It is a fun journey to get a new, all-consuming hobby, where you have to learn everything from scratch. It is also interesting to see how in the start-up phase one can succumb to self-imposed dogmas, and then free oneself from them.
When I started with photography, and eventually focused on landscape photography, it was out of the joy of getting out into fresh air, and at the same time having something to concentrate on, a mission, a purpose. In the beginning, I biked around with the camera, and took pictures of everything. It was fun, but I did not think most of the pictures were particularly good. A few hundred youtube videos later, I have imprinted the landscape photo mindset, with quality over quantity, focus on finding the best composition, spending a lot of time in each location etc. This went so far that I began to stress myself with finding the perfect composition, and that I almost became afraid to take pictures in case I did not have the perfect light, the perfect settings and the perfect subject. The best became the enemy of good!
After watching a video from one of my great role models in landscape photography, Thomas Heaton, I was able to relax more. He said something like "Go out, take pictures, set the bar low and do not plan more than where to go and what weather you expect". What does it matter if I come home with the perfect, award-winning image? The whole point is to have fun, take pictures, and learn something new every time. I had become too hung up on self-imposed expectations, and lost some of the joy of photography along the way. Fortunately, it was easy to find it again, the solution was just to go out, take pictures, enjoy myself without too much ambition.
Therefore, I went out one evening, with my family, to watch a beautiful sunset from Karihola, and take some pictures. It was cheerful talk, no expectations, fresh air and a beautiful performance on the horizon. It does not get better than this!
Some mobile photos I took on the way:
The sunset was the obvious main subject, so I managed to find a fairly good composition. This is a focus/exposure stack of two images:
ISO 100, F11, 1/5s 28mm
I am pretty pleased with the exposure, and the composition has a good balance between the two main elements in the foreground, in addition to the sea in the foreground makes up a skewed line that leads the eyes towards the sun.
The last picture I was not quite so lucky with, it was taken a bit in a hurry, handheld and at auto ISO and thus became quite grainy. I managed to remove a good deal in the post processing, but the sharpness was so-so.
What I still like about this is the contrast to the previous picture. From the sunset with a wealth of colors and light, to the more anemic, gloomy expression of the latter, where the sun has set, the waves begin to hit the shore, and the night takes over.
ISO 6400, F5.6, 1/80 sek, 122mm
Although this image is not perfect, it has given me an idea for something I can work on. Someone once said that photographing sunsets is like scoring on an open goal. In that case, what happens after sunset should be a notch more difficult, but have at least as much potential. And if there is something we have plenty of here on Nordmøre, it is dark, gloomy, wet, brutal forces of nature. I look forward to capturing these with the camera ahead!
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