One of the things I’ve learned when going out to take pictures is that sometimes it’s good to be able to pivot quickly. While I have photos that I’ve planned very intricately, many times it’s been a quick reaction to what I see while I’m out. And sometimes those moments can be quite surprising.
This shot is a prime example of that. I had ventured out with the intention of shooting the BNSF rail yard in Pueblo with a sunrise sky that looked promising. Indeed, the sky did light up quite nicely but I was just a little late for it and the railroad didn’t have any trains running at the peak of the sunrise. So not a bust, but not great, either.
While I was setting up to try to do something with the trains that were present, I found myself in the parking lot of an aging strip mall on Pueblo’s west side. While moving my tripod around, I looked down into one of the gutters of the parking lot and found this pile of frosty leaves. My eye was immediately drawn to the cottonwood leaf amongst all of the elm leaves. Morning light was advancing towards this particular pile of leaves and that spelled a quick end to the delicate frost. I didn’t have time to get out the macro lens, so I made do with the 80-200mm that was on the camera (which isn’t the greatest at this range, but is serviceable).
I think there are two key takeaways from this shot for me. The first is that I really need to keep my eye moving while I’m out and be ready to capture the bits of serendipity that present themselves. The second is one that I really need to remember — nice photos can literally be found just about anywhere. Had I told myself that my shot of the morning would be taken in the gutter of a tired strip mall, I probably would have rolled over in bed and gotten some more sleep. As it is, though, I’m really happy with this shot and I’m glad I went wandering this morning!