SALT Central Coast Issue 1, April 2014 | Page 11

EXPOSURE Understand the Weather The Golden Hour It is one thing to watch the weather; it is a totally separate thing to actually understand it. But if you do, you may know when to get up early and when to stay in bed. Something you can check is the cloud formation and this can have an amazing impact on your images. If you understand that some different cloud structures are moving through overnight that will greatly increase the chance of the cloud lighting up, then it could be well worth capturing. The opposite can also be true. Weather also impacts on ocean conditions, wind, rain etc etc and if you understand how all of these variables can impact on the scene you are trying to shoot, you will go better prepared and chances are you will get some amazing shots. The greatest friend you will have in Landscape photography is light.Understanding light is the single biggest contributing factor in taking great landscape photographs. The magic really happens in the “Golden Hour” which is the half hour either side of sunset and sunrise. This time is great for a number of reasons but the main ones are the beautiful golden light you can get and also because the angle of the light is so low it creates some amazing textures and patterns within the scene. Glenn Mckimmin Managing Director e: [email protected] P: +61 2 4365 1488 w: www.createdforlife.com - Forresters Beach - 9