Tuscany Sunset
The suns rays caress the valley as the sun setts over the mountains in the Tuscany Valley of Italy
The suns rays caress the valley as the sun setts over the mountains in the Tuscany Valley of Italy
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Apr, 2017Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
Taken in remote area of Tuscany Valley. Returning to Cortona from a visit to Ferrari factory our GPS routed us thru the countryside to avoid traffic issue on the Highway. As we came over a hilltop we noticed the beautiful colors starting in the sky. Searching for a place to pull over on the 2 lane mountain road we found an abandoned quarry and parked there. Walking down a gravel path I found 2 locations that gave a view of the valley and sunset. This was the second location that by far had the best view of hillside, valley, mountains and sky. I was so intent on composition and catching the sun before it passed below the mountaintop that I never noticed the old barn next to the tree line until I started post processing the photo.Time
I shot for about 30 minutes starting around 6:10pm so this being toward the end of my shoot I would say it was taken around 6:50pm.Lighting
Post processing was time consuming as I worked to get a good balance between sky and ground that would reflect (as close as possible) to the view we actually had standing there watching the sunset. Our eyes have a far greater range of contrast than even the best digital cameras on the market, so you need to use post-processing to bring back that range we actually see.Equipment
Canon 6D, Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L lens, Manfroto travel tripod, Canon Cable release. ISO 400, 1/200 @f/11, Focal Length 35mmInspiration
One of my passions is Landscape Photography and sunsets/sunrises are a beautiful way to start/end a day. Cresting the mountain and seeing the range of colors as well as the suns rays streaking across the sky. How could you not stop and enjoy/photograph this.Editing
Absolutely. The nature of Digital photography necessitates at least some post-processing as photos have the tendency to be somewhat flat straight out of the camera. As I didn't have a ND filter with me the Highlights and vibrance needed adjusting to tone down the sun and accent the sky & clouds to reflect what we actually saw. Fore and mid ground was dark due to the exposing for the bright sun, so shadow & exposure were adjusted. Post-Processing was done in Lightroom & Photoshop.In my camera bag
I had 2 canon bodies. 6D & 7D markII, Canon EF-24-70 f/2.8, Canon EFS 10-22 f/3.5, & Sigma 70-200 f2.8. Canon 580EX II flash & Canon remote trigger. The EF 16-35mm f2.8 used for this shot was loaned to me by a friend for the Italy trip as my EFS 10-22 would not fit my full frame 6D, which I planed on doing most of my shooting with.Feedback
Ideally you would want to have a GND (graduated neutral density) filter to tone down the bright sky while allowing you to correctly expose for the foreground. Knowing in advance your location and were the sun will be at a given time/day will greatly increase the possibility of getting that great sunset shot. Always having your camera, wide angle lens and sturdy tripod with you, will help when you stumble upon a photo worthy situation.
