Cape Clouds at Sunset

Here are the clouds we spotted just before heading out to the new Central High School stadium to see if it would make a good foreground for a sunset photo. I’m glad we discovered the Marching Band practicing there, but I would have been satisfied with some cloud photos. This was due south when we climbed into the car. [You can click any of the photos to make them larger.]

Cloud was boiling and growing

Second by second, this massive white mass was boiling and growing larger. It was neat, but I wanted something more interesting in the foreground. In Florida, there are always palm trees handy. Palm trees are a cliche, but even cliches can make a nice photo.

Wife Lila was driving and she cautioned that I should shoot what was in front of me because the light was changing so quickly that the magic might leak out. I’m usually the one saying that, so this was a real role reversal.

Sunset coming fast

She was right (as always), though. The sun was getting ready to go down. As soon as that happened,  the wonderful white highlights would go away. Still, I thought there might be a better shot elsewhere.

Aggravating circumstances

Normally I would have hated to have been stuck at a long red light, but this gave me a chance to experiment with the clouds and passing truck traffic at Silver Springs and Shawnee Parkway. The composition isn’t quite what I would liked to have had, but the red light changed to green before a truck with his side running lights could streak by with another truck in front of him. I have to confess I was hoping that the guy in the foreground who hadn’t turned his marker lights on would get ticketed by a cop, but I don’t think the charge of aggravating a photographer is in the state statutes.

If I hadn’t been convinced that there might be a better shot at the high school, I’d have stayed here to work on a little nicer photo. The elements were there, just not in the right combination during this light cycle.