I Rise With the Sun

Whether I retire to bed
Early or late,
I rise with the sun.

-Thomas Jefferson
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I am a night owl – far more energized after the sun goes down than after it comes up. I guess I find the daylight to be boring. There’s no mystery there… everything is exposed and presented for what it is. The excitement of the unknown lies in the darkness. Events transpire that we cannot see and exist only as we see them in our minds. This is probably why I got into more serious photography first with night shots and long exposures.

The morning I took this, I woke up long before dawn and was out in the muck with my tripod and camera while it was still dark. The dampness from the muddy ground wicked up my pant legs and by the time I took this shot, everything below my knees was soaked and cold.

But it was worth it, and you really don’t notice the damp cold when you’re taking photos of scenery like this. As with a lot of things in life, the greater the struggle, the greater the reward. Others looking at this photo won’t ever see it, but waking up early and standing in the mud for two hours, makes this photo that much better to me, and really, that’s all that matters.

Canon EOS 5D
Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L USM