There is a story behind this Sunset, a photo from Himachal Pradesh, North

Photographer's Note

I know there are many sunset photos on TE much better than this one but this photo is very special to me so I am going to post it anyways. I took this photo while trekking in the Shimla district of HP, India.

The story behind this Sunset is that I was on a trek and was camping at the base of a pass in the evening. The whole day had been kind of cloudy and somber. I was sitting close to the bonfire in the evening when I saw these amazing sunlight colours on the mountain that I was going to attempt to cross the next day. Just from the colour of the sunlight on the mountain peak, I knew that it was going to be a very pretty sunset with monsoon clouds.

Since I was in a forest on a mountain, I had to find some place from where I could have a clear look at the sunset. My chances for finding some decent place with a clear view were really one in a million but I still tried my luck. Anyways I ran like crazy and in about half an hour I was really very lucky to find this amazing lookout from where I took this photo. From this lookout on a clear day one could see the Valleys 2500 meters below. Yes that is how impressive this place was and it was'nt mentioned on any of the maps or guide.

The lesson I learned: The best places on Earth are not mentioned on any of the maps and you just discover them by chance and luck. Secondly Don't Give Up, you never know what luck will have in store for you.

weswang, singuanti, yasoda-nandana, Quentin, t0mmm1, caliane, Emile, sway, ndb1958, rabdelnoor, capthaddock, Jakou, Tue, apache, jwmunro, Guntram, annagrace, migsy, mafan, Xalkida, hergi has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Aazragi (1927) 2005-07-14 22:03

Wow,
Looks like that the sky is in fire (Burning sky) nice work, well done.
Latif.

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cam (9041) 2005-07-14 22:57

Hello Sarju.
C'est une très belle histoire et une victoire à l'arraché,une photo d'un moment unique que tu regarderas toujours avec fierté.
Les nuages sont époustouflants et la couleur tout simplement incendiaire.

A very good story Sarju,one to be proud of.A kind of last minute victory for a unique moment that you will always cherish.
The clouds are amazing(the french word is better)and the color,fiery(almost the same thing than in french).

Have a good night and take care.
Charles

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Booz (14343) 2005-07-15 1:41 [Comment]

Show Comment

Quentin (5280) 2005-07-15 4:21

Hi Sarju. Beautiful on fire sky ! I appriciate your note too. Thx for your comment. Bye Quentin

weswang (18223) 2005-07-15 10:52

Hi Sarju, Thanks for capturing this beautiful scene for us. The sky looks like burning. You have captured a very nice moment when the sun has been halfway setting under the hill. The silhouette view of the tree on the side gives us the hint of the beautiful foreground where you took this picture. Good story about the picture.

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singuanti (15250) 2005-07-15 21:44

Hello Sarju. Congrats on finding the lookout, it sure paid off for you. The range of colors is truly amazing. Maybe some more sharpness in the sky. But everything else is great. Congrats Sarju!

Pts tomorrow.

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t0mmm1 (5440) 2005-07-16 9:43

Yes, you are definitely right.
And the picture here is beautiful. I like this colours very much. TFS!

caliane (610) 2005-07-16 23:21

well all I can say is that I think you were very lucky, thank God for this blessing shot.. hehe

Emile (20348) 2005-07-17 1:49

Very good work Sarju.
I think that your effort paid the price, this is a beautiful sunset. Very well captured.
Love the compo. The sky is on fire. Good note.
Well done.

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banyanman (7772) 2005-07-17 8:48

Very dramatic Sarju, and an amazing sky!. It was good that you were able to leave a few silhouetted trees in the picture to give it some perspective. I would have used PS to clean up the dust specks though. Cheers . . . David

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Ulises (1026) 2005-07-17 21:32

sarju,
i like your note, even thou you can fix it a little bit in PS, i love the warm colors and composition, it must have been a great view, thanks for your note
rgrds
ulises

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sway (434) 2005-07-17 23:05

Fantastic sunset. Thanks for running to find it.
Great colours and textures in the clouds.
Well worth the effort I think.
:)

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oochappan (22043) 2005-07-18 14:14

Indeed keep up wondering as beauty is there next to you all the time and when you see it you want it to become part of you as like in this photo a beauty for memories with a warm red coloring on the textured clouds up to the yellow sun, a very nice sunset for eternity.
Henk

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ndb1958 (9289) 2005-07-18 14:28

really beautiful ... your sunset. The clouds on top are very strong. I like the light and the warm colours.
Nino

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billabongx (1585) 2005-07-19 3:03

Hi Sarju,

nice on fire sky ! I appriciate your note too.
Great comment too....

byebye
daniele

rabdelnoor (3421) 2005-07-19 19:38

Hi Sarju,
You really got a very beautiful sunset. Your efforts were deserved. The sky is amazing and has a dramatic touch. Very nice note too.
Thanks
Ricardo

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amol (952) 2005-07-20 2:39 [Comment]

Show Comment +

capthaddock (28790) 2005-07-21 9:02

Hi Sarju - magnificent sunset, very impressive view, and now that the secret is out, I will try to go there when I travel to HP (hopefully in the next 2 years)

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mishreyee (0) 2005-07-25 0:39

Superb colour composition! This is just unbelievable Shimla! I have been to Shimla but this sunset, specially the colour if the clouds is fantastic!

Tue (25798) 2005-07-27 17:13

Hi Sarju,
A wonderful picture of a beautiful sunset! The colours are wonderful and so nice and warm. The two tops of the trees are also very nice, well done.
Groeten,
Lars

apache (1426) 2005-07-28 6:14

Hi Sarj,
I really appreciate the way you strained to take this one. I understand how precious this picture is to you. I am glad it came out well. Amazing sunset colours.
Very well taken
Ranjith

jwmunro (286) 2005-08-03 8:05

Sarju -

Spoken like a true geographer/explorer. The image is just fine and I like the way the light is capturing the ragginess of the underside of the clouds. My only comment on the image technically is that there is a lot of dust and dirt that should have been removed.

Thanks for sharing

migsy (351) 2005-09-12 22:34

It's a good thing you persevered and followed through - your efforts were rewarded with a wonderful opportunity to see this sunset and these colours - perfectly captured. Thank's for sharing - it's an excellent picture and your notes were as good as anything Paul Theroux ever wrote....

sergio1 (12150) 2005-10-03 3:30

Hola Sarju

Buena toma de la sunset. Espectacular colorido. Buen trabajo.

Sergio

mafan (290) 2005-10-13 6:22

great photo & great notes. in my opinon there are few things more satisfying than a shot you've struggled to get actually working! and what a result you've been rewarded with for your running around. cheers, jenny

ps. it may be worth cleaning up some of the scratches/dirt in photoshop....

rima (275) 2006-01-20 8:36

Thats a great shot!!!!...beautiful colors(i mean the orange)...and the clouds..simple amazing....by the way which trek was this...

Xalkida (11740) 2006-01-22 16:55

Hi Sarju

Very nice dramatic sky with excellent soft colors and very fine lighting. Well it's not so sharp but it's very fine. Good work. Be well.

qpochet (1412) 2006-02-07 9:41

Hi Sarju,

Very interesting shot. sky is on fire. Colours are splendid and, without that "little" sun on the horizon, nobody would imagine it's a sunset pic.
Well done!
Quentin.