“Perfect” Weather

What’s a perfect day for a non-photographer? Clear and sunny with blue skies. Heavy clouds, fog, rain, or snow are reasons for tourists not to venture out.

A photographer’s ideal day is very different. We aren’t looking for “perfect” weather. Severely clear and sunny conditions are the worst circumstances for photography.

Photographers hunt for the conditions that most people hide from. It's because the atmosphere between the sun and your subject is what transforms the ordinary into extraordinary.

You might think that an overcast sky is dull and boring. But direct sunlight creates unpleasant, harsh, and distracting shadows. An overcast sky diffuses light, transforming it into incredibly soft, even, and flattering lighting for any number of subjects.

The Shot

Friend and fellow photographer Jon Christofersen and I spent November 7-10 photographing the north shore of Lake Superior near Grand Marais, Minnesota. Statistically, it was the best time for gales (think of the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald) and wave photography in the vicinity.

A few days earlier, there were some photogenic waves. Luckily, this woman survived an ill-advised walk along the breakwater to the Grand Marais lighthouse, illustrating the power of this inland sea. Check out (4) Facebook for this harrowing sight.

Our three days were mostly cold, overcast, and calm. But overcast skies and little wind didn’t stop us. One location was south of Grand Marais at Father Baraga’s Cross.

According to the site marker, "Father Frederic Baraga, learning of a possible epidemic afflicting the Indians at Grand Portage in 1846, set out in a small boat from Madeline Island in Wisconsin with an Indian Guide. An unexpected storm threatened them, but their lives were spared when they were blown over the sandbar and into the quiet mouth of Cross River. In thanksgiving, they erected a small wooden cross at the site, which was later replaced by this granite one.”

Father Baraga and Father Baraga’s Cross from Atlas Obscura

The rocks just north of the sandbar were covered with shallow depressions. Rain and spray had filled some of them. As they froze, fascinating fractal (never-ending) patterns and rings developed in the ice.

It was impossible to set up for a shot from directly overhead, so I launched my drone. Viewed from above in the flattering, soft illumination provided by the overcast skies, the icy details revealed themselves. After that, it was off to a waterfall, where soft lighting is usually the best lighting for that subject.

Thanks for looking,

Chuck Derus Zenfolio | Chuck Derus