WAIT FOR THE LIGHT: OR PASS ON BY

Sometimes my mind sees a potential image better than it really is. I am afraid that my previsualization is occasionally on steroids and the end result can be a disappointing capture whose time has long past.

Example: Recently on a trip to Ravello, Italy, an absolute jewel of a town on the Amalfi Coast, I was walking down a picturesque road and came upon a fabulous antiquated church. It was bathed in ivy and had a wonderful mountainside as a backdrop. Another sucker shot I thought. This was too good to be true. And of course, it was. The composition and texture were magnificent! One problem. I forgot about the light! Feh! I saw it in my mind, but forgot to transpose it in reality. The result, a dull, flat and uninteresting image that was beyond post-processing first aid. Dead on Arrival!

 Sandro  Santioli is thought by many to be the quintessential Tuscan landscape photographer. Some years ago I had the pleasure of participating in one of his workshops, an experience I will never forget and be forever grateful. Our group started the day before sunrise, tripods in hand and cappuccino consumed, fearlessly planted in the midst of a beautiful field outside of Pienza. We waited for the sun to appear. And it did. As it moved through the sky, clouds moved in and out of the eye of the lens. Shadows changed, images appeared and disappeared and reconfigured upon the rich, lush Tuscan countryside. And for hours I barely moved my tripod, much like a patient fisherman waiting for the catch.

 By Noon the sun was too high. We retreated to one of Tuscany’s many ancient mountaintop towns for lunch and more shooting. Architectural shots can be pretty successful when the sun is high as the buildings block the direct rays and can create some wonderfully sharp and interesting images.

 Not to be daunted, by afternoon we returned to the fields to yet again track the sun, this time as it moved to the west. If you have ever been to Tuscany you appreciate the long late and early evening light, so rich, colorful and warm. Same location, different results, stunning in many ways.

 That evening, the sun now gone, we changed locations to inside Sienna, another wonderful feast for the eyes and lens. This time we concentrated on night street shooting with the added benefit of a little atmospheric eye-candy as a light rain provided a memorable challenge with eye-popping results.

 I learned that day about patience and the light. I hope to remember that lesson the next time I come upon a sucker shot.

Happy Shooting!

You can see some of my Tuscan images on my website at http://richsmuklerphoto.com