Lines of a Sunset

This image was from last Saturday evening. Evelyn and I drove up to Grand Haven for a sunset and of course I had to bring my gear. Come on, how could I pass up a sunset shot. I did not have a long-shot of the pier at sunset and being June I thought I could get the sun right behind the lighthouse for a unique effect.

We paid the state the $6 to get into the parking lot and drove well south in the lot and set up camp to wait for the setting sun. Little did I realize I would have to contend with a couple hundred sea gulls. As the sun began to set I had to relocate three times as the sun was setting way north. I finally realized the sun would be going behind some clouds and I would not be getting the shot I came for but that is what happens and you just roll with it.

Not only did the sun misbehave, the sky was very hazy making life more difficult. Shot with a Canon 40D with an EF 24-105 f/4 L IS lens with photo specs of f/4 aperture, 1/8000 (that's right) shutter speed. The sun was still rather bright and in order to keep the blow-out and wild lens flare (which is mildly evident anyhow) to a minimum, I had to go for long focal length and high shutter speed.

So what is with the wild lines in the sky. That is a posterizing effect in Photoshop. Now for the why I chose to employ that effect. The sun did a wonderful job at what the sun does when you shoot into it. There was some natural lines of gradation that just didn't look that great. I am on the road with this image and retrieved the image as a dng and it opened in 8 bit which just does not have the data that 16 bit provides. So rather than live with the gradation. I went a little more artsy. Simple as it sounds, it is what it is.

It is getting late and I have to br bright eyes and bushy tailed in the morning.

Cya, and take care... Doug