Digital Photo Tip #3 By Bruce Kirkby May 1, 2005

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Calgary at Sunrise

Among Canadian cities, Calgary is blessed with a high instance of frequently stunning sunrises. Dusty, flat Prairies stretching to the east help create rich colours, which often play across extraordinary cloud patterns (chinook arches, for instance) formed by the mountains to the south and west.

Last month, as my girlfriend and I were en route to the airport, a particularly vivid sunrise began to unfold. As we passed Nose Hill Park, which, at 1,127 hectares, is Canada’s largest municipal park and provides a sweeping view of the mountains, city, and Prairies, we decided to stop in and try taking a few photos.

Two very basic tips will help improve your sunrise and sunset photography. First, always use a tripod (or, at the very least, steady the camera as best you can on a rock or fence post). Second, meter off the sky. In P (or fully automatic) mode, simply press your “exposure-
lock” button in, with the camera pointed to the sky, and then recompose to include the foreground. Another method, particularly suited to digital photography, is to compose your image and then shoot a series of shots, tweaking the exposure compensation (+/- button) until you are satisfied with the results.

To begin, I composed a standard image, with the city towers set against orange clouds.  Then, turning around, I spotted the full moon setting against a purple sky. My girlfriend sprinted to a nearby rise, and as I yelled directions, she inched her hands up and down, until it appeared as if she were holding the distant moon.