The Source

[AndreDonawa]

Just after a month of shooting with my first dslr (Rebel 3), I decided to try a few shots along the east coast. I got to this spot about an hour before sunset and scoped out a few potential compositions. While I was shooting in the opposite direction I looked over my shoulder and saw these rays developing. I shot a bracketed set at f/8 as I read that that was the sweet spot for the lens. I wasn’t familiar with the depth of field/ aperture relationship yet. I was totally excited to see the sun’s rays bursting out from behind the mountains since I had never seen anything like it before. I thought this only happened in cartoons. Much to my surprise, the rays didn’t show up when I returned the next day; I thought they appeared because they were behind the hills but clouds on the horizon were the key. This is the shot that really got me excited and hooked on landscape photography; even after the rays had dissipated I enjoyed just standing there watching the light change and listening to the sounds of the surf.

Specific Feedback Requested

All comments are welcome.

Technical Details

1/100 sec f/8 ISO 100 Bracketed HDR in LR and PS , TK7,Lots of CA from the kit lens.

[David_Thompson]

Hey there again Andre! Another scene that you captured some fantastic conditions! Some minor suggestions. I will attach the image, the areas that have the red circle, I’d clone. The horizontal red lines on the image is the areas where I would open the shadows up some so they don’t appear black. Lastly, there is a section in the sky that I would clone to make the clouds even at the top of the frame. You will see that indicated with a red line pointing up to that specific spot.

DT

[AndreDonawa]

Thanks, David. Great suggestions. Time for some tidying up.

[Diane_Miller]

Stunning crepuscular rays – and getting them in the reflection is fantastic!