Two of my resolutions for photography in 2020 are to get up for more sunrise shots and to take more time on location, the latter being a point driven home by Nigel Danson in his vlog.
As I work from home on a Wednesday they provide a good opportunity to get out early. The conditions on the Clear Outside app looked favourable for this morning (Weds 8th Jan) and so I got up and headed out by around 6.30 am.
When I arrived at Tusmore Park it was almost pitch black and I made my way to a spot where I hoped to capture the sunrise. Tusmore Park is a place I’ve revisited a few times in the last 12 months. It’s around 10 minutes drive from home and is tucked away in the countryside. It’s an estate which boasts a large stately home and it’s surrounded by plenty of woodland & farmland.
I set up my equipment and could see a bank of cloud to the east despite it being clear overhead. To the south, I could see the glow of Bicester mimicking that of sunrise and overhead the star of Polaris and Ursa Minor.
Looking east I could see a blanket of cloud despite conditions being clear overhead and to the west.
My first step was to take some long exposure shots to figure out what composition I could get. There are two trees in the middle of a field that I wanted to use so I worked with them.
Once I’d figured my composition I took some shots of the clear skies with the glow of Bicester in the background. I also captured a couple of images of Ursa Minor and the Leo constellation above the treeline behind me.
Bicester creates a sunrise effect in the distance.
The Leo constellation is horizontal over the woodland behind me.
I’ve spoken before about being out at dusk. The noise of the birds and other animals settling down for the night, it’s an incredibly relaxing time to be out in the fresh air & sunrise isn’t too different.
I sat there, a thermos of coffee in hand, listening to the noise of the pheasants getting gradually louder behind me. As the light improved they started to fly out into the field before making a sharp u-turn when realising there was a human present (i.e. me!).
A bouquet of pheasants (yes, that is the correct collective noun!) sat 100 meters away to my left, a rabbit ran from the field back into the woodland and red kites began to circle overhead.
Low cloud began to roll in overhead, a good sign! But in the distance, the thick blanket of cloud remained where the sun was due to rise.
A thick blanket of cloud to the east.
A bouquet of pheasants sit passively to my left.
As the time moved toward 8am it was starting to become evident that a nice red sunrise shot was going to elude me. There was no hint of warm colour despite the need for a torch having passed long ago.
I captured some images again, just making sure I was happy with the composition. Sipped more coffee from the flask and just enjoyed being out in the fresh air. More birds stirred, cars in the distance ventured off on their morning commute, still no sign of a sunrise.
As close as I got to a golden sunrise.
By 8.20 am it was clear it wasn’t to be my morning. There was a glimmer of light above the clouds in the distance but it was nothing more than a token gesture.
I packed up my gear and walked further along the field. I’d attached my 70-200mm in case the opportunity for a bird in flight presented itself but a photographer trudging along in wellies, coat ruffling and tripod bouncing around in the backpack is highly unlikely to capture such a shot!
A quick peak around the corner but they already knew I was there and soon disappeared.
Alas, it was time to head back for work without my sunrise shot. You win some, you lose some. Even so, being out in the fresh air and watching the world wake was fantastic and it’s a good way to start one of my new resolutions.
The trees in my composition from another angle. They’re almost symmetrical.
Until next time…
Simon.