After our Pier 7 sunrise shoot in San Francisco and a hearty breakfast, we left the comforts of the four diamond San Francisco Fairmont, and headed east to the Yosemite National Park to start our 5 day photography adventure with Moose Peterson, a famous wildlife and landscape photographer.

Four and a half hours later, we entered Yosemite Valley and were awed by the classic icons of El Capitan and Half Dome.

Late Afternoon Sun on El Capitan

Late Afternoon Sun on El Capitan

 

Half Dome from Sentinel Bridge

Half Dome from Sentinel Bridge

We were scheduled to meet up with Moose at 7pm (long after sunset), but we didn’t want to waste any shooting opportunities!

I had an image in my head to capture, the famous Half Dome reflected in the water. With a drought in the valley, no waterfalls, and rivers showing their rocky bottoms, the desire for my ideal sunset reflection was rather ambitious. None-the-less, I dragged Jeff across the across the meadow to the meandering Merced River to hunt for a pool of water.

Alas, we found a spot and were able capture the Half Dome and its reflection as the sunlight faded from this icon.

Once again, it’s all about the light.

20141105_KYose-160_HDR

The golden light of sunset on Half Dome, Yosemite National Park