Lady Luck
Tendrils of cloud laced with a light spring snow are filled with evening light over Mill Creek Canyon and the La Sal Mountains south of Moab, Utah.
We drove home after a day in the Klondike Bluffs area of Arches National Park, and the clouds wrapping the La Sal range began to fill with golden light as snow wafted toward the desert below. We were bogged down in spring break traffic, and I wanted desperately to find a scenic place to pull over so I could photograph the cloud light. Instead, there were slow 18-wheelers and traffic lights. I fretted and cursed, quietly. We finally turned off the main road and arrived at the rental condo, and oh-ho!, there was still a lingering bit of color! I left the family and ran up the street toward a nearby knoll. The large pylons visible in the lower left dominated the skyline, made for a horrid photo, and so a more suitable elevated vantage was required.
After a couple of minutes I was out of breath, my legs were tired, and the steepest part of the knoll (maybe a 30˚ slope?) had yet to be climbed. But the light was yet fading quickly, so there was no time to rest or to catch my breath. When I reached the top of the knoll I was breathing hard, and of course, I had no tripod. There was time for two shots before the light disappeared, and when I reviewed the first one prior to taking the second, I noticed that in my haste I had set the shutter-speed to ⅓ s; combined with my labored breathing, the result was a blurry mess. For this second shot that you see here, I held my breath and hoped the image stabilization software would work its magic. Lady Luck blew her light into the clouds for one last moment.
Lady Luck
Tendrils of cloud laced with a light spring snow are filled with evening light over Mill Creek Canyon and the La Sal Mountains south of Moab, Utah.
We drove home after a day in the Klondike Bluffs area of Arches National Park, and the clouds wrapping the La Sal range began to fill with golden light as snow wafted toward the desert below. We were bogged down in spring break traffic, and I wanted desperately to find a scenic place to pull over so I could photograph the cloud light. Instead, there were slow 18-wheelers and traffic lights. I fretted and cursed, quietly. We finally turned off the main road and arrived at the rental condo, and oh-ho!, there was still a lingering bit of color! I left the family and ran up the street toward a nearby knoll. The large pylons visible in the lower left dominated the skyline, made for a horrid photo, and so a more suitable elevated vantage was required.
After a couple of minutes I was out of breath, my legs were tired, and the steepest part of the knoll (maybe a 30˚ slope?) had yet to be climbed. But the light was yet fading quickly, so there was no time to rest or to catch my breath. When I reached the top of the knoll I was breathing hard, and of course, I had no tripod. There was time for two shots before the light disappeared, and when I reviewed the first one prior to taking the second, I noticed that in my haste I had set the shutter-speed to ⅓ s; combined with my labored breathing, the result was a blurry mess. For this second shot that you see here, I held my breath and hoped the image stabilization software would work its magic. Lady Luck blew her light into the clouds for one last moment.