Today’s post contains images made during my recent Squaw Creek NWR (northwest Missouri) trip to photograph bald eagles and trumpeter swans. At the end of my second day at the refuge, we saw/photographed this sunset (note: you may be able to see some snow geese flying about in some of the images):
This entire sequence was shot over a 20-minute interval. One of the most important lessons this sequence shows is the ability for a somewhat mundane sunset to transform into quite a powerful scene, within just minutes. After the first couple of images, I was not surprised to see a lot of people, some photographers included, leave the refuge, thinking the sunset show was over. However, I remained at my chosen location and within 10 minutes the sunset colors began quite a display, as seen in the last 3 images.
Whenever I teach my “Landscapes & Moonscapes” photography class, I always stress that one should always be ready to photograph up to 30 minutes (or more!) before a sunrise shoot, or 30 minutes (or more!) after the sun drops over the horizon. It is often during these times that the best and richest colors are seen.
The images in this post was taken on Day 2 of my trip (Day 1 was nothing spectacular). Day 3 was at least as powerful as Day 2, so I’ll share some images of that sunset in another post!
