Wait ...

          Yosemite is an exciting place to photograph. During one long weekend stay the weather was horrible. It was raining and raining, gray and drab. By the third day I was getting frustrated. It was my last day there and I did not really have anything to show for my labor. My family was not too excited to be stuck in the car for yet another day. By the end of the day all of us just wanted to get home. Even though I also wanted to get home I also wanted to wait ...

          The sun had set. The light was gone, so was some 30 or so other photographers who had waited for something that never showed up. It was cold and miserable. Only one other photographer (he was from Russia, perhaps the cold and wet did not bother him that much) and I stayed behind, still waiting ...

          Ten to fifteen minutes later, just as I was loosing all hope the clouds lit up. It only lasted long enough for two shots. They were the only two decent shots of the entire trip, but they taught me to wait ...

          On another occasion I was with long time friend and veteran pro-photographer Don Smith (www.DonSmithPhotography.Com) on one of his workshops. We were at the Grand Tetons in Wyoming. The weather was not good. We were rained upon, hailed upon, and snowed upon. One sunset never showed up because of thick cloud cover. A strong icy wind blew right through us. The wind was so strong that one tripod got blown over (luckily someone caught it mid-air). Secretly, everyone wanted to call it a day and go home. Instead we waited ... By now the sun was set and it was getting dark. Yet we waited ...

          Fifteen to twenty minutes later the clouds lit up. The shot below was the result:

          The lesson is simple: wait ... Wait until at least twenty minutes after sunset before you leave. Many of my shots were actually taken after sunset. The hues in the sky can get great after sunset. You are there already, what is twenty minutes longer to wait? The magic does not always show up, but when it does it will be well worth the time waited.

          See you waiting on location ...

          P.S. It is almost impossible to shoot these shots without a tripod. I know a tripod is a hassle to carry but never leave your best friend behind.