Sunset with Ingrid on the Ocean Floor

Early in the summer of 2018, I decided to try a radical experiment, photographically speaking. I decided to only photograph in good light for that year - and for the most part, for over 2 years now, I have adhered to, and benefited from, this decision. It has seen most of my work focused on working in the evening, or on overcast days. I have no doubt that I have missed making images that would have been made at other times, but rather than making images in good light, I am focused on working with great light.

Digital infrared original, 8 image stitch

As a result, Ingrid and I drove across Nova Scotia for this evening's light, looking across the Bay of Fundy towards the setting sun. We arrived to a lovely warm evening, with strong directional light that lent great contrast to the subtle patterns on the Fundy mud. One of the first successes of the session was the above stitch of Ingrid's standing figure juxtaposed to the tidal pattern behind her.

Digital infrared original

The beauty of the Bay of Fundy is the wealth of shoreline that is revealed at low time (which was why I selected this day for the session - low tide coincided with sunset), and for the better part of two hours, Ingrid and I wandered the ever expanding shore line, making images where and when they called out to be made. Over an over, we found small tidal pools or rock formations to explore, enjoying the lovely light, and exploring all kinds of possibilities.

Digital original, 2 frame stitch

As the sunset neared, we moved back to the cliffs that lined the shore, and worked for a time there with the last direct light of the day. The sunlight was SO warm that I had to tone down the red/yellow in these images, because as created, the red in the light combined with the rocks and Ingrid's skin to be almost neon...totally overpowering the rest of the image, and making it seem completely unrealistic.

 

Digital original, 4 image exposure blend

The last images of the evening were made after the sun went down. Though the sky lacked the over-the-top drama that sunsets occasionally have, it was wonderfully rich in colour, and presented a soft, directional light for a final set of images on the water-carved rocks of the Bay of Fundy.

At the end of the session - more than three hours after we arrived, Ingrid commended that she probably spent more time during this session totally naked (walking around between images) than ever before - which is quite something, after working together for more than 100 sessions over 22 years!