BEHIND THE SCENE

When photographing sunrises and sunsets, I always hope for eye-catching cloud formations. They have to be in the right amount, however. Too few clouds will result in a plain, overly familiar sunrise-sunset image, the kind we’ve all seen before.
Too many clouds, on the other hand, will obscure the sunrise-sunset entirely.

On this occasion, while on assignment in Chile’s Torres del Paine National Park, magic happened! Not only did we have the right amount of clouds, but the clouds themselves were layered at different altitudes.
It’s great when this happens because, depending on the altitude, the clouds catch the first rays of sun at different times. That creates different hues, which in turn gives the image more depth.
Whenever I’m on location I always look for opportunities with reflections. If the reflection isn’t there on initial viewing, I try to anticipate when and if a reflection may happen.
Every water surface, whether it’s the ocean, a lake, a small pond or even a tiny puddle, has the potential for a reflection.
In this instance, I found a sizeable puddle alongside a river, large enough that it reflected the entire mountain range to beautiful effect.