Team Sunrise or Team Sunset?

There’s no denying that the quality of the light at either end of the day both captivates and delights, however I must admit it was a little odd the first time I photographed sunset at Rock Harbor on Cape Cod and those gathered to watch broke out into spontaneous applause when the sun dipped below the horizon. I also can’t tell you how many times I’ve audibly gasped with delight when I’ve hiked in the dark to a location and as the day wakes up the universe delivers and puts on a show just for me. 

But which is best, sunrise or sunset?

Look at the images below – one was taken at the start of the day and one at the end ….. can you tell the difference? ….. which do you prefer, if any?

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For me I’m solidly in the Team Sunrise camp, so long as I can haul my arse out of bed and get to my chosen location in time to experience the whole show. This means a number of things

1. First and foremost I’ll check the weather forecast for the location at or around sunrise, particularly the estimated cloud cover as this will give a good indication whether I can expect color. Visibility, Humidity, temperature and wind speed also have a role to play in the perfect sunrise but for me it’s the amount of cloud cover that will determine whether I set an early alarm or not. If the forecast projects between 20 and 75% cover it’s a go, I’ll travel hopefully!!
2. I also need to know key times – first light, blue hour, golden hour and actual sunrise time then it’s a simple case of working backwards. what time do I want to arrive at the location? how long will it take to get from the car to the location? how long is the drive? and lastly what time has my alarm got to be set for?!!
3. Finally I make sure I have everything ready to grab and go at stupid o’clock in the morning. That means packing my camera gear, hiking gear and coffee before I go to bed. Btw one thing I absolutely love being able to do is set up the burner in a morning twilight to have a fresh brew and breakfast with the start of the day

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Why Sunrise?

I’ve just itemized my preparations for a sunrise shoot and I guess the question is why bother to go to so much trouble when the light at the end of the day can be just the same? Well in my opinion sunset is a completely different beast to sunrise. Yes it sure can be lovely after a long day, settling down on a hillside to watch the sun disappear and I have done it many times, but I never find it quite as satisfying as sunrise. I guess it’s the dark to light that suits me better than the light to dark. Mornings are beginnings and that seems to compliment the way my mind works. I can put up with the challenge of hiking in the dark at stupid o’clock because for me the tranquility I find behind my camera as the day starts to come alive is completely unmatched by even the most serene sunset.

Sunrise goes through a number of phases and its a fantastic experience to be able to capture each phase, I always loose track of time behind my camera as I watch the sky and search for the shot.

There’s simplicity and an extended moment of joy as the blue of twilight starts to subtly change into the gold of dawn. As the blues change to yellows, oranges and reds the anticipation rises and If I’m lucky there might be a sun pillar. Then there’s the moment the sun appears over the horizon, I might decide to capture a sunstar to preserve the moment and then finally everything comes alive, light penetrates into the landscape and even in the coldest months feeling its warmth never fails to warm my soul

I must confess the photo above was a lovely moment, I’d hiked up to my favorite local viewpoint, (Cat Rock on the Appalachian Trail near Pawling, NY) to view an early morning eclipse of the sun and moon. It was a beautiful morning and even though I had to share the overlook with a number of other people nothing could detract from the beauty of that particular start to the day.

This image was taken from the summit of Gorham mountain in Acadia National Park, Maine, it was one of many images that I took that morning but the only one that captured the moment that the sun appeared over the horizon. I decided that I would use my 100-400 zoom to isolate the coastline at the far horizon and create the sunstar against the silhouettes of the pine trees. For the technically minded a sunstar is created by using a small aperture, in this case f22.

The image below was taken a few minutes later from the same viewpoint and shows the complete view that I had to work with. I’ve used a 20mm lens and you can see how focal length can really change the mood. I was pointing directly at the sun and could have waiting for it to move just a bit more behind the clouds to reduce the flare but then would have lost that lovely warm glow in the fore and mid ground.

The images below were taken one morning at Macedonia State Park, near Kent, Connecticut. The before image was taken on my phone as I reached the location. Although they are not quite the same image they are taken from the same rocky ledge looking south down the valley and I’ve included them as a comparison because I think the second image shows just how much difference morning light makes once sunrise is over light floods into the valley. Suddenly there’s depth, warmth and interest, a great time to sit with my coffee and just let the day wash over me..

To finish these musings I thought I’d post a few of my favorite moments with just me and the sun – btw one of these is not like the others, its a sunset can you tell which??

Thank you for reading this far blogging is new to me and words don’t always come easily, however I hope the photos make up for it and you are able to understand a little more as to why I take the photos that I do. Please feel free to subscribe for future posts or visit my website where you can purchase my work

Living Life on the Bright side, one sunrise at a time