The Week in Review - Clouds Illusions

Awaiting the rain by J. Binford-Bell

To call forth the rain

you must first create 

the clouds.

J. Binford-Bell

Nothing may be quite as boring to a photographer as a clear blue sky. A clear sky shows no promise of a great dawn or spectacular sunset or flashes of lightning. So this week when we finally had clouds I left my house early with my camera and a mission to record them before the sun made them vanish. Or it rained. I was hoping for the rain. We are all hoping for the rain.

But to have rain you must first have clouds. The humidity level needs to get out of the single digits so any rain that falls from the clouds reaches the parched earth.

Rain in the distance by J. Binford-Bell

There is an expectancy about clouds and rain in the distance. And a sense of unreleased tension which is almost electric. Just rain. Really rain you want to scream. Give me lightning and thunder and the pounding of rain on the metal roof so I can sleep. It was that sort of week and I believe we all felt it. Like waiting for the sound of the other shoe to drop or the next squeak on the stairs.

Wheeler Peak in Shadow by J. Binford-Bell

The clouds seemed to roll around us; always raining just over there but not falling on your head. The big news became that you actually turned on the windshield wipers for a few brief moments. And you came to resent the people in the Midwest complaining (how dare they) of too much rain. If you don't want it just send it back. But we appeased our wounded desires with gratitude that we knew people that got rain. All night in San Fidel. Almost a half inch in Raton. There was green in the depressions on the plains between here and Raton. And we had clouds to photograph.

Clouds Illusions by J. Binford-Bell

Now rain so hard I cannot take my camera out.