I am overjoyed with the way my photos turned out. Maybe you picked up on that in my Wilderness Photography piece a couple of weeks ago. Click here to go back and read it. I like the fact that the composition worked out in my favor. But I forgot to mention the other lessons that Scott taught me. 

That day was overcast. Because it was overcast, there is an absence of shadow. There is nothing to add character to those photos. Nothing there to develop much interest. Nothing there to provide contrast.

Scott tries to teach me about lighting

Scott told me that it wasn’t a very good day to be out taking pictures. He said that with sunshine we could have completely different results. That with sunshine subjects will present themselves in a different light. (Pardon the pun.) Subjects will cast interesting shadows that make them stand out. Shadows that will make nice images. The contrast of light and shadow help to pop an image.

Time of day is an important factor

Shadows, however, don’t tell the whole story. The time of day is an important factor as well. It seems that the early morning and the late afternoon are both good times to practice the art of photography. The shadows are longer and may add a touch of intrigue to any photo. You could  position the camera in such a way to capture an attractive subject made that way by the arrangement of a shadow. Both morning and afternoon are good times but may provide a different result. Ansel Adams would stay on site for hours and sometimes days just to capture the right light.

We finish our outing

We pack up our gear and I drive Scott back to his house. As I head for home I suddenly came out from under the cloud cover into bright sunlight. ‘Where were you earlier,’ I mumble to the sun. Then all of a sudden I see this picture. Speeding along the highway I pass an obvious place to stop and take a picture. Again, I think, ‘I should stop and get this photo but I am already passed it’. “Maybe next time.’ ‘Nuts to this, there won’t be a next time’ I realize. Quickly, I spin a u-turn in the highway and go back to the turnoff I spotted earlier. I parked and took this photo:

This is the exact thing that Scott taught earlier that afternoon. The sunlight, the dark sky background, the contrast of the farm against the sky all come together to create a great photo.

Hopefully I have learned valuable lessons. Never pass up an opportunity to create something artistic.