OK, I realize a lot of this has to do with weather and luck, but does anyone have tips for getting some great sunset pics? (or perhaps sunrise if I'm up early enough) Should I pick a campsite with a westward view?

always keep in mind that everything in a picture should add to the picture. keep it simple, don't try to include everything in one shot. personally, i like to have some type of silhouette in the foreground to give some depth.

Wait until the sun is below the horizon. When it's up, the brightness difference between the sun and the rest of the image is too much many times to capture the full range of colors and details you want.

Also, it's best to meter for your shot by metering off of some of the colored clouds/sky (not the brightest area, but near it) instead of using a full averaged scene metering. If your camera has a spot meter, this works well for this.

This may not be exactly what you were looking for but one thing I learned when I had a campsite where I could see both east and west shores is that just before the sun is starting to set I would be debating on when was the best time to take a picture but I was completely overlooking the fact that the lighting on the OTHER side of the lake can also very good, so my advice is to simply look behind you. lighting is everything

As bear bait suggested, it has to start with good composition. Sometimes the clouds are arranged well enough, but without something else going on in the picture, the best you can hope for is nice colors (maybe with a little help from Photoshop.

For example:
... ... compared to ... ... . The first two could be good photos in their own right. The third works because of the sun and the fill flash, while the last one is just boring.

Foreground is nice to have in a shot. Some depth as well.

Sometimes you will just not get a decent sunset shot. But always take at least a few shutters and see what is really happening.

Don't forget to be on the ready right after a storm though! You never know what could happen.

A lot of luck and some planning. Make sure your campsite has a view to the west...for sunset. Take a group of pictures....one ia always "best" "Basswood" and sometimes it's not the sunset it's where that last light is shining...like this one on Ballard.

It's all in the light.



I swear this is exactly as it came out of the camera (Canon 40D, 18-200 zoom, 1/15 sec @ f4, ISO400, 32mm).

I will second the advice about foreground but don't forget about the rule of thirds



A black and white sunset can be pretty cool too.





Sometimes the actual subject can be something else while the sunset plays a secondary role.

Great pictures!

I echo the previous tips mentioned already and offer some additional ones:
- don't be afraid of taking a several pictures at different exposures. Use bracketing if your camera has it.
- try shooting with a darker exposure than suggested by your camera
- shoot with the flash off

buy a graduated Neutral density filter (2 stop is good) and attache it to your camera (screw in or use a Colkin style holder) OR just hold it in front of the lens. If you ask most professional photographers (including myself), they use a combo of various graduated ND filters to knock down the exposure of the sky and still get a good foreground exposure....It's super easy and you can get them really cheap on Ebay. Plus you are doing it correctly in camera without having to post process 2 or 3 photos into one.

Here is a shot of a less then spectacular sunset, but I shot it at 25 seconds with a 2 stop Graduated ND filter. The long exposure smoothed out the water and allow the colors to blend together more. All I did in photoshop was add a little bit more contrast.

sometimes just like golf, it's better to be lucky than good! A western facing site or be out on the lake facing that way while shooting is a great start. If you have a digital camera, shoot tons of pictures. Sooner or later you will get one that catches your eye that looks good. Practice makes perfect and with todays cameras, you can shoot until your hearts desired! Some framing works too. I would crop out the water in this shot if I was professional but I'm not a pro at anything other than drinking beer :-). I am by no means a photographer but I do know what looks good to me. Here are 1 of each that I shot on my recent trip that I was lucky enough to capture. No Photoshop involved here. I shoot with a P&S and if you are doing the same, learn how your camera shoots. Mine for instance has amazing back lighting which means I get my best shots when it's darker. I take shots at about 10 minute increments and when it's the darkest almost always seems to produce the most dramatic shots. Just my opinion but it works for me. Learn your camera! I would love some feed back on my shots, email me so we don't hijack this thread if you're willing to critique me.

quote uberben: "buy a graduated Neutral density filter (2 stop is good) and attache it to your camera (screw in or use a Colkin style holder) OR just hold it in front of the lens. If you ask most professional photographers (including myself), they use a combo of various graduated ND filters to knock down the exposure of the sky and still get a good foreground exposure....It's super easy and you can get them really cheap on Ebay. Plus you are doing it correctly in camera without having to post process 2 or 3 photos into one.

Here is a shot of a less then spectacular sunset, but I shot it at 25 seconds with a 2 stop Graduated ND filter. The long exposure smoothed out the water and allow the colors to blend together more. All I did in photoshop was add a little bit more contrast.


"

Great shot!

get out alot and take alot of photos

quote uberben:


"

Absolutely love this pic.

quote uberben: "buy a graduated Neutral density filter (2 stop is good) and attache it to your camera (screw in or use a Colkin style holder) OR just hold it in front of the lens. If you ask most professional photographers (including myself), they use a combo of various graduated ND filters to knock down the exposure of the sky and still get a good foreground exposure....It's super easy and you can get them really cheap on Ebay. Plus you are doing it correctly in camera without having to post process 2 or 3 photos into one.

Here is a shot of a less then spectacular sunset, but I shot it at 25 seconds with a 2 stop Graduated ND filter. The long exposure smoothed out the water and allow the colors to blend together more. All I did in photoshop was add a little bit more contrast.


"

I have a solo trip coming up in Sept and I have been debating how much camera stuff to lug with. You convinced me to bring my heavy tripod. I use an ND filter as well but never tried it on a sunset. Will definitely be playing with that.

I took this last year and have posted it here before. I exposed for the sky and used camera DRO to help with the dark areas.

back in the film days i would bracket half a roll to try and get something really good out of a sunset. i hate to admit it but now i just click the "sunset" setting on the digital camera.

quote wetcanoedog: "back in the film days i would bracket half a roll to try and get something really good out of a sunset. i hate to admit it but now i just click the "sunset" setting on the digital camera. "

yup digital cameras have taken half of the craft" out of photography.

I was once a staff photographer for a company and understand what was involved. I used to bracket shots, and spend more time setting the shot. Then would take it back to the dark room and process the film. Photo shop didn't exist then so any image manipulation was done while printing the negs.
Today we can line up the shot, take it, look at it and decide if it's good, and then play with the image in various photo programs. I do shoot much of my shots in the manual mode, and I do still bracket shots, but it's not like it used to be ....it's better :) but in some ways there's less thought involved in the process

Not a lot of technical knowledge regarding cameras here. I will use the sunset exposure setting and sometimes play with other settings. I love to see clouds in the sky because of the dramatic ways light plays off of them. Experience has shown me if I want some great sunsets stay with it until dark. Sometimes when I think I have the shot I want a few minutes later there can be a whole new effect from the lower angle and deeper shades of the sunlight.

Very good tip on including some foreground for reference. Once when we didn't have an angle to the sunset from camp I went out in the canoe with a few branches I'd picked up. As I angled for shots I'd hold the branch out to make it look like I was standing on shore so there was foreground. I'm not finding those right now but here are a couple that include foreground objects.

You can sit and wait at sundown...and wait....and wait....and just about when you think it's all gonna flop, it happens.

quote cowdoc: "You can sit and wait at sundown...and wait....and wait....and just about when you think it's all gonna flop, it happens.
"

That is some gorgeous, rich color. Nice shot.

jiimaan's shot with a person in it is a nice change from just a "post card" view of a sunset.those are really good too but adding a friend in some way adds some value too it in that "recall that great sunset?"sort of way.

here are three where i changed the flash,first no flash.

then i covered part of the flash with my finger.


and last full flash.these are just about the only sunset with a person photos i have.on solo trips i don't think about adding myself very often.

this may not be a great sunset shot but it has a memory for me in that is was taken in March when the lake should have still had several feet of ice!

mountain lake, graduated Neutral density filter.

Some good ideas here...composition is key though. Adding something interesting in the foreground or somewhere in the frame besides just the sun can make a good picture great. Occasionally photos of just color work but they have to be pretty dramatic. Fill flash is fun to try and can give interesting results. A great tip was to look around at the rest of the scene to see what interesting lighting you can capture on other shorelines. If you are serious, a tripod is always helpful to get a better shot. I always shoot manual but the camera still shows the "recommended" settings. Often I will underexpose a stop or two for added saturation. Most of all, if you are shooting digital, shoot a lot of pictures and try different things. You can always delete later.





A just color shot that works pretty well





Fill flash





Add something of interest to the foreground





Remember to look around at the other shorelines





Don't forget about sunrise...it can be as good or better than sunset. Often there is fog or mist to add to the shot.





Sometimes it's more about the lighting on something of interest





Try something different, add interest to the foreground. You don't always even need the sun in the shot.



Some more ideas...












Sometimes it's just abut being in the right place at the right time...and making the effort.