Further Fog Chasing

Fog. Tuesday in Canberra was foggy. It was foggy all day ... actually that's not entirely true, I did see some rays from the setting sun on Mount Majura ... through a light mist though. The temperature struggled to a peak of 7C at about 4pm. The fog came back down shortly after sunset and so did the temperature. I decided then to get out amongst this evening for sure ... but not on my bicycle this time I thought. This time I'll go in style. I called my friend Ross. Ross with the Cadillac. I've taken pictures of his car several times. He is always after an excuse to give his car a run and offered numerous times to come pick me up and drive me places to take pictures. Yes, it's kind of ideal. Besides, it's too cold to go out riding tonight and then stand around for long exposures (and not just the photographic kind) :-)

Ross is late, like an hour late. It's half ten by the time he picks me up ... I'm yawning ... my daughter kept me awake most of the previous night with coughing and snurking nose. I maybe shouldn't have had the extra glass of wine while passing the time ... I'm feeling really like just crawling into my warm bed ... dark chocolate helps. Anyways, Ross arrives (you can hear the car coming for miles) and we set off.

The fog is really thick. Then I realise the car windscreen is really fogged up too ... at least Ross has a clear spot to see through to drive. We head to the War Memorial at the top of ANZAC Parade ... tonight's fog renders it a gigantic mausoleum, looming above. I like it but the bright floodlights at the base of the building are too bright for the dark beauty above and I leave that one for the memory or perhaps another expedition. We get back in the car and head down toward the lake. Walking across the bridge toward the Carillon we pass the love locks, which have been added to recently, and see the top of the carillon disappearing into the fog. Fog is an elusive phenomena ... this stuff was moving ever so slowly across the lake ... not only across but vertically too. From the western edge of Aspen Island is near unobstructed 270° view out over Lake Burley Griffin's Central Basin. In the time I'd taken to get set up (and wished I hadn't left my gloves in the car ... maybe 5 minutes) the fog had lifted enough to provide this view. For the technically minded it's a panorama stitched from 7 frames each exposed for 30 seconds. Clicking on the picture will (should) take you to a much higher resolution image which is quite fun to explore. It's only two and a half meg ... go on :-)

Looking northwest from Aspen Island over Central Basin. 11pm 2nd July 2013

Climbing back into the (warmer) car ... did I mention it was cold(?) ... we continued our way around the southern shore of the Lake, this time looking toward New Acton. That's where I took this this photo. It looks like twilight but it's a quarter past eleven on a winter's night. The lights from various parts of the city lights up the fog in a myriad colours and the two mintue exposure renders the lake surface into a stainless steel sheen. A light breeze sprang up about now and it was biting ... at least I remembered my gloves this time.

New Acton under fog. Canberra, 11:15pm 2nd July 2013

The sky changed colour from deep orange through blues and greens and whites in the time we stood there watching.

Back in the car and we head up to Belconnen in north Canberra ... when we get there ... no fog ... gone! Ross thjinks he know where to find some so we head over to the dark side of Lake Gininderra ... plenty of fog here ... how is it so localised? That's great but there's only one problem ... it's really dark and there's nothing to see. (I hear you now ... complain ... complain ... complain). There's a new housing development located nearby ... all straight lines and boxy. Last stop for the night...

Light fog in new development.

Modernity

Somewhat sterile boxes

OK ... so the last two aren't strictly foggy photos but I wouldn't have seen them if I hadn't been out fog chasing and all. Have you been out chasing something recently?


Fog Chasing

Canberra gets foggy. Mostly it's morning fog, settling sometime before dawn. When it's extra thick it may not burn off until well after lunch ... sometimes it doesn't lift at all and the temperature hovers in the low single figures all day. Those days are cold ... that seeping cold that slowly creeps into the bones. Every now and again, if we've had rain, the fog starts in the early evening ... you can see it descending ... beginning as a glow around the streetlamps. It can be very localised too as I found out again the other night when I decided to get on my bicycle and go fog chasing. I didn't really have an idea or location in mind ... just knew I wanted to get pictures - at night - in the fog. So I set off in what I thought was a good direction but soon found no sign of the fog... it was all clear as a bell.

Not to be deterred turn around and head back up the hill toward the mountain which I can see is shrouded in cloud. I'm thinking that perhaps all I might get tonight is exercise. I'm now riding up the dark foggy (that's good!) cycle path toward the institute of sport where I can see a huge glow from the sporting field lighting. Through the eucalypt trees (Canberra has a lot of trees) I can see something that might make a photo. There, in beautiful foggy light, are delicious green sports fields with dark backrounds and bright, stark white goals and nets.

There seems to be noone about. The gates are open so I ride on in like I'm supposed to. Ooops ... there's a security guard ... oh make that two security guards. They ask me what I'm up to and I explain I'm a photographer (you know ... like that should sufficient for any question!) and I'd like, if I may, to take some pictures of the goals. They ask "why?" ... it's a fair enough question and it's a national training facility ... it's also cold and damp and night time. So I start to explain about how I really like the bright white goal nets against the flat green grass and how the foggy lights bring a terrific misty ambience ... I can see their eyes  glazing and so I stop and say "you know ... fog chasing arty stuff ... I have a business card if that helps?" I give them my card as I'm pulling my camera out of the pannier ... it's a big camera with a lens that encourages repsect and credibility  ... they say OK ... that's where I took this one...

Goal lit by misty lights on green
Goal lit by misty lights on green

Now I'm not really into sport and by and large goals and ovals don't do it for me but this just looked fantastic and this picture goes some way toward giving you an idea of how the scene looked to me.

OK, I got a picture so the ride tonight (I've been out for about an hour and a half by this stage) hasn't been a total write-off photo wise and so I say thanks and goodnight to the guards who've been watching with a slightly amused eye as I've trekked around the oval photographing goal nets :-)

Riding back into the fog it suddenly clears again and I'm near a pond by the road with an intersection on the other side. The pond is still ... the reflection near perfect and so I stop and get the tripod out. I take a series of pictures extending the exposure time each subsequent frame and finally settle on about two minutes to produce this one...

Intersection reflected in a still pond
Intersection reflected in a still pond

It's not the most amazing picture I've ever taken but I like it. I love the reflection and the light stars. Two half-decent pics tonight ... it's turning out all right this fog chasing hunch...

Now I'm starting to feel cold and damp and I start to head for home. I can literally see the fog descending betweeen where I am and where I need to go and so I set off. There a patch of road which I've seen at night in the fog when driving without my camera (this actually happens a lot) where the lights arc away and the light from the lamps shines only downward leaving them appearing as if suspended ... I head there now and it looks just as I'd remembered it (I love that about my brain - the way it records a scene). I didn't bother with the tripod ... I was feeling cold and lazy ... and so set the camera on a very high sensitivity which brought in the grain which I think really suits this scene ... which scene? Well, the one below of course ;-)

Lights in the Fog
Lights in the Fog

I like this one best ... I'm going to print this one up ... not often a picture fast-stracks itself to the front of my printing queue.

What about you? Do you ever get a sudden urge to go and take pictures of something or take walks in the rain or wander about in the fog? Do tell :-)