Skip to main content

When the Rule of Sun Coming to an End

colour_clouds

Sunset is a very popular theme for photography. Where is the best place to shoot sunset in the place you live? If you live in Santorini of Greece (hope the rioting subsides soon), it should be Oia. I was given a memorable sunset trip there. The bus trip on a bumpy ridge access to the site was memorable in itself because a young European lady almost sat on my thigh throughout the trip on the crowded bus. When I reached the sunset site through an old-village-converted shopping alley, the hill was dotted with anxious watchers from the top to the base.

R0010272 (Medium) (Medium)If you come to Hong Kong, take a boat ride to the Lautau Island for the best sunset (and sunrise too) lookout on the second highest mountain, the Lautau Peak (934m). Visitors tight on time should head to the West Kowloon Cultural District site, or the more easily accessible Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront.

(Sunset at the Gold Coast Beach, the New Territories, Hong Kong)

Sunset Rule

Okay, now we are at the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront. But where exactly?

Wait for a second, and stop searching for your map and camera. First, how do you expose for a sunset scene?

R0011397 (Medium) (The sun disappeared from the scene at this western side of Hong Kong)

As the rule of the sun is loosing up, the sunset rule of exposure takes hold; that is, in the film era. The sunset rule says: When you point the camera to a sunset scene, spot-meter the area right above the sun. But don’t include the sun! Of course, to make the scene darker (i.e. see more of the sunset colours), you can stop down by one stop (or EV -1).

In the digital era, photographers can simply try and err on the LCD display. But that’s not the way to do photography properly. When a result is achieved in a photo, it should be done by intention, not by chance. So, now that you know, next time meter the area right above the sun when exposing for a sunset scene.

Best Sunset Lookout

R0010960_2 (Medium)Okay, at the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront, there are two good locations to shot a sunset scene. First, it is the area to the right of the bus terminus near the flag posts. Second, it is the top floor of the Harbour City. The first location is very accessible. For the second location, don’t tell this to the world: go in the Marco Polo Hong Kong Hotel and take the lift to the sixth floor. Get out of the lift, walk through the hotel corridor towards the glass doors and there you are. Beware of cars!

(Shot at the top floor of the Ocean Terminal carpark)

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

New Low Prices

The window shopping some hours ago has almost provoked my AgIDS illness.  Just in case you’re in Hong Kong or are coming here, and have the money to burn (All in HK$/ body only): GX200 = $3,280 GRD2 = $3,380 LX3 = $3,180 G10 = $3,280 Prices are available form a gear shop on the 1st floor of the Mongkok Computer Centre.   Besides these new low prices, I found that Wing Shing Photo (55-57Sai Yeung Choi St., MK Tel: 2396 6886/ 91-95 Fa Yuen St., MK  Tel: 2396 6885) is offering a Sony A700 + Carl Zeiss Lens package for HK$9,980 (hopefully, a bargain will make it some hundreds cheaper).

Eye Contact

(Leica D-lux 5) The digital era may make it easier to end up with fave shots. Even lousy photos may be turned likable after a few clicks in the post-processing workflow. But if digital advancement or amendments have any bearing on the cultivation of personal style, no photographers will need to discover his or her own photographer’s eye. Undoutedly, this is out of the question. Only with a trained photographer’s eye can we give a thinking gaze and capture an eternal moment, in our unique style. Style is the soul of a great photo. A few posts have been written in GXG to touch on the topic of photographer’s eye. Instead of finding an answer, which would require academic discussions, the posts are intended to give my general reflections and spark interests in moving towards further exploration of the topic.  The posts can be viewed after the links: 1) Photographer's Eye: Storytelling 2) Photographer's Eye: Little Show of Observing 3) Photographer's Eye: Sight-Worthy 4

Ricoh Camera Giveaways and the New GRD Bet

The recent months have seen Ricoh’s heavy-handed promotional efforts.  Apart from the photo contest in collaboration with Greenpeace concluded some weeks ago in Hong Kong, there are three more chances for aspiring photographers to get free Ricoh cameras.  There are lots of Ricoh's cameras to be given away. (A poster about the photo contest co-organised by Ricoh, Greenpeace and Jurlique for Hong Kong only, which was concluded in May.  Winners are to be awarded with airtickets plus hotel accommodation, several fully-geared GX200 and CX1 cameras) Ninth Ricoh Photo Contest The first one is open to contestants from around the world, namely, the Ninth Ricoh Photo Contest to close on 21 August 2009.  The theme of the contest is easy on the surface, but actually requires some effort to ponder on and express in the final image. The prizes are: Main Award: GR DIGITAL II + optional lenses and accessories (one person) Special Award: GR DIGITAL II (5 persons) Photo St