Blue Green LakeYates Park, Orchard Park, NY Clouds came and went several times this evening, suggesting the sunset might either be spectacular or non-existent. I hesitated, and hesitated, and almost ran out of time to act. In the end, I convinced myself to head out and simply adjust to whatever nature would throw my way. I knew it was rather windy and driving by Green Lake earlier this day saw the surface full of ripples. Not completely out of the ordinary but not all that usual either. In the back of my head a back up plan was brewing.

Once on site that plan proved to be very useful. There was not a hint of sun in the sky covered solid with dense storm clouds. It was more of a question whether I was going to get soaked or not. I moved around a small section of the shore that is a favorite of mine, varied the angles, and this night even the lenses, trying both super wide and moderate telephoto.

When the night settled in and my eyes could not really see much the conditions were perfect to take advantage of what a camera can see using a very long exposure, and the ripples. Not only does the long exposure pick up the remaining bits of light to paint a photograph in a complete darkness, it also smooths out the small but fast moving ripples on the surface. The result? A smooth surface interrupted only by the silhouette of the shoreline, rocks, and trees.

In the first photograph, I composed to include the opposite shore but still angled the camera down to eliminate any signs of civilization. Even another inch up and a few lights of the houses would show. Here, I was not going for the classic blue hour mix of blue ambient light and golden glow of incandescent bulbs. I wanted just moody blues. However, I knew from the past that quite often, things do end up looking different on location and in print and took another version with the camera tilted slightly up. That's maybe for another post though.

I also went in the opposite direction. I was not sure about the opposite shoreline. While I liked the smooth transition from water to land, and maybe triggering the question what is behind it, it also seemed unnecessary for what I was after. To get the scene that would show my state of mind, the simpler photo below was what worked best for me. No distractions, just the two elements that started me down this path

Green Lake BluesYates Park, Orchard Park, NY

Green Lake Blues, Yates Park, Orchard Park, NY

Enjoy the beauty that surrounds you!

If you are interested in prints or other products featuring my photographs, please, do not hesitate to contact me. You can click on the photos and order from my galleries online and I would also be happy to work with you throughout the process as I realize options are plentiful and topics like aspect rations are not always intuitive to deal with. I also offer ready to hang solutions like canvas gallery wraps, or matted and framed photographs. Those options are available using the "Frame It" link once you place a photo in your shopping cart.

Using my links to do your shopping keeps me sharing more photographs and writing the stories behind them and costs you nothing. You can also use the Amazon search box in bottom left for anything not mentioned here. Thank you very much, I really appreciate it!