So glad to see you put MY favorite photo of yours in your gallery. I love All Laced Up!

Thank you so much! I knew I had to put that in my gallery or a few of my friends here would protest. We are deep into the swing of Nutcracker again and I'm looking forward to taking more pictures soon. I hope to be able to post some towards the end of December.

Norm,

Your gallery is filled with excellent images. Great work!

John

You really do have some great images, Norm. I'm envious of your photographic skill (or maybe your willingness to get up at ungodly hours to take the photos ).

Thank you all! Best photo times are sunrise/sunset... if you aren't an early riser or aren't willing to wait for it in the late hours of a summer's eve, then you miss the "golden" opportunities. I'm still learning. I just have a very strong desire to capture the beauty that the eye sees.

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About 2:30PM, sun high in the sky with no clouds.

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About 4:30PM, sun has gone down behind the trees. Still no clouds.

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We went to the NC Renaissance Fair on Saturday and I was struck by the difference in these two pictures in regards to the lighting. Both were taken with the sun basically behind me. But the difference is in the time of day. The upper picture was taken in mid-afternoon with the sun high in the sky and practically at its brightest, with no clouds. The bottom picture was taken later in the afternoon, when the sun had gone down behind the trees that surrounded the grandstands. There is a big difference in the shadowing. The shadows in the top picture are much harsher in the top picture, whereas nearly non-existent in the lower. And the coloring appears better to me in the lower picture, also. Both pictures have been adjusted and color-corrected in LR.

Gene - That's what I'm talking about! Fantastic! What a difference in the lighting, yes? I'd probably still kick up the contrast just a tad and then adjust the brightness accordingly on the second one - but it's a much better shot. I often look at the middle of the day as lunch and nap time if I'm on a photographic trip because there is no sense in taking pictures during that time. Or, at least, there are very few opportunities during that time. You can still make good use of the middle of the day, but you have a better chance of capturing better photos in the morning and late afternoon/evening. My thought is, when the sun comes out in the middle of the day, the camera gets put away (unless there is just something that jumps out as a "must capture moment"). But hey... maybe it's just because I'm not a very good photographer and don't know how to capture pictures right during the middle of the day. That could be the case.

Norm:

From everything I've read and what I've seen in the photos I've been taking, the afternoon sun is the worst lighting to try and work in. Unless you can find an area of open shade, forget it if you want good photos instead of just snapshots. Or unless you want to spend a lot more time in PSE. I don't. Sorry guys.

I won't say though that its a complete waste of time. There may be times when you want that type of shadow in your pictures. But, overall, no. I read one article that if you're trying to submit those types of photos for publication a lot of art directors won't even look at them. Not that I'm at that level, but something to think about.

Meanwhile, I just keep on practicin'.