Bora Bora Sunset Cruise

by Darlene
(Toronto)

My husband and I were lucky enough to celebrate an anniversary on the beautiful Polynesian island of Bora Bora.

When we started our cruise, there were steady breezes and a clear blue sky, but as luck would have it, the water calmed and a few clouds moved in just in time to add some interest to this shot.

I love this silhouette because it relates not only the beauty of the sunset, but also the relaxed vibe. Every time I look at this, I can taste the salt spray and feel the warm breeze...

I took about 10 shots to get this one right. The settings were f/4.8 and shutter speed of 1/1000 and I didn't have to do any editing.

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Lovely sunset photo!

I've said it before, and will probably say it again, sunset photos always look better when there's something in the sunset to look at - not just loads and loads of sky.

Just like Darlene's example here.

I love the clouds - they really do add some interest to the sky.

But best of all, I think, is the way the person on the boat (husband?), and all the rigging are there in the foreground in silhouette.

But do you know what I like most about Darlene's photo? The way it brings back memories of a wonderful time for her. That's something I love about photography, the way it captures memories.

For some reason, video clips don't manage to do that in the same way as photography.

Sure, I love to go back through a few clips every now and then (especially those of the children - amazing how fast they grow!), but there's something about photography that makes the human brain did a little deeper into its memory banks.

Plus of course, photography can be framed and hung on the wall - a bit difficult to do the same with a video clip!

But I'm going off track here a bit, back to sunset photography ...

One neat trick you can do with sunsets is to underexpose the photo just a little bit. This leads to more saturated colours.

Darlene used a fast shutter speed here which helps to reduce the exposure and really bring the colours out.

The other useful tip about sunsets is to keep shooting as the sun goes down. Every minute or so the colours change until suddenly ... it's gone.

Darlene took a few shots and picked her best - well done! That's the right thing to do.

If you'd like some more sunset photography tips I recently wrote about this very topic in a recent newsletter.

If you're interested to find out more here's the newsletter - 5 tips for better sunset photos.

All in all, lovely photo, and I'm glad it conjures up happy memories for you.

Thanks for the submission,

Darrell.

My son (that's him below) loves F1. He's started his own YouTube channel and would love it if you could take a look at one or two of his videos.
Or, if it hurts your ears as much as it does mine, pass the link on to someone who'll really appreciate it.

(probably someone a lot younger than I am!)

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