That's the thing with the weather over North Wales, you never know what you're going to get until you get it!
A day of clear skies in March 2022 gave me hope for seeing and filming a clear, crisp sunset over the beautiful countryside of the Vale of Clwyd from a wonderful vantage point on the slopes of Moel Famau, the highest peak in the Clwydian Range Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).
And although the skies to the east of the Clwydians was clear, when my wife Liz and I arrived near sunset at our view point looking west, there was a mass of roiling cloud covering the horizon, through which the sun was vainly trying to break through.
But never mind, as clouds at sunset can prove to be a blessing, adding light, colour and drama to the event.
So I set my camera up more in hope than expectation and started recording the hundreds of still images needed to create just a few seconds of time lapse video, and I'm so glad I did as the light show through the clouds was just wonderful, and right at the end the sun did actually break through a gap in the wrack and we saw it setting behind the mountains of far off Snowdonia.
But that wasn't the end of the show, as the last gasps of light from the sun, now below the horizon, painted the undersides of the clouds with vivid red light, just for a few minutes.
And all too soon the show was over as the last vestiges of colour disappeared from the heavens above and it was time to pack everything away and head back home, just a short drive away.
How blessed I am to be able to see such beauty.
Filename - vale of clwyd sunset timelapse 14
Camera - Canon EOS 6DMK2
Lens (1st sequence) - 100-400mm zoom @ 160mm
Lens (2nd sequence) - 24-105mm zoom @ 35mm
Exposure (start of sequence) - 1/400 sec @ f/5, ISO100
Exposure (end of sequence) - 1/30 sec @ f/4, ISO100
Filters - None.
Shooting interval - 2 seconds
Software - Adobe Lightroom and Premiere Pro
Music - Bach Cello Suite No. 1, G Major, Prelude - Cooper Cannell
Location - Vale of Clwyd, North Wales
This clip - HD 720p, 30fps (4K and 1080p HD formats also available)
Clip duration - 29 seconds
All content copyright © Howard Litherland 2009-2023 unless otherwise stated.