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High above my head, in the upper reaches of the atmosphere, air is being pushed up by an approaching cold front.
The first harbingers of this change in the weather are the high altitude cirrus clouds spreading across the clear blue skies.
Cirrus clouds are composed of ice crystals, and are amongst the most delicate and beautiful of the many cloud types we see here at latitude 53ยบ north.
Using a telephoto lens, I'm able to isolate individual clouds, looking for meaningful forms and textures amongst the roiling air.
Fitting a polariser to the front of my lens I'm able to saturate the pale blue of the sky into a much deeper tone, against which the white cirrus clouds glow like beacons.
I knew when I took this photo that I'd be converting it to monochrome, further enhancing the contrast between cloud and sky and bringing out the full impact of this cloud's beautiful shape and texture.
Filename - clouds 14.jpg
Camera - Canon 5D
Lens - 100-400mm zoom @100mm
Exposure - 1/6sec @ f11, ISO100
Location - Sky above North Wales coast
This image - 640x800px JPEG
Conversion - ACR & PS-CS2
Comments - Polarising filter used to enhance cloud contrast
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