09/25/2026
An audiobook was my companion on the hour long ride back from the west side tonight after the vow renewal I was privileged to capture, but my mind was on the incredible skies and photos we got, I had to completely restart a chapter. Getting home was like waiting on Christmas morning for your family to wake up so you can open your presents and see them in their full glory, not just on a two inch display.
Sunset tonight at Ironwoods was unreal. these are screenshots of completely unedited raw, straight off the camera. Canon Raw CR3 format is a data dense file that captures as much info as possible but not made for release or print, but made easy to work with in post for final product... meaning when these are edited they'll look even better. But I wanted to just share what they looked like untouched, with just the off camera flash, meticulously chosen settings, two people in love, and a sky on fire.
Patience is key for sunset, watching for the right signs and planning for twilight, the atmospheric layering of the clouds being relatively flat, the horizon being open of dense weather for light and color to pass through, lots of even canvas coverage for the color to develop. I was telling this couple, celebrating their 40th anniversary, at least 20 minutes before sunset that we had all the ingredients coalescing for something incredible but I didn't want to jinx it. At moments I was almost bouncing.
The Ironwoods weather consists of 30mph winds moving at an almost continuous pace, so things can change in a really short time frame if you're not careful, but that smooth cirrus pattern kept remaining stubborn exactly like I wanted. I asked if they had dinner reservations, and thankfully we had almost an hour to play with, so we talked off and on while hints of color started to play on the outskirts... and I started to nerd out and get excited like a six year old. These absolutely incredible moments your skies explode in some of the most intensely saturated colors and textures only last a few minutes, and if you're sitting there messing with settings you miss your chance.
We did some posed photos of kissing and being romantic, and after a minute I just stepped back and said enjoy it. If you're looking at your photographer, you're missing what might be one of the best sunsets of your life directly behind you, on such an incredible celebration of a milestone. I know that might sound sappy or magazine article flavored, but it's genuine, and for the last shreds of that color on its segue into blue, they had a chance to soak it in relatively uninterrupted. Nothing Hollywood, none of my prattling on posing, just something beautiful shared between two people in love. I got the shot, flashing for the last time and trying to not interrupt the moment, and basked in it myself for a minute. Did a lot of work today, created a lot of images that'll end up on walls for decades, and that responsibility is something that sets a tone and frame in my mind every time... but sometimes that responsibility is eclipsed by an appreciation for it all. Tonight was one of those times. Still feel warm and fuzzy.
Oh, and none of this text is AI, nor are these photos edited, if it needed to be said.
