Sunrise Brain: Two Mental Approaches That Have Worked for Me

Tree Bones, 11/22/20 North GA

Lookout Valley Forest, 12/13/20 Chattanooga, TN

When I was going through photos to post on Instagram recently it occurred to me that my favorite landscape shots have a lot in common, intuitively, but also some interesting differences when it comes to how I approached them. I don’t mean technical differences, but rather the mental spaces I found myself working in each morning.

Before I explain those, I would like to provide a little insight into my preparation for an early morning shoot. I do believe some degree of planning can be super helpful, and I pretty much always do “the basics” one or two nights before I head out: I check the weather, find out where the sun is going to rise and where the light should hit (and for how long) and have at least a vague sense of where I’d like to drive before the sun has risen and my brain isn’t yet functioning. I’ll pick my lenses and filters, too, so I don’t have to think about gear in the morning. These things have gotten a lot easier for me over the course of a few months.

Natural elements of surprise and having to improvise on the spot are things that make landscape photography like a sport almost, to me, and really fun. As they say, “if it were easy, it would be boring.” When light changes quickly on a subject you weren’t anticipating, you’re required to work really fast, and I’ve found the only way to get proficient is to practice. A lot.

So, sure: prepare but don’t corner yourself into one subject for the morning. Be flexible. Any landscape photographer will give you these pointers because they’re tried and trued. These are just a few points I wanted to provide, more so for context than advice.

The point of this post, though, like I was saying at first is to highlight how my brain functioned the mornings these two shots were made. Here are a few things both mornings had in common.

1. I didn’t know what I would be shooting when I, or the good light, showed up.

2. I did have to search for subjects and find the ideal camera position to compose my shots.

3. Both photos are stacked, Tree Bones for exposure and LVF for focus.

Here are key differences in how each morning went.

1. The morning I shot Tree Bones was frantic. I had planned the location the night before (in bed, trying to sleep actually, when the idea came to me). The purple sunrise light hit the side of the mountain, and began fading, rapidly. There was NO SUBJECT so I ran around like a headless chicken trying to find something. Anything! Then I spotted this dead tree with cool lichen-covered rock behind it, and the moody morning sky behind that. I scrambled as fast as I could because the sunrise was passing. Unfortunately, I misplaced my filter holder so I held a square graduated ND up to the lens with my hand for each exposure (to even out the sky light a bit and bring out the details in the clouds). Sketchy, but I was forced to improvise. I also lowered my tripod to about two feet off the ground to get the sky more in frame behind the tree. I realize none of this is difficult, necessarily, but making decisions like this can be when the pressure’s real and you’re running on just a few hours of sleep. Ultimately, it came together and I’m proud of this shot because it was an absolute chore, where I had to use my noodle and improvise really, really quickly. Ten minutes after I took this photo the morning light became flat and gray. Phew!

2. The morning I shot Lookout Valley Forest was calm and serene. Completely different! I just wandered off a main trail and found this sparse woodland scene. I even sat down to have a snack, poked around a bit quietly with a clear head, until I found this fallen tree with light pouring in overhead, framed nicely in a location I’m pretty sure nobody ever visits. It came to me - I didn’t have to force anything. Granted, I had a lot more time to work because the sun had already risen on the opposite side of the mountain from where I stood and I didn’t have to rush. The mist was cooperating nicely thanks to zero wind, giving the woodland scene great depth and atmosphere, and with the sun already somewhat high in the sky I knew I could work slowly. I snapped a few frames with receding focus points to ensure every detail was sharp, tried different angles, played around with white balance settings - things I wouldn’t dream of doing when racing the clock.

My big takeaway when looking back on each shoot is simple: landscape photography can be exciting, frantic, sporty and rewarding; or, it can be meditative, calm, serene and rewarding.

This can hinge a lot on conditions, like the time of morning, but also in how the photographer approaches the landscape. I think it’s crucial to at least have some idea of how you’d like your day to go (check your map and weather, at least) but beyond that you really have to stay on your toes when you’re shooting in fleeting conditions. Alternately, if your conditions are stable it can be helpful to just kick back and let your brain relax, take your time and almost let the composition find you.

I know everybody works differently and this post might not even pertain to how you shoot, but simply acknowledging these “mental approaches”, and knowing how and when to apply them, rather than be surprised by their necessity, has helped me tremendously in the early hours when my brain wants nothing more than to go back to sleep. It really just boils down to knowing how your brain might or might not work, depending on the situation.

Shooting a sunrise?

• Have your shit together: location, weather, sun direction and duration, gear, coffee, snack. Know your blue hour and golden hour windows. Drive to the spot and start looking for a subject that will look awesome in the sunrise light, if you don’t have one in mind already. Compose, shoot.

Have more time with awesome light, post-sunrise?

• Do all of the above but when you arrive take a seat and a breath, look around and let the composition come to you. Be patient and don’t force the shot. Compose, experiment, play.

Again, these are just two states of mind I’ve found myself working in frequently when I’m out with my camera at unreasonably early hours. Getting comfortable with them has taken lots of practice but has helped me considerably.

Thanks for reading. Cheers!