Dark Sunset

It may not be immediately apparent, but today's sky picture is a picture of the sunset, albeit behind a mask of dark, rolling clouds. Taken on a wet February afternoon as the sun drew close to the horizon, I was struck by the contrasts between the brilliant sun and the murky clouds.

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It's almost as though there's a battle in progress between the forces of light and darkness as the sun tries to burn through the darkness, while the clouds, in turn, try to obscure the light. In this cloud pic, the forces of darkness seem to winning, and, indeed, the battle went their way - the sun made no more than occasional, deeply shrouded appearances before the day was done and the deeper darkness of a winter's night rode in.

PP

Family of Clouds

This picture of clouds in an otherwise largely clear blue sky was taken about an hour before sunset on a late February afternoon. The stark, leafless outlines of tress in winter seemed to contrast nicely with the softer shapes of the cloud formation apparently hanging just overhead.

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The similar shapes and colours in this cloud photo reminded me irresistibly of a family group of clouds, drifting lazily through the sky. Fanciful, I know, but probably no more so than finding pictures in the clouds - and who hasn't done that!?

PP

Contrails and Clouds

Taken just before sunset on a cold, clear February afternoon, this sky picture shows just how busy the skies around a reasonably large city can be. Contrails from a raft of aircraft criss cross the clear blue sky, forging long, straight vapour trail causeways between the randomly fuzzy natural clouds.

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I always find contrail pictures to be both fascinating and a little disturbing, in that they make a natural recording of how many aircraft are, or have recently been, vying for space in the skies above us. The potential for accidents in such a crowded space is an obvious cause for concern, yet the rarity of mid-air collisions is an impressive testament to the skills of air traffic controllers and pilots everywhere.

PP

Dark Clouds

Dark clouds, blue sky and a silver lining - who could ask for more from a picture of clouds in the sky? Well, I for one could have asked for an unobstructed view of this spectacular late afternoon cloud formation, but it wasn't to be. My field of vision was particularly narrow, with trees and tall buildings obscuring my view of the sky on either side, and it was all I could do to limit intrusion to a few leaves and branches in the lower corners of this cloud picture.

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The unwanted foreground objects aren't attractive, and I nearly didn't post this cloud pic because of them. But, on second thoughts, I decided that the towering peaks of dark cloud, outlined in gleaming silver against a sliver of blue sky, almost made up for their presence.

PP

Clouds of Doom

This cloud image was taken late on a February afternoon, as the now-invisible sun sank towards the horizon. The light quality seems to lend a slightly sinister quality to this seething mass of cloud, and the whole effect is one of impending doom.

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I could quite easily imagine cloud shapes like these foreshadowing some really unpleasant events - like Armageddon, or a tax demand!

PP

After the Rain

Images of clouds come in all shapes, sizes and patterns, from light and fluffy "diet" clouds to full fat storm clouds, laden with rain, snow, hail and, sometimes, all three. The clouds in today's pic are somewhere in the middle of that range, pictured as heavy rain clouds broke up to reveal some of their high-altitude counterparts and some sorely missed blue sky.

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It's quite a hopeful, optimistic image, as cloud pictures go, symbolising the eternal promise of good times after bad... or maybe I'm just reading far too much into a cloud photo :)

PP

Ghost Cloud

Another lightweight cloud picture, featuring delicate wisps and whorls of vapour instead of the mountainous peaks of yesterday's post - the sky is nothing if not full of variety! At first glance, there doesn't seem to be anything particularly unusual about this cloud image, but on closer inspection several interesting, if fanciful features leapt out at me.

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Pictures in the clouds are, of course, an optical illusion, but they're still fun! The more I looked at this cloud pic, the more I seemed to see a couple of ghostly figures, one with their arms outstretched and head thrown back, the other looking on. I haven't spoken to anyone else who can "see" them, but, for me, they set this image apart from the others I snapped today, and decided which one would be posted here.

PP

White Cloud Mountain

Something a little less dramatic than yesterday's sunrise photo for today's post. Instead of blazing golden fire, we have a towering heap of white cotton wool floating in a bright blue sky. Pictures of clouds may not appeal to everyone, but I find the delicate, wispy, ever-changing edges of their structure both fascinating and beautiful.

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As if in contrast to the size of this natural visual extravaganza, the contrail (and associated aircraft) at the top of the image seem almost puny by comparison, dwarfed by the billowing vapour of the clouds.

PP

Golden Sunrise

Today's sky photo is one of several sunrise pictures I snapped early this morning at a nearby playing field. Early morning is not my favourite time of day, hence there are likely to be far more sunset pictures than sunrise images posted here. But, since I was awake anyway, and the pre-dawn sky looked promising, I took myself off to the field and lurked suspiciously in the early morning gloom until the sun inched its way over the distant hills.

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Neither my photographic skills nor my camera can do justice to the breathtaking blaze of golden light that lanced along the horizon, edging the dark clouds with brazen fire. Until both improve quite bit, however, this sunrise pic may be as good as they're going to get!

PP

Eye In The Sky

This slightly sinister-looking picture of clouds in the sky put me in mind of something from Lord of the Rings - a malevolent eye gazing down through dark clouds at the world below. Ordinary rain clouds aren't supposed to look that mean!

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This cloud pic was taken just a few minutes after the photo in yesterday's post, giving some idea of just how quickly those clouds appeared. Unfortunately, I was so intent on the clouds that I didn't notice the street light sneaking into the bottom left of the image. I could crop the image, or edit it out, I suppose, but  that strikes me as cheating. Must pay more attention next time!

PP

Dark Cloudy Jacket

Today's picture of the sky is another cloud pic, snapped this very afternoon as the pale winter sun became enveloped in a jacket of darkening clouds. These clouds bubbled up, seemingly out of nowhere, and shrouded the sun in a very short time.

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Fortunately, for all their threatening appearance, the copious quantities of rain these clouds promised to bestow upon us held off for several hours, giving me just enough time to finish my gardening.

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Winter Sunset

This rather lurid sunset picture was taken on a cold February afternoon. The day had been gloomy and overcast, the sky offering little more than the promise of a good soaking until late afternoon. Suddenly, as the sun dropped towards the horizon, the rather monotonous, dull rain clouds rolled away to reveal a deep blue sky and these high altitude wisps of pink and yellow fire licking at the ever-present contrails.

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It just goes to show that the sky is a source of infinite variety, capable of producing the most amazing displays at a moment's notice.

PP

Pictures Of The Sky

How often do you look at the sky? I mean really look at it, not just cast a quick glance upwards as you wonder whether it's going to rain (or stop raining!) later?

Probably not very often. But you should! The sky is a beautiful, ever changing canvas where nature paints breathtaking pictures without end. From sunsets to clouds, this daily display of natural beauty wheels above us, so magnificent yet so often ignored.

Here, I have posted a few pictures of the sky I have taken, more or less at random and as the mood and opportunity have arisen. I'm no great photographer, and there will probably be more cloud pictures than one might reasonably expect, but hey, I like pictures of clouds :-)

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I will try to add a little variety as I go along - maybe some skyline pictures, the odd sunset image, perhaps some contrails. The choice is endless, and with any luck my photographic skills will improve as I post more sky pics.

PP.