Clouds in the Sky
Sony A7IV. SS 1/125, Aperture 1/125, ISO 125
Every time I shoot, I aim to improve my composition and technical skills. At this point in time, my camera is still smarter than I am, and I am quickly trying to change that. On this field trip, my goal was to capture the sunrise over the mountains and to come out of shooting with a balanced histogram. Historically, my histograms have been my Achilles' heels, and I wanted to change that.
A professional would tell you that a key component to proficiency in landscape photography is scouting the location. I didn't know the trail existed until the night before, so scouting it was out of the question. This left me limited in my options to capture the sunrise. I didn't know what was available, so I had to make it up on the field, and the sun refused to stand still for my silly little photo.
To no one's surprise except my own, the sunrise photo wasn't working. The light wasn't hitting the mountains as I had envisioned. The clouds were both helping and hindering at the same time. My location was not good, I didn't scout the place, and I was racing against the sun. So I stood behind my camera for a few minutes, obsessively adjusting the exposure triangle for a shot that wasn't there. An incessant bee helped me snap out of forcing a shot that just wasn't there. So after running away from the bee, I decided to look up at the sky, and it was almost like I had never seen clouds before. Soft, scattered, and glowing beautifully against a deep blue sky, the clouds were glowing with morning light in a way I hadn't even noticed while I was chasing my first idea. So I lifted my camera and started shooting upward. Suddenly, it felt easy.
This photo ended up being my favorite shot of the entire morning. Funny enough, it also had the most balanced histogram I captured all day. Looking back, the biggest thing I learned from this moment was that you can't force a shot that isn't happening. Nature doesn't always cooperate with our intentions — and that's okay. Sometimes the most beautiful images come when we drop the plan and stay open to what's actually unfolding around us.