I have always enjoyed being around water whether it’s a lake, a river, or the ocean. I find it very peaceful and serene. I guess this goes back to my childhood memories of getting up early on Saturday mornings to go fishing with my grandfather. We would often head out before sunrise, get to the lake just as the sun came over the horizon, and spend most of the day floating along the bank catching fish. Of course, my fishing didn’t last much past the first couple of hours before I decided to just sit back and enjoy the fresh air, scenery, and time outdoors. I am fortunate to have a large lake, Lake Maumelle, within about a 20-minute drive from my house. While I haven’t gone fishing in years, my photography provides me the opportunity to enjoy the outdoors just as I did when I was a child.
I was on my way to another location Friday morning, but I left my house a little later than I had planned. As I was driving, I noticed the sky getting brighter and brighter as it got closer to sunrise. I wasn’t sure exactly what time the sun would actually come up, so I used an app on my phone that provides me the local times both the sun and moon will rise and set based on my location. I found that the sun would rise about 6:15 a.m. Since I would be go by Lake Maumelle, I decided I would stop and get some shots of the sunrise over the lake.
I spent at least half an hour at the lake and got several sunrise shots. But, the image above, with the sun just beginning to show above the horizon, is one of my all-time favorites.
Settings: Canon 5D Mk II, 24mm, 1/2 sec, f/22