A few years back I was in the eastern Sierra above Bishop when changing conditions up high persuaded me to head to a lower elevation for sunrise. So I ended up in The Buttermilks, an area at the base of the range above Bishop, CA.
It was an unusual morning. There was a gap in the clouds to the east, and the first light came through that gap between the crest of the White Mountains and the edge of the cloud deck. Light began on the peaks and gradually spread downward. It was cloudy up near the crest (which is why I ended up here) and the conditions were in a state of constant flux. The curving clouds in the first photograph were changing quickly, and they have a different appearance in each of several exposures I made at about this time. Eventually the light worked its way down to my position and lost its sunrise "gold," but as it did so the clouds above the crest and to its west became darker and more dramatic.
I actually like the second one more. The cloud drama and contrast really makes it pop. Always worthwhile hanging out just a little longer after the initial sunrise burst, never know what you might see!
As to the "which is best?" question, I initially was more drawn to the first one, perhaps since I tend to gravitate to subtler images. However, some responses (elsewhere) to the second one made me see that drama in it a bit more clearly.
These photos also remind me just how ready I am to get back into the field in the Sierra!
Great set, and very hard to choose between the two. I prefer the colors in the first and the lighting in the second. I have always admired your subtle touch with your processing.
Lovely stuff. I prefer the first one. Subtle is good. Much of your work reflects a “gentle hand” in both composition and file handling. Beautiful stuff. Been an admirer for quite a while.
Thanks for that. And thanks to several of your for the "gentle hand" comments.
I sometimes do more post-processing than you might think I do, but in most (though not quite all!) landscape photographs I'm striving for a balance between enhancing/optimizing the subject and the avoidance of going "too far"... for my own personal taste.
Two gorgeous images Dan with the first rather magical. I can never get enough of gap light and to have clouds dancing above those glorious peaks must have made you wonder what was in your coffee.
morris wrote:
Two gorgeous images Dan with the first rather magical. I can never get enough of gap light and to have clouds dancing above those glorious peaks must have made you wonder what was in your coffee.
Morris
Thanks. And "heh" about that last part. This location has coughed up some pretty interesting light and conditions for me on a fairly regular basis. This more was (obviously) a pretty good one, but I really remember the _second_ time I shot here quite a few years ago.
I had visited the area once before and thought that it had potential, though on the first visit the light was unspectacular. But as I do with lots of locations, I made a mental note that I filed away — namely to remember the location if the right conditions seemed likely to appear.
A short time (a year or two?) later I was camped higher up in the Sierra near here during an October cold spell, complete with early snow. My plan had been to get up early and head higher up to photograph an entirely different subject, but when I work up before dawn I could see that the sky was clouded over and my original plan wasn't likely to work. I started heading that way anyway... and then I saw a bit of light far to the east, out beyond the White Mountains, and I remembered this place I thought there was a chance that the gap between the Whites and the clouds (similar to the day I made the photos posted here) just might send some light across the eastern escarpment right after dawn.
So I high-tailed it back _down_ from the higher elevations, heading for this exact spot. I knew where I wanted to be within about a 25 foot radius. As I approached the spot the light was just starting to arrive, so I had to work quickly. I pulled over, unloaded gear, put on the lens that I already knew would work, clamped the camera to the tripod, and started walking to a spot about 100 feet away that I had in mind, not even stopping to look at the view.
I got there and looked up as I placed the tripod and — this is hard to believe — the narrow band of light from that gap was just starting its trip down the east side from the summit, virga was falling through the light, and there was a (wait for it) rainbow. ;-)
