quote – Seite 6 – by GG – Fine Art Photography

Solar Eclipse – August 21, 2017

Solar Eclipse - August 21, 2017

“And the sun’s beams
The moon, in passing under, covers o’er,
And darkens a bleak tract of earth as large
As is the breadth of her, the silver-eyed.”
Empedocles (ca. 495–435 BCE), Fragments, Sun and Moon, 42

In ancient times solar eclipses have often been associated with disaster and calamities. These days, people seem to be either absolutely indifferent to the event or totally excited about it. I certainly belong to the latter category. This was my first solar eclipse and I was definitely not going to miss it. Luckily the weather was complacent and spared us any clouds. There still was some smoke in the valley though, but we braved that and did not miss a single second. Even though we were not in the path of totality, it still was an unforgettable event. The moon hid about 92% of the sun. That did not make for a corona and it did not get completely dark—the darkness of the picture above is due to the filter necessary for taking photographs of the eclipse. However, it suddenly felt like late afternoon in the middle of the day and the drop in temperature was clearly noticeable. I obviously took some pictures but I was mainly there to just watch and experience my first solar eclipse. It was also a wonderful social event, as I watched it with my friend Jessie and we happened to meet two very nice ladies, Ann and Annie. We all had a great time. Thank you all for making this such a memorable day!

Where Do Clouds Come From?

”The air up there in the clouds is very pure and fine, bracing and delicious.
And why shouldn’t it be?—it is the same the angels breathe.”
Mark Twain, Roughing It, 1872, Chapter 22

Clouds consist of very small water droplets and ice crystals. They are formed through condensation, a process where water molecules in the air cannot remain vapor any longer but cluster into droplets. This happens when the air either cools down or has to absorb more water vapor. As long as the droplets are light and small enough, they will stay in the atmosphere as clouds. When they get bigger and heavier, they will eventually fall from the sky as precipitation.

Why Does the Sky Have so Many More Colors Than Blue?

”Light rays will tell you the story.
There is another alphabet
Whispering from every leaf,
Singing from every river,
Shimmering from every sky.”
Dejan Stojanović, Forgotten Home

During twilight, meaning the periods between dawn and sunrise as well as between sunset and dusk, the sun is not at its zenith but near the horizon. Therefore, the sun’s light has to travel much further through the atmosphere because of the curvature of the earth. The longer light travels, the more light with longer wavelengths gets scattered, causing yellow and reddish hues to dominate over the blue. This is why the sky is sometimes colorful and spectacular during these times of the day.

Why Is the Sky often Blue?

“… and I’d look up into the sky – up – up – up – into that lovely blue sky
that looks as if there was no end to its blueness.”
Anne in L. M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables, 1908, Chapter 7

We owe seeing anything at all to the sun. Even though we usually do not consciously see this, sunlight has a visible spectrum between—and not including—ultraviolet and infrared. Rainbows show us this visible spectrum with colors ranging from short-wavelength violet and blue over green, yellow, and orange to red with longer wavelengths.

When sunlight enters the earth’s atmosphere, it is scattered by very small molecules present in the air. This scattering is stronger for light with a shorter wavelength, causing a greater proportion of short-wavelength colors like blue to be scattered than other colors with a longer wavelength. Additionally, the human eye responds most to the colors blue, green, and red. Combining this with the scattering effect explains why the sky appears blue to us during the day. And remember, blue skies are ideal for sky gazing.

Skies in a Room

„Design, just as art, has multiple definitions, there is no single definition.
Design can be art. Design can be aesthetics.
Design is so simple, that’s why it is so complicated.“
Paul Rand, 1996

What is art? What is design? These questions have been discussed widely. Nonetheless, most pictures will be hung on some wall, in someone’s home. And as I would like you to get a better idea of what a Skies by Gabriele Golissa™ photograph print could look in your home, I have added a selection of images showing some Skies in a Room on my website. The images result from an ongoing effort to cooperate with interior designers, architects, construction companies, photographers, and so on. Another interesting journey. So take a look right here!