Normally I plan my photo expeditions so that I arrive after the sun has already risen. After all, if I want to photograph wildlife subjects, I need to have enough light to be able to see them. Recently, however, I have been trying to get there before sunrise in order to capture images of the color in the sky. This is becoming a problem for me, because the gates of the wildlife refuge where I like to explore do not open until 7:00 in the morning and we have almost reached the point in the year where the sun rises even earlier than that.
On Tuesday, I arrived at Occoquan Bay Wildlife Refuge at about 7:05 and the color in the sky was amazing, a beautiful red color tinged the clouds. My view of the most colorful parts of the sky was blocked by trees, so I did my best to frame the sky with those trees. My the time I reached the water, the most saturated colors had disappeared, but in some directions I could still see some glorious pastel colors and I captured the second image. I love the abstract quality of that image, a depiction of nature at its simplest, a series of wonderful shapes and colors.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
You got some great ones, Mike. Don’t forget, you get a second chance to get these after DST kicks in.
Thanks for the reminder, Dan. I may also look for alternative locations to catch the sunrise in the interim.
In my mind, Mike, it’s the only redeeming aspect of DST
Very nicely captured, Mike! Such rich colours!
Thanks, Chris. The colors, especially, in the first shot were so striking to me because of how saturated they were. I don’t know that I have ever seen that deep a red in a morning sky.
Nice Mike! Very colorful! Love seeing colorful sunrises & sunsets!
Thanks, Reed. Sunrises and sunsets are relatively unpredictable–you never know if you will be fortunate enough to get beautiful colors. There are numerous times when I have waited and the darkness simply fades into light or vice-versa.