Exciting times in Landscape Photography

If there is an exciting time for landscape photography it is sunrise or sunset.

It's 5AM and I'm thinking about Alain Briot's dictum to "Focus." It could well apply to me eyes at this moment and my wish for some psychoactive drug like caffeine to make me bigger, stronger, more awake.

Here in Death Valley I've once again had the opportunity to wonder "Where are all the people at sunrise?" I see lovers holding hands at sunset - perhaps they are still in bed exploring other landscapes?

Lighting is critical in photography. Not only does the lighting change over an hour (soft light before dawn included), but the times also provide a low angle of incidence helping model the landscape in patches of shadow and light, bringing features to relief. At midday the same features may appear flatter in a photograph with less useful strong contrast that fails to add depth. 

Mapping a 3D world on to a 2D representation in a photograph requires some thought to make it work best. And shadows - the flip side of light - are your friend. Other visual clues help suggest depth in your photograph - size relationships, aerial perspective, and tone.

I will say this though, more than any other fine art photography genre, landscape photography builds character.

I'm late.