Sea stacks at sunset, Pacific Coast, northern California
During our redwoods workshops we always hope to find fog, but we also hope to see a nice sunset or two along the coast. Unfortunately those two things don’t usually go together. The kind of high fog layer (or coastal stratus) that might seep into a redwood forest often appears as a low overcast along the coast. Even if the stratus dissipates late in the morning, it can reform again just before sunset, blocking the light.
The most interesting sunrises and sunsets usually need some clouds to catch the light from the rising or setting sun and add interest to the sky. But the most colorful sunrises and sunsets usually involve high clouds, not low clouds. Since they’re so far above the earth, high clouds can catch the light from the sun well before sunrise or long after sunset. And because the sun can light those high clouds from such a low angle, the light travels through more atmosphere, filtering out the blue wavelengths of light, and leaving only oranges and reds.
But any clouds, even low clouds, can create beautiful sunrises or sunsets, as long as they’re broken clouds. A solid overcast sky will block the sunlight completely, but broken clouds, or a low gap underneath the clouds in the direction of the sun (east at sunrise or west at sunset), will allow the rising or setting sun to light the underside of the clouds. When lit from underneath, low clouds can become amber or orange, while high clouds can, under the right conditions, turn intense shades of red.
As I said in my last post, we got some wonderful fog during our redwoods workshop earlier this month. But looking at cloud forecasts from the weather models, it didn’t seem like a good sunset was in the cards. One evening, however, seemed slightly more promising than the others. Most of the models showed completely clear skies at sunset that evening. For coastal scenes that’s usually preferable to overcast, but not ideal. One or two models hinted that some clouds might be around in the late afternoon, but would clear out by sunset. Still, that seemed like the best bet, so we headed to a spot along the coast with some photogenic sea stacks.
As it turned out, a bank of clouds lingered until sunset and beyond. Even with the amazing abilities of modern weather models, none of them are perfect in predicting such details as whether a bank of clouds might cling to the coast. In this case we were lucky that the models were slightly off target. This was a low bank of clouds, but skies were clear farther west, and the clouds were high enough for the setting sun come underneath them and turn them orange. So it turned into a beautiful sunset.
The photograph above is my favorite from that evening. It was made just after the sun had dipped below the horizon and lit the underside of the cloud bank. I used a neutral-density filter to slow the shutter speed down to three seconds – slow enough to smooth and soften the water, but fast enough to still preserve some texture in the waves.
— Michael Frye
P.S. Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there, and Happy Solstice to everyone! As a photographer I look forward to shorter days ahead, with a chance for a decent night’s sleep between sunset and the next sunrise. 🙂
Related Posts: Sun Breaking Through Fog; Wave Party
Michael Frye is a professional photographer specializing in landscapes and nature. He lives near Yosemite National Park in California, but travels extensively to photograph natural landscapes in the American West and throughout the world.
Michael uses light, weather, and design to make photographs that capture the mood of the landscape, and convey the beauty, power, and mystery of nature. His work has received numerous awards, including the North American Nature Photography Association’s 2023 award for Fine Art in Nature Photography. Michael’s photographs have appeared in publications around the world, and he’s the author and/or principal photographer of several books, including Digital Landscape Photography: In the Footsteps of Ansel Adams and the Great Masters, and The Photographer’s Guide to Yosemite.
Michael loves to share his knowledge of photography through articles, books, workshops, online courses, and his blog. He’s taught over 200 workshops focused on landscape photography, night photography, digital image processing, and printing.
