forty four
Ada Hayden Heritage Park
Ames, IA
Oct, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken at Ada Hayden Heritage Park in Ames, IA. It is a public preserve with a bike path which encircles a lake. The lake offers plenty of opportunities for kayaking, paddleboarding, and bird watching, and the Park is an ideal spot to catch a sunset.Time
This is one of my favorite pictures. It was taken on September 28, 2016 at 4:20PM. I lucked out on this particular afternoon because I caught the park right when the sun began to set and was able to capture all phases of the sunset. Mid-set sunsets are my favorite because the sun is still casting enough light to create amazing shadows and it offers phenomenal contrast.Lighting
I really wanted to capture the contrast of the sun against the darkness that was developing in the park. I wanted the focus of the photograph to remain on the sunset, but still have the photo tell a story. By framing the setting sun with the swinging bench and allowing just enough light to illuminate the silhouette of the bench, I felt as though the photograph illustrated what the darkness covers once the sun fully sets.Equipment
NIKON D5100. 35mm. Tamron AF 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC LD Aspherical (IF) Macro (B003) Aperture: 8/1. ISO: 100. Shutter Speed: 1/1600. No flash or other equipment was used.Inspiration
Ada Hayden was one of my go-to spots to decompress and shoot with my camera when I lived in Ames. I was a part-time student working two jobs as I wrapped up my two degrees at Iowa State, studied for the LSAT and applied to law school. Additionally, I have a real soft-spot for sunsets (especially in the big, wide Midwestern skies). I was inspired to take this photo because it had been an extremely long day bouncing between classes and my jobs, and I wanted to capture the stillness and serenity of the afternoon.Editing
In this case, I edited the photograph with iPhoto on my laptop. During this process, I simply lowered the light to increase the contrast in the photograph; particularly around the swinging bench and the grass. Additionally, I increased the color to capture the yellow and orange from the sunset.In my camera bag
Unlike my purse and my backpack, my camera bag only contains 3 or 4 items. I always have my Nikon D5100 camera, my Tamaron AF 18-270mm lens and my AF-S NIKKOR 50mm lens. I also carry a charger and extra memory cards because I learned the hard way to never leave the house without them!Feedback
Have a passion for what you're shooting and be.patient. Give yourself time to capture a sunset - aka arrive at the location while it's still light out, not right at dusk. This will allow you to capture all phases of the sunset! I love trying to find new angles to capture a sunset from. So make sure to slow down and really observe your surroundings! You never know what kind of shot you may be missing if you simply focus on a straight horizon shot.
