Late Day Light...

A New Mexico Landscape

   I've always loved photographing late in the day.  In Scotland that could mean 10:00 pm in the summer but here in Maine in February it's more like 4:30 pm.  This image was made in New Mexico late on a February afternoon.  I love the long shadows and the angled light creates lovely textures that the mid-day light simply burns out.

   When I was in Giverny this past summer, at Monet's garden, I started to think more about the idea of photographing at different times of day.  I think I will experiment more with this this year.  I will continue my series, "Winter Etchings" because I will never tire of the delicate shadow patterns on snow.  I just avoid a brightly sunlit day which is too harsh in favor of the lightly overcast day.

     Late autumn and winter is a great time to explore the late day light here in New England with the trees devoid of leaves and the sun lower in the sky, it makes for wonderful shadows.  There is a "bare bones" quality to the landscape that is very appealing for me.

   Early morning offers it's own quality of light and is well worth the effort to set the alarm for a pre-dawn wake-up call.  They say the early bird catches the worm but in this case you might just catch some amazing light effects!  Light is probably the most revealing metaphor for the contemplative photographer.  One could dedicate their whole photographic life to just exploring the qualities of light it is so rich in metaphoric possibilities. Nature communicates most profoundly through the interplay of light and shadow...make it a point this year to read her subtle messages.