Things That Don't Shoot Back: August 2020

Waking up early is less a chore when justified by reward.

This latest edition of my Photographing Maryland Series requires you to get up early. The Free State has many scenic locations to photograph the sunrise, but this journey takes us to one of my favorite morning spots. The nearly two-hour drive to get there requires an early start. Thankfully, I've always been a morning person.

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The 4:00 AM alarm never has a chance to go off because I’m already awake and fraught with anticipation. I roll out of bed and get quickly dressed because this day has special purpose. I’m headed west toward Sideling Hill in the mountains of Western Maryland to photograph the sunrise.

It’s a cool, crisp summer morning as I steer my car through the darkness and onto the interstate. The tunes are blasting, and the volume within my coffee mug is rapidly diminishing as the miles race by.

On this trip, there will be no stopping for breakfast. Time will be allotted for that later. It’s a game of Beat the Clock. Getting to the Sideling Hill Overlook early enough to set up my camera gear before the sun peaks over the eastern horizon is my only mission.

I’ve made this I-#70 run west through Maryland many times before so it’s easy to track my travel timeline. I pass through Carroll County, past Frederick, then Hagerstown. Before long, Hancock is in my rear-view mirror. I approach the I-#68 interchange and quickly consume the final 6-mile leg of the journey. The travel gods have been kind and I arrive at the Sideling Hill Overlook parking area with plenty of time to spare.

These morning trips are a crapshoot, since sunrises are not created equally. There were times when I’ve made this same journey only to be met with overcast skies, heavy fog, or that one pesky cloud which creeps in and seems intent upon hanging around long enough to end up directly in the path of the rising sun.

Today seems promising though. It’s late August. The early twilight is free from discernable cloud cover. A heavy haze blanketing the distant horizon is a mixed blessing. The mountain folds and layers will be less defined, but when the sun rises, it should be a “red rubber ball”, naturally diffused by haze.

I quickly unpack my gear and set up on a grassy knoll facing east. From this vantage point, there is an unobstructed view of the mountainous landscape to the east. Blustery conditions typical for this altitude necessitates that my two tripods need to be anchored firmly. A picnic table conveniently positioned nearby houses my array of lenses and other gear.

At this Sideling Hill location, my strategy is the always the same. Four separate lenses are utilized. A 50 mm lens offers a naked-eye view of the distant landscape, while 100 mm, 180 mm, and 300 mm telephoto lenses pull in specific portions of the landscape in varying degrees of perspective. (My wide-angle lenses remain in the car.)

With the time of sunrise nearly a half-hour away, there’s plenty of opportunity to ensure that my camera settings are true. A low-ISO setting reduces noise during early light. An Exposure Delay Mode flips up the mirror a few second before the shutter for vibration-free exposures. The morning light is cool, so a white balance setting of 6600K warms things up. I practice by shooting the twilight as an amber glow begins to paint the distant sky. It’s a waiting game, while periodic switching of lenses and direction creates dynamic.

Then it happens. The first glimpse of a bright red sun peeks over the horizon. This is the time to shoot quickly. I switch to my 300 mm lens, select an aperture in the middle-range and start firing. As anticipated, the haze obscures the harshness of the sun. I’m able to shoot directly toward the rising red ball without any visible flares, aberrations or artifacts. I keep my exposure times short to ensure that my rising sun remains round.

As the sun ascends higher, the distant skies intensify from red to orange as the foreground mountainscape comes to life. I quickly switch to my shorter lenses to portray the sunrise within more of the surrounding landscape. As a thin cloud begins to block the path of the sun, I switch back to the 300 mm…hoping for a chance to capture sun rays from above and below the cloud. In the hazy atmosphere, the early sun is not yet bright enough to create rays. It’s disappointing but appears dramatic as it is.

Before long, the brightness of the sun intensifies from orange to yellow. The brief window of opportunity to include the sun in the frame has come to an end. My concentration is re-directed toward photographing the surrounding landscape to the left and right of the sun’s path. I focus upon the layered folds of distant peaks. In the valleys below, a dense fog of heavy haze smothers the lowland like a woolen blanket. I compose and shoot quickly, knowing the brief period of magic light will end as quickly as it began.

As mentioned earlier, timing is critical. It’s wise to arrive at the Sideling Hill Overlook a half-hour before the scheduled sunrise. The parking area is located at the summit and is only accessible when driving from east to west on I #68. (East-bound travelers need to cross the summit and continue down the other side of the mountain to Exit #77…then turn around to head west.)

Here are a few photos taken from the Sideling Hill Overlook:

© Bob Cammarata 2020
bobcammarata.blogspot.com
(All photography by author)
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Things That Don't Shoot Back

Sunday, August 30, 2020

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Saturday, August 29, 2020

Sunrise at Sideling Hill