sunset on a perfect day at the lake

by Carol Gibson
(Canada)

I took this photo when we were on holidays at Babine Lake, British Columbia.

We were camping and had spent the day on the house boat in the picture. This sunset was the perfect ending to a fantastic day.

I wanted to capture the peacefulness of the lake at sunset.


Can't beat a good sunset. You sit down after a hard day doing, sometimes, not very much, and then god decides to get out his paintbrush and decorate the sky for you.

The difficult part is translating that wonderful sky into something equally great in print.

Tips and tricks for a great sunset? Well, a couple of simple things will help, and Carol has clearly got them in her shot.

First of all, have something in the foreground to 'place' the sunset. It gives the photo a little seasoning. If all you have is the sky it can end up a little bland.

Then, take a few shots as the sun goes down. You will find a sweet spot where the colours in the sky are most saturated.

Start snapping too early and the sky will be too light; leave it too long and it will become too dark. The beauty of digital photography is that you can keep photographing that sunset as it goes and never have to worry about the cost of film!

And improvements for Carol? Well, this photo breaks a couple of golden rules of photography. First of all, if there's water in the shot, make sure the water is horizontal.

In Carol's shot the boat looks a bit like it's trying to plough it's way uphill.

Then there is the rule of thirds. This is a sure-fire way to get great composition into a shot.

My final tip would be to have a good look around the edges of a scene before taking the shot to see if anything has been cut off. In this photo I can't help being drawn to the top of the mast on the boat. I know it's there somewhere, I just can't see it!

Thanks for the submission Carol, and I hope there are a few tips here for you.

Ed.
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