Light at Nubble Light

After last week's blizzard, I went to Maine to capture the Nubble. The prospect of getting beautiful snow pictures was really exciting - I love winter!  So I arrived before sunrise and shot the changing light. It was a totally cloudless day, not the best for photography, but I like the pictures I got. There was snow on the ground and the light was really clear.

Then I wandered up the coast a way, eventually making it to Kennebunk, and wandered back. It was a challenging day for photos. The clear, crisp air and full sun created very contrasty conditions. Since cameras can't capture both sunlit snow and deep shadow, I ended up post-processing most of my images in Adobe Lightroom to control the contrast. Most of the shots I kept were taken with the sun behind me - what photographers call "flat, frontal lighting". 

Most photos look better when the sun is on the right or left of the subject. These angles create attractive shadows which show the shape of the subject and give a feeling of depth. I like shooting into the sun for special atmospheric effects like fog and God rays. And I love shooting in rain, snow, and even cloudy days. But direct sunshine? Not so much!

Despite the stark light, I did manage to get some calendar shots out of the trip.

Antique shop in Wells

Perkins Cove in Ogunquit

Laudholm Farm in Wells

Capt Lord Mansion in Kennebunkport

I arrived back at Cape Neddick about 30 minutes before sunset and looked around for a variety of views. This is the lobster trap Christmas tree at Fox's Lobster. Yes, I did Photoshop out some phone wires here.

 

My goal for the day was to capture the Christmas decorations at Nubble Light. So I walked around the tiny park that overlooks it. There's not much chance of getting any really new views without a boat, but I did find a spot where the power lines didn't show, and a few variations with rocks in the foreground, and I managed to not fall into the ocean.

 

The sun was close to the horizon and the light was a warm peach tone as I waited for the Christmas lights to come on.

... And waited,

... And waited.

... And finally realized that there would not be Christmas lights tonight, not even the lighthouse beacon. The blizzard had caused power outages on the coast, and I had found one.  No lights at all!

The day was not a complete loss. While I was waiting, I had taken some lovely images of the Nubble at dusk. And, after it got dark, another photographer introduced himself and we chatted for a while. Lighthouse images and a new friend - not a bad day!

Don't feel too bad for me - here's last year's image!




See more of my new work in my gallery on Photoshelter.