Photo Challenge (2012) March - Eyes Skyward

February seemed just a wee bit longer than usual (by exactly one day). But it is now March.
This is the time of year (in the Northern Hemisphere) when weather patterns seem to take on a violent and furious mood.

The challenge for this month is to use your camera and look to the sky. Weather, Atmospherics, Sunsets, Sunrise, Cloud formations, even Star Clusters and Astronomical events should all be considered.

Here is my submission - to start things off.

A line of clouds moving in (rapidly) backlit by the Sun; it makes a dramatic display framed against the silhouetted Palm Trees.

My Submission

You are welcome to post any on-topic photos that you take here. Sorry that I had to remove your link, but a Google Search just doesn’t cut it in this forum.

We had a (for this part of the world) rare moon last week: instead of having a ( or ) shape, it was horizontal (like a smile :smiley: )

I tried to take a picture of it, but it didn’t use a tripod, so the result is awful. Too bad.

Last night, two jet streams made a perfect X in the sky above our neighbor’s house. The nearly full moon and the evening star were in the upper right quadrant and the whole thing was extraordinarily beautiful in it’s one-time, one-of-a-kind event. Unfortunately, my poor little camera was too slim to take a picture, so I’ve just tried to draw this photo in words for your enjoyment.

Well I did actually manage to take a photo, so I’m doing well so far. :slight_smile:

March so far has been really driech, as we say, with constant grey cloudy sky and no features of interest, apart from one day which was cold but sunny, with a clear blue sky - and no features of interest. :rolleyes: Today, we’ve had heavy rain and hail, but with occasional brief bursts of sunshine. There was a moment this evening when the setting sun lit up the higher cloud levels, behind the darker incoming rain. Unfortunately, by the time I’d fetched the camera, I’d missed the best of it, but you still get some idea from the picture. I also had to take it through the window, as it was much too windy to open it - hence the rain spatters in the foreground. :slight_smile:

@TechnoBear I LOVE THAT PICTURE!
The mixture of colors - subtle hues of only blue and orange/yellow - is captivating.

@Shyflower, @guido2004 We may need to create a new thread for Word Pictures.

I have been watching for an opportunity to shoot the night sky. This month represents a special conjunction and I have very little ‘light pollution’ in my [new] neighborhood. But, alas, we have had rain and/or clouds that obscure the stars.

This picture was taken august last year, but at least it’s of a more decent quality :slight_smile:

Full summer moon over the hills of the Valnerina, Umbria, Italy:

That is amazing! And a great fit for this month’s theme. Thanks @Guido

Thank you. :slight_smile: We get those kinds of colours quite a lot, especially in autumn/spring. This one was taken on a surprisingly-still evening in February 2005.

and this one in October of that year. It must also have been a still evening, as I seem to have been able to open the window first. :slight_smile:

@guido2004 - I agree, that picture is amazing.

@TechnoBear; your pictures are great too. I love those pink clouded sunset skies. We get them a lot here too (when there are clouds… :smiley: ), but I never seem to have my camera with me when it happens.

Thank you. I’m married to an artist, who’s always looking for interesting skies to paint, so we have quite a stock of interesting clouds, rainbows, etc. The room where I work faces west, so I see a lot of good sunsets from here and usually manage to remember to keep the camera handy, so I can leap into action and keep the artist happy. :slight_smile: The occasions on which I can open the window to do so, without being blown away and/or drenched, are few and far between. :lol:

I am a HUGE fan of clouds and they are my favorite inanimate object to photograph.
I am even a “card carrying member” of The Cloud Appreciation Society!

Lately, I have become more enamored with the night sky. But Sunset is my ABSOLUTE favorite time of day; it never disappoints with its display of color.

If you like clouds, you might like this one, taken last July. I was out in a wee boat with friends - they were fishing and I was taking photos. It doesn’t have the colours of sunsets, but it has some interesting patterns and textures.

Yes, I DO like that one {very much}.
Thanks @TechnoBear;

I already posted this picture before, but since we’re talking about skies, clouds and sunsets, this is an october sunset near Rome, Italy (2010):

Oh wow, @guido2004, that really is a beauty.

Late September sunset over a Nova Scotia bay:

Beautiful !
I love Nova Scotia. I have fond memories of one particular trip where we witnessed the Tidal Bore.

{I think I have some old 3D photos of it somewhere}

Now that is a beautiful picture. Amazing!