Sunrise in Rothenburg
Sunrise begins in the charming little German village of Rothenburg...
When we were in Rothenburg, Germany earlier this year, I got up for sunrise one morning. It's my favorite time to shoot, and doubly so in Europe because I love having the streets all to myself. Although the sunrise wasn't spectacular, the golden light spilling onto the tower in the distance with that one person walking through it really caught my eye.
Sunrise on the streets of Prague
Sunrise in Prague, and I am out on the streets with my camera...
I love European street scenes, especially at sunrise!
Whenever I visit Europe, I try and get up for sunrise at least once to get out in a city and capture it before it gets busy. It's my favorite time of day and usually a great one for shooting in a city. There are no crowds and the warm golden light of sunrise offers up some great possibilities.
When I was in Prague back in April, I spent one morning wandering all over the historic town center, capturing street scenes and just enjoying the peace and quiet. Prague is a beautiful city, which means there are a lot of tourists there. Getting up and out for sunrise is the best way to really photograph it because I had the place to myself.
Out early in Austin
Sunrise in Austin, looking out over the downtown skyline...
From a few weeks ago - early one morning downtown!
I love to shoot downtown Austin, and especially so at sunrise. The city is quiet and more often than not the light is great. The only challenge is that in summer this gets really hard to do, since sunrise is so much earlier than other times of year. However, there are plenty of coffee shops to stop into for a jolt of caffeine, which I always do after a bit of early shooting!
Greetings from ATX
I finally got a chance to shoot the ATX sign in downtown Austin one recent morning...
This awesome sign sits in downtown Austin, right in front of Whole Foods. I have been by it SO MANY TIMES, and never in good light. Finally, I arose early one recent morning and headed downtown. As I was getting close to town I remembered that I wanted to shoot it and I made a quick stop. Downtown is pretty easy to shoot at 6am. There's no one to get in your way!
Sunrise over the Charles Bridge
A beautiful start to a day in Prague, watching a glorious sunrise over the Charles Bridge...
More from Prague - and plenty more coming!
Dang, Prague - you are gorgeous. I adore that town. It's just so lovely. I already want to go back!
One morning there I was up SUPER FREAKING EARLY (4:30am to be exact) so that I could get out and shoot the town without the distraction of crowds (and believe me, there are a lot of crowds there - it's a popular place). My primary destination was the Charles Bridge, which is pretty kick ass if you ask me. I love that bridge, too.
So I was out shooting like crazy (see this and this) and at some point found myself with this view, just as the sky lit up and got all awesome looking. A good morning for sure!
Blue hour in Prague
Sunrise on the Charles Bridge in Prague...empty except for me and my camera!
An incredible morning on the Charles Bridge in Prague!
I have so many photos from my recent trip - I am still trying to get through them and figure out what I want to edit and then find the time for it. But I have some real gems in there, if I do say so myself!
One morning in Prague I headed out to shoot sunrise, which involved setting my alarm for 4:30am. That was pretty brutal, I will admit, but once I was up and out in the city I was pretty pumped. I basically had the town to myself, which is an amazing feeling.
My primary destination was the Charles Bridge, and I shot the hell out of it! It was an amazing morning and as soon as I can find the time I will share more pics of it. In the meantime, here I one that I captured that morning. Oh, I love this town, it is so beautiful!
A morning on the Charles Bridge
A lovely way to start a day in Prague - shooting on the Charles Bridge before dawn!
A lovely spot in Prague, especially at sunrise!
I was just in Prague barely a week ago, and I've been missing it ever since I left. It's such a beautiful town, and there is so much to shoot there. You'll be seeing a lot from Prague in the coming weeks, as I work my way through all these photos. I did my best to capture it all, and spent one morning up early so I could get shots like these from the Charles Bridge.
The Charles Bridge is an iconic structure in Prague and believe me when I tell you that it can get seriously crowded. During the daytime it is literally elbow-to-elbow. There are so many tourists walking around and vendors selling their wares that it's a bit of a madhouse.
Hence, I got up one morning at 4:30am so I could get my butt over here and fire away in the pre-dawn quiet. It was incredible. There were less than a handful of people on the bridge - some apparently returning home after a rather lengthy night out - and a couple of other photographers. Otherwise, it was miss and it was blissfully empty. So nice.
The classic view of Rothenburg
The classic view of Rothenburg, Germany shot on my recent visit to this loveliest of little towns...
Ah, such a lovely town!
In case you haven't figured it out yet, I am on a trip through Germany with my Mom, and I am taking a few pics along the way. ;-) One town I was really excited to revisit and shoot was Rothenburg, which is just awesome.
We spent a short 2 days there, but that is really all you need to get a good feel for it, and in my case, get out and photograph the heck out of it!
This is the classic view of Rothenburg, and for a good reason - it's an amazing sight to behold. I must have walked by here a dozen times in the 2 days we stayed in Rothenburg, and I shot it every time! So many photos still to process, but I had to at least get one of them out here!
South Texas sunrise
A beautiful sunrise along the Texas Coast...
From a few years back...a lovely sunrise along the Texas Coast!
I will admit that our Texas coastline is not as beautiful as other coastlines in the US. That's just a personal opinion of course, but having seen several beach in Florida, California and Oregon in my travels, I have to say that those other ones are prettier.
But that doesn't mean you won't find plenty of beauty along the shores of Texas beaches. I was down there a few years ago for a Spring Break trip with the family, and since we were all up, we walked down here to check out the sunrise. I'm glad we did!
The light and cloud combination was just perfect and I was able to capture quite a few shots like this. It was a great morning for photography, and it just goes to show that you can find beauty everywhere.
The only one out shooting
An early wakeup one morning in France gave me the opportunity to photography Notre Dame without another soul around...and it was perfect!
Early morning is the best time for travel photography.
I absolutely love to get up early and go shoot. Everything is quiet and still and you can enjoy a place without all the distraction and noise of crowds. It's just the perfect time of day for me, photography-wise.
When I travel, I always try to get up at least once so I can get out and shoot sunrise. I tend to be a morning person anyway, so it's pretty easy to do, although I will admit it can be hard to drag yourself out of bed at times. But, it is always worth it.
On our Paris trip at the end of last year, I got up really early one morning and walked over to Notre Dame. Literally, I was the only one there. I had this major tourist attraction to myself. I wandered all around and shot it from lots of different angles. It was great.
On your next trip, try doing this and see how it goes. You might need a little caffeine later, but you will be happy with the shots you get!
A good morning in Paris
A lovely pre-dawn shot of Notre Dame in Paris, that most beautiful of cities...
Isn't every morning a good one to be in Paris? ;-)
I absolutely adore Paris. It's beautiful, photogenic, walkable and the food and people are just great. There, I said it. The French people are NICE. Honestly, in the US there are always comments about the French being rude, but over several trips to Paris I have yet to experience that. I think people just need something to complain about.
Anyhoo, the city is fabulous and while we were there, I headed out early one morning to get started. I had several shots in mind and the only way to really get it done was before most people got up. So, sunrise it is!
I walked to Notre Dame from our rented apartment and was quite happy to have a little haze in the air. I like that stuff, because I think it adds a little drama and interest to a scene. While the sunrise itself was somewhat non-existent, it was still wonderful to be up and out shooting in the pre-dawn hours. It feels like you have the entire city to yourself, and that is a great feeling.
Sunrise at Torchy's
Lovely morning light over Torchy's Tacos on South Congress Avenue, in downtown Austin.
South Congress Avenue in downtown Austin is one of my favorite spots in town. It's full of life, it's unique, and there is always something to point the camera at. I often shoot it at sunrise, mainly because I like the quiet stillness of that time of day.
This was from a while back when I did just that - got up early and drove downtown to capture the area alone. The light was great and I found myself wishing that Torchy's Tacos was open!
Notre Dame morning
Notre Dame in Paris is always crowded, so my solution was to get up and shoot it at sunrise. Turns out I had it all to myself!
There's just something about the early morning hours!
I have as much trouble as anyone else getting up in the morning, but it's always worth it when I am up and out shooting. On my travels, I try to do at least one or two sunrise shoots. All the famous landmarks are just so crowded during the daytime and around sunset. You often can't get a decent shot of them. So my solution has always been to get up early and do it.
Usually, it works out pretty well.
One morning on our recent trip to Paris, I got up early and made the 15 minute walk over here. I have seen and shot Notre Dame several times in my life, but never really loved the shots. There were just taken at the wrong time of day. So, sunrise was my answer.
Luckily, it was a misty, foggy sort of morning and the whole experience was just amazing. I had it to myself, and was able to shoot it from the front, the side and the back. I walked away with many images that I truly love - today's photo being one of them.
That New Mexico light
Today I share a collection of photographs that I took in New Mexico. I can't believe the light there - I always get such wonderful sunrises and sunsets. Maybe it's due to some factor I am not aware of, but I don't care. It helps me get better photos, so I love it!
Boy is the light ever fabulous in New Mexico!
Being a Texan, I love to visit New Mexico. It's close enough to get to in a day (from Austin to Santa Fe is about a 13 hour drive, so it's not exactly close) and offers up such varied terrain and interesting things to photograph. I love it there. We have visited many times over the years, and I hope that we can return many more.
Whenever I am there, I can pretty much count on getting at least one great sunrise or sunset. I have no idea how or why it happens, but every time I am there I see incredible light, at least once. Perhaps someone can explain why this happens, but I can't. I just know that more often than not, I am rewarded with some amazing light - and as a photographer, that's what I am always in search of.
Today's shots are from Abiquiu, which is about an hour from Santa Fe. It's a tiny little town - more of a hamlet, really - that is famous for being the home of the artist Georgia O'Keeffe in her later years. Her home and studio are there, and she was really drawn in by the varied landscapes, which she expressed so well in her paintings. They draw me in, too.
We stayed outside of Abiquiu, in a rental home on a hill overlooking the big lake there. I got up early every morning for sunrise, and was positioned in the same spots at sunset. So that's what I am sharing here today - just a few snaps from my time there.
These are all single exposures, edited in Aurora HDR Pro. While I love to shoot HDR, I also love to shoot single exposures. Well technically, I usually shoot brackets for everything, it's just that sometimes I choose to just use one of them. Anyways, enjoy the shots and thanks for stopping by!
Blue hour at The Pearl
The Pearly Brewery in San Antonio is quite a spot. It's been redeveloped and now includes all sorts of shops, restaurants and even a farmer's market. Oh yeah, and it's beautiful, especially when you get up early and capture it before dawn!
Exploring the beauty of the Pearl Brewery before dawn
As you know by now, I love to get up and shoot first thing in the morning. It's quiet, peaceful and still outside, and I can have normally crowded places all to myself, which I like. I'm a bit of an introvert anyways, so it's a good fit. :-)
Back in January, I spent a few days in San Antonio, visiting my Mom and basically cruising all over town trying to capture a bunch of stuff that has eluded me on previous visits. I would say those days were a resounding success (and I still have a bunch of photos to edit and share from the trip). I got some shots I really love and got to go to a few new places too (with the camera that is - I have been all over SA many times, having spent my formative years there).
I shot El Mercado, their famous Mexican market. I captured all the Missions along the San Antonio Mission Trail, including my favorite one, Mission Espada. And of course I headed out one morning to shoot the Riverwalk, gloriously free of tourists.
But I knew my trip there would not be complete unless I finally got to shoot The Pearl Brewery district at sunrise. You see, this is an area of town that has undergone massive development over the years, and I have to admit it's pretty darn nice. I've been there many times, but always in the daytime with the family, enjoying the restaurants, the farmer's market and the shops. So this time I planned to get up early and shoot it in better light.
I arrived while it was still dark, and since I already knew what I wanted to shoot, I just set up and got started. After a short bit blue hour came around, and I was in my element. I love a good sunrise or sunset as much as the next guy, but boy do I have a soft spot for blue hour. Maybe I just like the color blue.
So I wandered and shot here for about a half hour, only deciding to leave because I wanted to get over to The Riverwalk while it was still early enough to have it to myself (which worked out just fine, thank you!).
The brewery itself, which you see in the distance of the photo below, has been converted into the Hotel Emma. It's really a beautiful hotel, and I just realized that on a different visit I wandered in there one afternoon and took all sorts of photos of it. I guess I had been open up my library and start editing. Always so much awesomeness waiting in there, you know? ;-)
A large truck passes my while I am capturing this scene.