Sunrays and Clouds

Clouds and Sun #4

The sun's rays fanning out from behind a bank of cloud at sunset over the Conwy estuary, taken from the West Shore, Llandudno on the North Wales coast

The story behind this image

I just love it when something unexpected and wonderful happens, and I've got a camera ready to record it.

With the weather over the North Wales coast being so variable, you can almost guarantee the unexpected (don't quote me on that!), but even I, after so many evening vigils on Llandudno's West shore, looking out to sea at sunset, was taken by suprise by the beauty and majesty of this particular light show.

The spectacle of 'God rays' streaming out across the heavens from the hidden sun was just jaw dropping, and made even more precious by the fleeting nature of the event. A few minutes only and it was all over.

Fortunately for me I was shooting exposures of the scene at the rate of one every two seconds for my Sunset Timelapse #8 video, so I was able to pick this single frame from the peak of the light show to show as a still image.

Image data

Filename - clouds sun 04.jpg

Camera - Canon 5D

Lens - 100-400mm zoom @ 100mm

Exposure - 1/80 sec @ f16, ISO100

Location - Llandudno West Shore, North Wales

This image - 800x533px JPEG

Conversion - ACR & PS-CS2

Comments - Tripod, mirror lock up and cable release used to avoid camera shake.