How to Miss a Nice Sunset . .

[xpatUSA]

While driving home this afternoon, there were well-defined darkish clouds set against a clear blue sky. It was mid-afternoon or just after. "Could be a nice sunset" I said to SWMBO. There's often lots of reds here in dusty old Texas! Arriving home, I get to looking at LED floodlights on the web but then I glance out the window and already see reds in the clouds. Panic! I grab the Sigma and rush out onto our street with a sense of foreboding since it faces north and I want to be on the other, the east-west street.

A quick shot to the north, which proves my expertise as a forecaster but not as a time-keeper:



Swiftly I march up to the corner and grab another quick shot to the west of what now seem to be fading reds:



Unfortunately, the expansive vista is a few hundred feet further, over a slight rise, and by the time I get there:



At this latitude (30N). the sun sets pretty quick - even at this time of the year.

Ho hum

P.S. please pardon the Real World shots, not my style, I know ;-)

[Donald]

Well, I don't know. Did you miss it, Ted?

It's that thing about the golden hour and not really looking fro good sunset shots until well after the sun has actually set. That last one has got beautiful colour in it, I think.

[xpatUSA]

Well, I don't know. Did you miss it, Ted?

It's that thing about the golden hour and not really looking fro good sunset shots until well after the sun has actually set. That last one has got beautiful colour in it, I think.

Well, Donald, I missed my goal of the red-lined clouds rather than the actual sunset per se. However, the images did come out well and I thought I would chronicle the rapid disappearance of the reds as an excuse to post the images which are not that great, technically speaking ;-)

OT, but some of the sky color comes from the so-called "Foveon Blue", a subject beaten to death over on DPR. The latest Sigma converter (Photo Pro) actually has a profile named thus!

Canonistas would likely call it a 'color cast' and process it out ;-). These shots are straight conversions from the raw X3F files with no processing other than exposure adjustment, some fill-light and highlight recovery.

[dje]

Ted

Thanks for the advice, but I don't need advice on how to miss a sunset. I'm rather good at that already. I understand your frustration.

I think the first shot is quite nice though and I'd probably increase the shadows a bit on it.

Dave

[DanK]

I have a tool to suggest, if you want to plan to catch a sunset: a program & app called The Photographer's Ephemeris, http://photoephemeris.com/. It allows you to plan for sunset, sunrise, moonrise, and moonset anywhere in the world on any date. It overlays the information on maps of your choice. It shows the phase of the moon and the times of all three twilights. And on and on. The computer version is free, while the app is a moderate charge. I really can't do justice to it in a short description. The best thing is to watch their videos. E.g., in one case, a photographer (I think one of the developers) wanted to shoot the sun setting (rising?) behind a castle on the coast of either northern England or Scotland. Because the app will figure out elevations from its map database, he was able to plan the specific date and time that he should be at a specific location. I just used it for a shot I want to take on October 19 (weather permitting) of the Adirondack High Peaks, looking across Lake Champlain from Vermont, just after sunrise. The gibbous moon will be setting over the mountains shortly after sunrise, while the mountains should still be bathed in very early morning light.

Of course, this is no help if you just happen to see a gorgeous sunset...

[xpatUSA]

Thanks for the link Dan,

I live in cleared area of woodland with 80' cedar & oak and this evening I glanced outside to find the front yard bathed in an unearthly orangy-red light. Going outside revealed a large flat cloud reflecting the setting sun down into the clearing. By the time I'd got the cam and taken a shot the effect was already fading (cloud moved) but here we are, FWIW (WB set to daylight):



I have a sundial on the well-house which I should take more notice of, I reckon . . . except that, at the moment of truth, it's always in the shade