2015-12-15 Foggy morning
Fog fascinates me.
I love the way it transforms places and landscapes—the same ones that you have seen so many times and know so well that they have become practically invisible to you—into something else. It can erase a mountaintop and give the impression that you've reached the top of a high plateau; it can erase the other shore of a lake and give the impression you're standing on the beach of a gulf opening into the ocean. It can erase buildings and give the impression that—instead of a small city park—you're in the middle of a big forest, or simply that you're in a new and different place.
The problem with fog however… is that it's hard to photograph and capture it such that the pictures evoke these feelings as well. It's definitely possible, but if you're not prepared—not the right camera (ahem, just a phone), not the right lens, or not the right location—it's more difficult. Let's not forget composition… And especially as the morning fog on a sunny day has a limited lifetime until the sun disperses it, this type of fog is even more precious: you need to be in the right place at the right time, and not 30 minutes later.
So I was fortunate to guess that after the previous cloudy and foggy day, the next day might be interesting; I took my pocket camera (a Nikon Coolpix A; APS-C sensor, so good dynamic range but not best, with a 28mm equivalent lens, also appropriate) and while biking I managed to capture a few shots that make me quite happy. They are not that bad compared to my previous attempts, but of course they could be much better. Some of the photos, especially the ones directly against the sun have completely blown highlights; I was shooting bracketed (3 @ 2EV steps), but as the 2EV step was too big and the less exposed pictures in the set were generally not to my liking even after tweaking, I kept the overexposed ones.
So until the next time I have a good camera with me and find myself in foggy weather, I can think on how can I improve my technique. In the meantime, here are the pictures.
Read MoreI love the way it transforms places and landscapes—the same ones that you have seen so many times and know so well that they have become practically invisible to you—into something else. It can erase a mountaintop and give the impression that you've reached the top of a high plateau; it can erase the other shore of a lake and give the impression you're standing on the beach of a gulf opening into the ocean. It can erase buildings and give the impression that—instead of a small city park—you're in the middle of a big forest, or simply that you're in a new and different place.
The problem with fog however… is that it's hard to photograph and capture it such that the pictures evoke these feelings as well. It's definitely possible, but if you're not prepared—not the right camera (ahem, just a phone), not the right lens, or not the right location—it's more difficult. Let's not forget composition… And especially as the morning fog on a sunny day has a limited lifetime until the sun disperses it, this type of fog is even more precious: you need to be in the right place at the right time, and not 30 minutes later.
So I was fortunate to guess that after the previous cloudy and foggy day, the next day might be interesting; I took my pocket camera (a Nikon Coolpix A; APS-C sensor, so good dynamic range but not best, with a 28mm equivalent lens, also appropriate) and while biking I managed to capture a few shots that make me quite happy. They are not that bad compared to my previous attempts, but of course they could be much better. Some of the photos, especially the ones directly against the sun have completely blown highlights; I was shooting bracketed (3 @ 2EV steps), but as the 2EV step was too big and the less exposed pictures in the set were generally not to my liking even after tweaking, I kept the overexposed ones.
So until the next time I have a good camera with me and find myself in foggy weather, I can think on how can I improve my technique. In the meantime, here are the pictures.
