Early Light
16mm, f/8, 1/500s, ISO250
The Gorilla Highlands region is, as the name suggests, characterised by its rather hilly topography. This is one of my favourite landscape photos from there, taken at around 4,000 meters/ 13,100 ft above sea level during an exhausting hike up Mt Kirisimbi. Miha joined me shortly afterwards, while Izy was wise enough to remain at the overnight camp.
The reason I had insisted on leaving so early was to find somewhere to photograph the sunrise. That didn’t quite work out, but I found this spot not much later. I’m not entirely sure why I like this image so much, but part of it is that it shows the beauty of the Virunga volcanoes in an unconventional way. The view is visible, but not the main focus. A wide angle (16mm) instead puts brings the viewer’s attention to the foreground, the mountain’s very particular flora, beautifully lit by the rising sun. The position of the sun itself pays approximate homage to the so-called rule of thirds (divide the photo with two horizontal and two vertical lines; the four meeting points are roughly where you want your most important subjects to be).
Until next week!
Don’t miss our extensive interview with Marcus and head to his website for even more.
Huh? You don’t know why you like this image so much? It’s gorgeously lit, kinda mysterious and shows the lushness of African mountains. One of your best for sure!
Haha, thanks. I have high expectations of myself… 🙂
Tudi meni je zelo “domača” in mi pove veliko več, kot lahko izrazim z besedo. Svetloba, bujno rastlinje, ki simbolizira mističnost in skrivnost Afrike ter nekak mir, ki veje iz zajetega, je resnično nekaj, kar te pritegne.
I’m glad. ?❤️
Love the picture!! Wish I was there 🙂
Thanks! Next time. 🙂
I love this photo! It holds so much energy. A special place in the serene fleeting moment of the dawn.
It looks more serene than it felt, haha. My heart was beating so fast from the climb it was hard to keep the camera steady! 🙂
Beautiful light… And I love the technical insights – perfect for the photography nerd!
Thanks – glad you like it! 🙂