I caught this sunset on my way around east Bismarck Expressway several days ago. It’s just a quick cell phone snap with the State “Pen” in the foreground. That tower would have been a good vantage point for the sunset, although I’m sure we’d all prefer that they watch the area below and the denizens therein!
I watch solar data pretty closely. Thanks to a couple of guys at NOAA, I’ve learned which numbers are the most important to us here in North Dakota. The way the numbers were peaking on Monday, I was going absolutely nuts. The sky was on fire, but unfortunately we were on the daylight side of the globe. As darkness approached, I made plans to go out to see them.
I had planned some dramatic foreground objects, but things didn’t time out the way I’d planned. I found myself along the side of a rural highway with some friends, however, which was cool in itself. I started to swing the camera around to see what I could capture.
Again, I’m of the opinion that any sky photo is made 10x better by having an interesting or unique foreground. That was driving me nuts as I didn’t really have one, but the Lord put on a lightshow that was so astonishing that I began to just look upward and not focus so much on the camera.
I keep little LED flashlights in my camera bag, and I grabbed a blue one to illuminate the roadway with blue light so vibrant I actually had to tone it down for this photo. I played around a little bit until the clouds began to roll in, I began to get tired, and the lights began to wane.
There’s a really good chance of more Northern Lights tonight – keep your eye on the skies! I’m going to be on the road for a shoot all day and don’t expect to get back until after dark…but I may have the opportunity to transition from work to play just in time to catch more Northern Lights.
As I’ve mentioned, I’m a homeowner again. Since we’ve got water behind us and there was plenty of rain on the way, I opted to hang out and see how the new place handles near flash-flood conditions. Not a drop of water in the sump, I’m pleased to report.
So instead of being staked out near some sort of old farm stuff or a really cool tree, I’m just shooting across the way from my deck. I got some amazing cloud shots, but I’m pressed for time. I just like the contrast of color in this one and wanted to share.
Several nights ago a photo pal and I went out to catch the sunset. It came together rather suddenly and with very little time before the sun actually set, but we hastily set out to see what we could capture.
We were heading toward a little spot I’ve rediscovered north of Bismarck, but due to time constraints we stopped at Double Ditch instead. The sky was ready to deliver an amazing sunset, with brilliant colors already developing and dramatic clouds. That’s when it happened: two opposing clouds crossed each other from our perspective, essentially covering the sun and snuffing out the aforementioned brilliance. Bummer.
We made the best of it (in fact, my last post came from this trip) and came away with some pretty cool shots. Then we saw the rising moon behind us. We had an idea for another familiar spot down the road with that moon in the background, also dancing with some dramatic clouds, so we hopped in the Monster Truck and headed back that way.
That’s when it happened: in exactly the same fashion, two clouds scissored together and sliced our beautiful moon from view just as we were rolling up to our stop. Really. We hiked a little anyway to see if something would develop, but all that we got for our efforts was a few dozen fresh mosquito bites.
The trip home involved a stop at the Hoge Island boat landing parking lot. There wasn’t much to see…or was there? The moon began to peek out, and there was an interesting line of trees…so, what the heck. We hopped out in the middle of the gravel parking lot, set up the sticks, and took a crack at it.
We had a brief moment of luminescence in the clouds and an unobstructed moon before hopping in the truck and making our way home. I often say that any photo trip resulting in even one pleasing shot is a success. This one, bug bites and all, certainly fit that category. When you’ve got the fellowship of a dear friend, even coming home empty handed would be just fine, too.
I know, I know…posting has been far too infrequent lately. 2014 was the year of severe health issues rampaging through our entire family, making 2015 a “rebuilding year”. Well, actually it’s been a “building year” too. As we get our lives back, we’ve also been building a new home. Lord willing, we’ll be homeowners again tomorrow morning.
I really needed to get out and roam. Working at the house until 1:00, 2:00, even 3:00 in the morning many nights while holding down a full time job runs a guy ragged. With nothing left but the formalities of paperwork, it’s time to relax a little. My wife urged me to get out and capture the sunset. I didn’t have much time, but I grabbed my friend Zach and we headed north.
The shot above is one I’ve wanted to get for possibly years but never quite pulled off; you see, the light on the grass and the post is mine. It’s not easy to light such a scene as this without it looking entirely artificial, but I think this time I actually did pretty well. I was able to light the post and surrounding grass without losing the sky. No Photoshop…just a well placed and configured remote flash. That right there gave me great joy, and made all the mosquito bites worth it.
Feeling a little adventurous, I decided to go closer to the aforementioned post and take a shot down the barrel, as one might say. This post is hanging on tenaciously by multiple strands of barbed wire, so I don’t think you’ll find it at the bottom of the cliff anytime soon. I’m afraid the bank itself will keep receding, though.
It felt great to be out and about again, with a close friend and some cameras. I got a couple of other shots too, but I can’t share them all at once. Gotta tease ’em out slowly, you know. Stay tuned.
Favicon Plugin made by Alesis