Considering it is almost the end of November, the weather has been fairly mild in my neck of the woods lately. I actually went for a walk at lunch today wearing only a light spring jacket. I am ecstatic because often by this time of the year we are buried under snow, and I’ll take the mild weather for as long as Mother Nature wants to deliver it. However, the nights have still been very cold resulting in what I think is referred to as radiation fog in the early mornings.
I have been really wanting to capture the eerie mood that this morning fog creates, but yesterday the fog was so heavy that I didn’t feel it was safe to stop at the side of the highway to take pictures. If I had left about a half an hour earlier this morning, it would have been perfect for photos, but by the time I hit the highway the sun had already burned away a lot of the fog. I still managed to capture some interesting and beautiful shots though as I stopped every few kilometres on my way to work, and I’m sure the other people travelling the same route thought I was crazy. Oh well, they just don’t know a photo op when it appears in front of them :).
I am going to spread these photos over a few days, and to start out here are a few shots looking down the highway. As you can see, the sun was really poking its way through the clouds and appears as a big overexposed patch in the sky, but I love the atmosphere of the rest of the shot.
photos from the loonybin 
WOW! Especially the first one.
If your worried about the blown out sun, might be time to invest in either some HDR software, I recommend Nik’s HDR Efex Pro 2, or a set of Grad ND filters. I personally can’t remember the last time I’ve used my filters though. So much easier to create an HDR, and it can be done with a very natural look too. Not all HDR has to look like a cartoon!
But, these look pretty darn good just the way they are. 🙂
Oh crap, why didn’t I think of that?!? There is just so much to remember with photography LOL. I never even thought about doing bracketed exposures because I was in a hurry to get to work. Oh well, next time. I downloaded a trial of HDR Efex Pro 2 a little while ago, but having recently bought a new camera, extender tubes, and a polarizing filter, I figure I’d better wait a bit before I drop some more cash for HDR software :). Plus I need time to learn all these new things. Thanks so much for the suggestions Jeff – I can always count on you – and I’m glad you liked the photos!
Try this to get you by, http://www.photographers-toolbox.com/products/lrenfuse.php
Assuming you use Lightroom that is. It creates extremely natural looking blended exposures. Though they are pretty flat and need at least some contrast adjustment. It’s donation-ware, I think I paid the equivalent of about $20. If you do decide to buy HDR Efex, I highly recommend buying the whole suite of plugins. It is a much better deal that way.
Oh bummer, I use Photoshop, but thanks anyway. I will buy HDR Efex one of these days – maybe if I get a Christmas bonus :).
great shots…. if the traffic is not too heavy try stepping into the centre of the road… i would like to see what that looks like from the middle….
OMG, everyone thinks I’m crazy enough as it is, and now you want them to think I’m suicidal?!? LOL. At that time of the morning there are usually too many cars unfortunately, but I will try :).
good for you for having time on the way to work to take pics–sayvan is a real comedian!
Yes, he is isn’t he? LOL!! As for time, it’s a good thing I stopped snapping pictures when I did because I got to work just in time to find out there was a staff meeting I didn’t know anything about. It would not have been good to be late for that with the excuse that I was taking pretty pictures :).
Twilight Zone eerie and the road to nowhere. Great backdrop for a scary story. I don’t blame you for stopping and going…. great shots.
Thanks Dor :). Do you remember my falling down house on the highway? It’s still there, and I stopped to get some shots of it too, so stay tuned….. Now I’m off to curl up on the couch with a good book.
I called my dad for his birthday today & he was remarking about the fog they were having in Manitoba. Because I used to dispatch airplanes, I learned a lot about weather. Fog happens when the ground temperature & air temperature are within 3 degrees of each other. In the fall, the ground is warmer than the air so therefore fog. In the spring the air is warmer than the ground, so fog.
I love interesting facts like that – thanks!! I think it’s going to be another foggy one this morning :).
Pretty! I like the feeling here,
Thanks! It’s funny how it can be kind of spooky but incredibly beautiful at the same time. The pictures don’t really do it justice. You have to be there to really feel the atmosphere.
Lovely. I’m a fog person–reminds me of my childhood in California. Thanks!
Thanks my friend :). The only time I didn’t like fog was during my childhood if we were out in the middle of the lake on our sailboat. That could get quite scary at times when all of a sudden another boat (or the shore for that matter) would appear suddenly out of the fog and everyone would have to scramble to avoid a collision. The problem is, you just don’t have the same amount of maneuverability in a boat as you do in a car.
These are very beautiful photos! I think I see a ‘windmill’ in the third one.
Thank you, and yes you do see a windmill or wind turbine as they are called these days around here. Sometimes when it’s foggy like this it seems like they are hanging from the sky because the fog hides the bottom section. It’s bizarre looking :).
Wow these are amazing!! Great job loonybin. 😀 I love anything with lense flair or shorts with the sun in.
Oooh, you will love my next blog then :). I’m glad you liked them Becky. Thanks!
That is quite beautiful!
Thank you so much 🙂