Sunrise over the Valley

I got it in my head last week that I wanted to find a spot to take sunrise photos.

I love sunrises and sunsets.  I love seeing how the sky changes color.  And how vibrant it can get.  I love how the opposite horizon is affected as well.  And how it's different EVERY time.  No two sunsets or sunrises are the same.

This time of year is great for sunrises.  It's late enough in the morning that I don't have to get up at completely ungodly hours.  It's still warm enough that pants and a sweatshirt are sufficient.  The bay area gets some really iconic fog that makes for fantastic photos - especially with the sun reflecting off it or shining through it.

We live in a valley and really can't see much of a sunrise or sunset.  Gotta climb some hills to really get to a good spot to see one.  Or stand on a freeway overpass.

Friday morning came and I had totally forgot that I wanted to go.  Annie came in the room at 6 and I remembered.  The sun was starting to come up.  I grabbed flip flops and Annie and we ran out the door and went to find a location.  My first location was way up high on a hill.  Unfortunately it was so foggy Friday morning that I couldn't see anything.  I drove down the hill a tad and grabbed a couple shots, but was just barely on a shoulder of a 2-lane road and couldn't really stay there.

So we drove some more.  I saw a road go up a hill and decided to follow it.  It went around a bend and at the top of the hill is a school.  And a parking lot.  And a small field that overlooks the valley.  I parked and Annie and I both got of the out car and we watched the sunrise.  It was fun.  I got a couple decent shots - especially of a really thick patch of fog.  But I felt like I missed the best part of the sunrise.  So I decided to try again the next day.

Saturday morning came and I couldn't sleep.  I was afraid of missing it again.  I grabbed my phone, my camera, my tri-pod and a soda and left.  This time I took the time to get dressed.  I drove off to the same place as the day before.  I was up earlier and knew where to go, I was sure to get some better photos this time.  Unfortunately, I didn't have the fog that I had the day before.  So the photos weren't as mysterious and glowy.  But the sun was neat.

Watching the sunrise made me feel like the neighbor boy from The Incredibles.  Mr. Incredible says, "What are you waiting for?"  The boy replies, "I don't know!  Something AMAZING!"  Yeah ... that's how I felt.

Stood there waiting.  Snapping a photo here and there.  Then watching and waiting.  How was the light going to change?  How were the clouds going to reflect the light?  What color would it be?  Will I get "God-Rays?"

It was absolutely gorgeous.  I loved it.  Spectacular.

I only hope my photos did it justice.

The fog from Friday Morning's outing

Sunburst from Friday 

Sat AM Panoramic - built in Photoshop Elements, processed in LR

I love this one.  I love the way the mist and the light make it feel like the Serengeti or somewhere ominous.  Anywhere. Can't see the city.  Can't see the field. 

(I'm struggling with editing/processing sunrise and sunset photos in LR.  Trying to get the colors right and to get the right balance of light and dark.  I tried a bracketed set for HDR, but it didn't work right.  Also have a hard time remembering what the light looked like to properly process in LR.)

Long Exposure and Christmas lights.....

Enjoying some fun with long exposure shots and outdoor lights.  I have so many more ideas in my head, but they'll have to wait until I have more time and can maybe pose the shots a bit.

Some are from church and some from home.

Enjoy.

Advent Wreath at church with snowflake bokeh lights

Advent wreath and lights on stage

Candlelight Service

Candlelight service

Luminary lights

Luminaries

Advent Wreath again

Fireplace, mantel, advent wreath

Christmas scene

Self-Portrait

Christmas Bokeh

CD Release Concert

My good friend Lara just released a full length worship album.  To celebrate, she held a concert at the church.  I took the opportunity to practice my Worship Photography, which is basically flash-less photography in a dark room.

Here are some photos from the night.

Open Mic Night

And another from the ministry photographer category.

This was Open Mic Night.  This is just as it sounds ... everyone goes up to share their talent with the guests.  From dance to solo to full band to a capella there is a great display of talent.

Like the worship concert, this provided a degree of difficulty, but a different one.  The lighting was better (the congregation seats were lit up as well), so it was fairly easy to meter from one photo to the next.  The stage decorations were the same with similar lighting, so that was fun and made for soft backgrounds.  But everything was the same.  It was a different person on stage, but there was little movement from the performer, and the audience was an audience, not an engaged congregation worshipping.  So the challenge was to find interesting shots that spoke to the fun of the day without being the same every time. This required movement around the room and finding a new angle periodically.  I had to really think outside my normal box to get something interesting.  I don't know how successful I was.  But here are a few that I've captured.

Father and Daughter ... one of those that's special by knowing their story

She was doing an interpretive dance to "Jesus, Lover of my Soul"
It was fun to photograph because she was all over the stage.  But I couldn't get my shutter speed fast enough.  In hindsight I should have increased my ISO and underexposed a little.

I love this one because it takes me back to my days of piano recitals.  Being nervous and flustered.

She was reading a poem she wrote and won 1st place for at the Alameda County Fair

This cracks me up ..... Sisters sharing an ipod so they could sing the song a capella

Cousins ........ singing "Blessings" by Laura Story.  Another one that's special by knowing their story.

PROUD Grandfather ... this makes me tear up every time I look at it.

Larry ... a guitar novice ... but very passionate.  It's great to see him so excited to play, being very diligent to play every note exactly as written on the page.

Worship Concert

I've taken on the role of being a ministry photographer for the church. It was born sort of out of my always being there with a camera anyway (taking photos for my own edification) and Pastor M mentioning that they'd like an official ministry photographer or two. So I immediately sent off an email and volunteered.

Worship Concert.

The Worship Concert provided a bit of a challenge in the lighting. The lighting was concert style, so it was bright (and colored) on stage and dark in the congregation. That's fantastic for worshipping, really tricking for photographing. It was a real test of my ability to expose properly on manual. And of course the flash was off (not that it would do any good being in the back of the sanctuary trying to capture the front). Additionally, the lights would change color and intensity so I'd have to truly meter my exposure for every ... single ... shot. And sometimes I forgot or didn't have time to get it accurate. One thing that was nice was the soft colors up front and the background. The background on stage makes for some really fun photos. The way the plants or backlit and the soft blues off the wall and the pallet like wood structures. It is one of my favorite backgrounds the church has had and I love taking pictures against it. Almost so much that I want to do a couple portraits up there.

I am working on editing photos still. Knowing what to edit and how to edit and how to improve the photo after it's captured. Digitally photography and post-production software has really changed the photographic world and I'm not caught up yet. Some of these I think would make fantastic black and white photos; some need some lighting alterations. Some are perfect just as they are. I didn't go too deep in editing these photos, but am starting to think about what I'd do and how I'd do it.

Anyway ... Worship Concert Photos

No photo shoot is complete without the baby.

I think this could be so much more powerful in B-and-W or even Sepia or similar.  I love the hands raised contrasted with the head down contemplation.

Like I said ... sometimes I forgot to adjust my settings before getting the shot.  Unfortunately I didn't have time to re-meter and reshoot this shot.

So I've been playing with it in photoshop.  This is the best I've done so far.  Cool effect, but I was hoping to just calm down the bright and see the real thing.