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WHAT'S THE WEATHER LIKE?




Heat is one of the most difficult weather elements 
to show.  Here we've included the sun in a cloudless 
sky, blazing down on spring flowers growing on the 
dunes.  An aperture of f16 or smaller will create a 
sunstar, and the wider the angle of the lens, the less 
problem there will be with flares.  A reflector was 
used to help light up the flowers.

 Without the receding lightning storm and the
stars   in the clearing sky, this image would
have very little going for it--no differences
in topography, the plants are all almost
uniform in height, no flowers.  A flashlight
was used to light up the foreground.  Since
the storm was leaving, the danger from lightning
was minimized.




A bald eagle in flight always has the
potential of making a strong image. 
However, the falling snow definitely
adds to it.  It tells a story of
persevering against the elements. 
If the background had been a snow
covered hillside, the falling snow flakes
would not have shown up.		 Rainbows are a colorful element, and
they make a strong contribution to
almost any image, whether they add
any weather info or not.  This would
have been a pretty ordinary mountain
scenic without the rainbow.    Rainbows
form opposite the sun, usually when it is
still raining lightly.




An elephant seal bellowing out a wisp
of steam adds interest to a photo no one
would have looked twice at.  The steam
tells the viewer something about the
temperature when the shot was taken. 
Keep in mind that with large animals,
and elephant seals are huge, steam
can be exhaled even when the temperature
is well above freezing.		 Again, backlit steam makes the picture. 
It adds an element of interest to an image
of a wolf crossing a stream.  The
backlight also makes the golden
leaves glow, letting the viewer know
the season.




Rain is a tough element to work with. 
With only diffused sunlight, even
against a dark background like a
giant tortoise, the raindrops barely
show up.		 Imagine this as a blue sky scene--not too
exciting.  It is the mist that makes this
image.  The mist shrouding the trees
adds an element of mystery, and
seeing these giant reptiles in such
an environment gives the scene a
primordial feel.