The sun is rising on Lake Michigan just out of the frame of this photo, but its brilliance is casting the sky we can see, along the horizon in rich, bold, oranges and yellows. This is the third photograph from the morning of October 27th, 2020. See the first photograph from this morning here on my instagram page.
Early Morning on the Lake
I had arrived early in the morning in order to capture the entire sun rising in the sky. I try to do this as often as I can. Finding the time to do so can be difficult, but the rewards from these mornings are immense. On this morning I wasn’t choosing to photograph the sun directly in frame. Instead I chose to shift my camera so that it would capture the sky and waters of the lake adjacent to the sun in the sky. There is a subtle and strong quality to this morning light.
The Sun Rising in Fall
This time of year often produces these rich and unique mornings on the lake as the sun rises. There is something to the change in the sun’s path through the sky. The closer we get to winter, the more diffuse the light becomes. It’s in these conditions that we see this great color and tonal subtlety. It’s for these reasons that I love being on the lake this early in the morning. The waters of the lake remained calm throughout the time I was photographing. Their soft and gently rolling ripples pushed the water slowly towards my feet. Making it to the lake’s edge before the sun rises is always worth the effort. As the sun comes further up in the sky, the haze and diffuse light begin to disappear, replaced by intense colors, rich and jewel-like.