Time Of Day

Recently, I had the opportunity to attend an Ansel Adams photography exhibit. It featured seventy or so images considered to be the artists museum quality collection. Along with the framed artwork, there were stories about his accomplishments and quotes regarding his philosophy on life and photography.

One of the stories described Ansel's consideration of mid-day light and how it flattened images and made them appear less interesting. The article then went on to point out how Adams would primarily take photographs in the early morning and late afternoon when shadows were longer and helped create his distinct dramatic imagery for which he is so well known and admired.

Generally, I agree with Ansel but I find that for me the practice isn't very practical. Oh, I do like to photograph at those special times as well but what am I to do the rest of the day? Consider that we all don't have the fortune of living close to iconic landscapes and that often we travel a great distance to see and photograph them. At great expense and with limited time and resources as well!

So, my philosophy rather is to photograph all day no matter what; morning, noon, evening. I am also willing to get up early to make it to locations to capture a sunrise and stay late for the sunsets. In the middle of the day, I work on subjects where shadows might not be as important. It's the simple act of adjusting your thinking and planning around time of day!