Exercise - Light though the day

This exercise should have been easy! I picked my spot and then ------ no sun. Every day that was a possibility for me (i.e. a weekend that I wasn't otherwise committed, wedding, work, family event) it either rained or was overcast.

Eventually I decided on another tack. This statue is of Andrew Carnegie. It is in our local park because he was born here and is our main local benefactor. I have taken lots of photos of it in different lights - so I went back over the last year and found some. They do not make up an entire day, and are not all at the same time of year, but they do show varying possibilities.

Taken approx 10am early this spring.

1 pm in the summer

1430 the same day (sun gone)

1530 (also in the summer)

1800 - but with no sun

1715 - against the sun

In the morning this statue is best seen from the front, in all his glory (plus seagulls usually).  By lunchtime the sun has moved around and lights the side view, and shadows are cast across the front. This does tend to highlight the 3-dimensional nature of the statue, and you can see the texture in the stone well. In the evening the back is lit, so you can either take from that side, or you can often get a very impressive silhouette, and (if you are lucky) a fabulous sky.

It is very important to consider time of day , and also time of year, when taking landscape images. You have no direct control over the direction of the light, and therefore the shadows at a given time, but watchful waiting, or indeed, returning another day either earlier or later may give you the image you want.