The atmosphere and mood of an image can play an important part in photography. Some of the best atmospheric and moody images are taken when there is mist or fog. Let's look at an image of Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe.

The mist is really important here as it adds to the mood of the image. It also helps the sun to give color to the image. Timing in these situations is important. Too much mist and you lose the detail of what is behind the mist. When taking a moody image of a swan for example you want lots of mist or fog because it gets rid of the background but in a landscape image like this too much mist ruins the shot (and your gear). With not enough mist the mood and atmosphere of the image are lost. The mist typically comes and goes with lulls in the wind. So just time it right and you have your shot.

This image helps us to compare the atmosphere and mood between the two images. Can you see that this second image just does not have the same atmosphere and mood as the first image? So go out and try to capture more mood and atmosphere in your images. Many sleep in when there is fog. Many put their cameras away when there is mist. Great images are often made when we don't do what non-photographers do. We should be out photographing when non-photographers are at home. We should probably be home when others are out. The reason for this is that others go out for the experience and the experience needs to be pleasant for them. Photographers go out to take great images and are very willing to have terrible experiences (wet, cold, early, etc.) as long as they get great images. Sometimes we get both a great experience and good images but most of the time you need to decide between the experience and the great image.