept peaks overlooking a momentous sight, watching as the fire within the sky burns bright, the earth cooling more as the darkness absorbs the last of the light. The clouds in the sky twisting about as if that of wisps from a smoldering ember, a dying phoenix awaiting rebirth on the morrow. Perhaps a great fire breathing dragon, coming to the end, and letting out one last great gout of flame for all to see. The setting sun within these old mountains may yet spark a moment of contemplation amongst even the most ardent of deniers, that there yet may be a bit magic within those old hills.

How nice to get this photo off my editing plate. It’s been haunting my hard drive since late October of 2022. Like the tell tale heart, ever beating, ever accusing me of being lazy. At the time, I thought this image was unsalvageable. Thankfully as my editing process changes, and evolves into something more concrete, I’ve been able to pull some personality from this old image. This was shot at Reinhart gap, one of my favorite spots along the Blue Ridge Parkway.

The edit here was layers, all layers. Editing each color, each expression of light, wrestling back the nearly blow out highlights, and the inky blacks. At the end, while it was a bit of a wrestle, I had the latitude to create a nice fall image, without the fall color, relying on the Blue Ridge mountains to do what they do best, fade to blue. At the end, not one of my most technically perfect shots for certain, but one I am happy to share with you all, and hope that you glean a bit if inspiration from this.

Until Next Time!

Aperture: f8
ISO: 125
SS: 1/15th
Focal: 27mm

Fujinon 16-55mm