Summer Sunsets 2020

A Review of Summer Sunsets in 2020

As fall approaches the mornings are chilly and the trees are beginning to turn colors. There is less daylight and the sun sets earlier each day.

Although I look forward to the beauty of fall colors, it is with melancholy I look back on my summer sunset photographs.   

With the pandemic still part of our reality, travel is limited and many people retreat to spaces in nature – beaches, parks, hiking trails, vacation cabins and campgrounds. Almost everywhere there are beautiful summer sunsets.

For me, the summer of 2020 was full of memorable sunsets. They were memorable for several reasons, 1) of course for phenomenal color (some enhanced by the wildfires), 2) for the length of the sunset and the ever changing sky, 3) for the circumstantial significance and 4) for the memory of a time and place.

Phenomenal Color

When the beaches and parks re-opened again after the "stay at home order" during the pandemic, I began frequenting various spots I knew I could watch the sunset from the beach or from a viewing park along the water. i clearly remember the vibrant pink colors in the sky while photographing the first sunset from the beach after the "stay at home order" was lifted in late spring 2020. This was the beginning of my fascination with sunset watching that extended all summer long. 

Sunset from the Beach (Spring 2020)

Sunset from the Beach

In late July and August 2020, haze from wildfires in Siberia and Canada occasionally sat on the horizon which enhanced the orange and yellow colors of the summer sunsets in Washington state. This created some phenomenal colors as the sun was setting. Below, "Siberian Haze" and "Paint the Sky" are examples of the colors the Siberian wildfire haze brought to the sunset.

Siberian Haze

Siberian Wildfire Haze I

Paint the Sky Paint the Sky

"Below, Sky on Fire" is an example of phenomenal summer sunset colors that are not enhanced by haze from wildfires. The bright colors glowing in the sky in this photo are pure natural beauty. This photo was taken in July before the wildfires began. The glow on the horizon is a reflection of the sun off the thin clouds above the horizon and the thicker heavy blanket of clouds higher in the sky as well as openings in between the two layers of clouds that reflected various levels of the golden light of the "golden hour".   

Sky on Fire

Sky on Fire

Ever Changing Sky

This summer I witnessed several long lasting sunsets where the sky constantly changed colors before, during and after the sunset. One of the most memorable sunsets of the summer occurred in August on the hottest day of the year. The entire day the sky was blue without a cloud in sight, however about an hour before sunset storm clouds blew in and the cloud formations continued to change during the sunset. The wildfire haze from the Siberia wildfires mixed with the storm clouds made for a dramatic sky.

The sky went from violet and yellow hues before the sunset, to orange and pink during the sunset then darkened into a deeper red. The sky continued to change and show off different colors and cloud formations for over an hour after the sun set.

Storm Clouds

Storm Clouds

In early September we also saw the beginning of wildfire haze blowing in from eastern Washington on another very hot day. As in August, the skies were clear and blue all day until about an hour before sunset. The wildfire haze settled into a thin layer of clouds above the horizon as the sun set. During the sunset a bright orange and yellow glow could be seen on the horizon. After calling it "a wrap" and putting away all my photo equipment, one last look at the sky revealed an intense pink glow behind the masts on the horizon and the reflection of the sunset in the water began to spread inward toward the shore, After walking a few steps I pulled out my tripod again to take a photo of the last look. It had to be captured.

Last Look

Last Look

Circumstantial Significance

Sometimes I remember a sunset because of an unique circumstance surrounding the photograph. On the 4th of July of 2020 all professional fireworks displays were shutdown because of the crowds they would attract during the pandemic. A friend of mine who was out of town on the 4th of July invited me to use her deck to view the fireworks on Whidbey Island and the Olympic Peninsula. With my naked eye I could see the larger personal fireworks displays. However since I was photographing the sunset with a wide angle lens most of the displays were barely visible through the lens. There were a couple large fireworks that by change did show up in one of my images positioned right at the end of the tree branch, as if the branch was pointing to it. 

Fireworks in the Sky

Fireworks in the Sky

On August 16th, 2020 we experienced the hottest day in 11 years in western Washington. The day was clear but when clouds started to build on the horizon I decided to check out one of my little known sunset viewing locations. It's a small viewing park with only 4 parking spots. Surprisingly, there was one parking spot left when I arrived about 45 minutes before sunset. This sunset was so amazing I didn't leave until it was pitch dark. The entire time was filled with a spectacular, unforgettable sunset colors that were seen all over western Washington. Close to the finale you could see lightning to the north and a thin veil of rain came out of the clouds. It was so hot outside that most of the rain evaporated before reaching any surface. My car window had only a few drops on it but I could feel a mist in the air.

Many people posted their sunset photos on social media that night and I was no exception. There were as many sunset photographs posted that night as some of the other significant celestial events such as comet neowise, which is rare for a sunset.

Thin Veil of Rain

Thin Veil of Rain

A Memory of Time and Place

Usually a photograph brings back a memory of a time in our life or place we visited. I find this also true for sunset photographs. Even though a sunset photograph is primarily aimed at displaying the beauty of the sunset, it can also bring back a memory of a time or place.

"Swirling" is a photo that reminds me of how I felt during my first getaway during the pandemic to one of my favorite locations, Lopez Island. After being close to home for many months, I was able to take in the beauty of nature in a remote location where I could watch the sunset from the beach each night. On the first day, as I waited for the sunset to "develop" (without my photography equipment beside me) the sun began to dip into an oval cloud. I could tell it would shortly position itself in the middle of the cloud. I made a mad dash for my photography equipment and just in time I was able to capture the sun "inside" the cloud. At the same time the reflection from the sun extended between the gap of the hills in the background to the shoreline.

Swirling

Swirling

"Interisland Ferry at Night" is also a photograph of a memory of a time and place. As with other summer sunsets, I had ended capturing the sunset and put away my equipment. I was merely watching the dusk turn to dark when I saw the ferry lights on the distant horizon. I knew I had to be quick to capture the ferry before it was out of sight. I thought about how to freeze the motion of the ferry, yet let in enough light to record the colors in the sky. Some quick thinking led me to the image below. If I had looked at the ferry schedule and planned for this image I would have had time to use more advanced techniques, however this was truly an "in the moment" decision. Over time I've been able to appreciate the image because when I look at it I remember with fondness the fun times I have watched this ferry cross this channel at night.

Interisland Ferry at Night

Interisland Ferry at Night

Another memory of a time, actually still occurring now in September 2020, is the occurrence of record number of wildfires on the west coast of the United States, including Washington state.  The image "Golden Glow" was taken on the first evening the smoke from the wildfires started to blow into western Washington.   

Golden Glow

A few days after the image "Golden Glow" was taken, smoke from the wildfires in Oregon and California also blew into western Washington. The image "Sinking into Smoke" was taken the first evening the smoke began to blow in. For the next few days, up to and including today, the air quality has been so hazardous that there is a "stay inside" order for most of Washington state. Although this is not a happy memory, it is indicative of the current time and place.

Sinking into Smoke

You can find the entire "Sunsets" gallery here on my photo website: https://pattiphoto.zenfolio.com/p505922840

Patti Ingham, © Patti's Nature Photography