Rainbow over Yosemite Valley from Tunnel View, Yosemite, May 14, 7:13 p.m. 29mm, 1/45 sec. at f/8, ISO 100, polarizer.
It’s the classic dilemma of landscape photographers: whether to stay and wait, hoping for better light, or go elsewhere.
My friend Evan Russel from The Ansel Adams Gallery and I were standing at the stone wall at Tunnel View last Monday, hoping for a rainbow to appear. Evan told me he was thinking about going to Glacier Point. I was thinking the same thing. He told me that at times like this he thought of The Clash song Should I Stay or Should I Go:
Should I stay or should I go now?
If I go, there will be trouble
And if I stay it will be double
Long before The Clash recorded that song, Ansel Adams said, “I have always been mindful of Edward Weston’s remark, ‘If I wait for something here I may lose something better over there.’ I have found that keeping on the move is generally more rewarding.” I’m with Ansel on that, as I have also found that keeping on the move is generally more rewarding. But every situation is different. I try to gather as much information as possible, then listen to my intuition, and hope for the best.
I had actually seen a rainbow just after I arrived at Tunnel View on Monday, but the standard spot along the rock wall was a sea of humanity, so I wasn’t able to get a good spot. When the rainbow faded and the crowds dispersed I was able to get a better spot, right next to Evan. While we were waiting I periodically checked the radar and satellite images. There were showers to our north, and they were moving south, yet they all seemed to fizzle when they got close. But all it would take was a light sprinkle and some sunshine to create another rainbow.
In the end, I decided to stay, and Evan decided to go. Most of the showers were east of Tunnel View, but west of Glacier Point, so I thought the odds of seeing a rainbow were higher at the tunnel. But you never know. There was a good chance that neither spot would work.
After Evan left I chatted with some other neighboring photographers, and kept looking at the weather. Finally, around 7:00 p.m., conditions started to look more promising. I could see a light shower to our east over the valley, and sunlight streaming in behind us. I couldn’t understand why were weren’t seeing a rainbow already. Then a slice of rainbow appeared next to El Capitan, and quickly grew to be quite vivid.
Luckily the rainbow lasted awhile – almost 20 minutes. I kept my 70-200mm lens on most of the time, making fairly tight compositions with El Capitan, Half Dome, and the rainbow. But at one point some cloud shadows created beautiful light on the valley floor, so I switched lenses and composed a wider view (shown at the top of this post).
I always use a polarizing filter for rainbows. Rotated the standard way, where it darkens the blue sky and cuts reflections, a polarizer will make a rainbow disappear. But rotated 90 degrees from that it will actually enhance the rainbow slightly.
It was a beautiful rainbow, and figured I had made the right decision to stay at Tunnel View. Then Evan texted me his photo of a double rainbow from Washburn Point:
Half Dome at Sunset and Double Rainbow from Washburn Point, by Evan Russel
So I guess this was one of those rare occasions when staying and going both worked. As Dewitt Jones likes to say, there’s more than one right answer.
— Michael Frye
El Capitan, Half Dome, and rainbow from Tunnel View, Yosemite, May 14th, 7:16 p.m. 70mm, 1/30th sec. at f/8, ISO 100, polarizer.
Related Posts: Double Rainbow; Rainbow Weather
Michael Frye is a professional photographer specializing in landscapes and nature. He is the author or principal photographer of The Photographer’s Guide to Yosemite, Yosemite Meditations, Yosemite Meditations for Women, Yosemite Meditations for Adventurers, and Digital Landscape Photography: In the Footsteps of Ansel Adams and the Great Masters. He has also written three eBooks: Light & Land: Landscapes in the Digital Darkroom, Exposure for Outdoor Photography, and Landscapes in Lightroom: The Essential Step-by-Step Guide. Michael has written numerous magazine articles on the art and technique of photography, and his images have been published in over thirty countries around the world. Michael has lived either in or near Yosemite National Park since 1983, currently residing just outside the park in Mariposa, California.
Great shots Michael!
Thanks Marvin!
Michael, thank you for another great post. This one brings the additional bonus of a birthday present for me on May 14. All the best, Barry
Thanks Barry, and Happy Birthday! 🙂
Glad you went wide. The striations of light and shadow on the valley floor really make for a splendid scene!
Thanks Chuck!
I had a similar experience one August day at Chinook Pass near Mount Rainier. I wanted a sunrise picture of Mt Rainier and clouds were mostly obscuring the mountain. A few peaks at the summit kept me looking at the mountain hoping for a better clearing. I finally gave up and took the short walk to look to the east side of the pass. The view was one of the most spectacular sunrises I have seen, but I was a tad late for a great photo. The sun was shinning on the underside of the same clouds that were obscuring Mt Rainier and lighting up the valley in the most incredible light. I Should have gone earlier.
Paul, the only thing worse than making the wrong decision is making the right decision, but too late! That has certainly happened to me more than once.
Judging by yours and Evan’s photographs, it looks like one might not always have to choose… 😉
As you know, it can turn out to be a good idea or a bad idea… to stay… or to go! There’s more than one wrong, uh, I mean right answer!
There’s so much we don’t control about all of this. Aside from the purely photographic skills of seeing and knowing the place and operating stuff and all that… there is an undeniable element of good fortune, amplified by the frequency with which you can be “out there.”
I recently had a related, though perhaps oppositional experience in the park. I got up before dawn in Wawona to drive to the Valley, and things did not look promising — thick gray clouds and “blah” light. But nothing to lose, so I continued, eventually noticing that there was more light to the east (behind blocking mountains) than where I was. Lo and behold, I arrived at The Valley to find astonishing conditions of clouds and mist and light breaking through, and I continued to photograph in miracle light for a couple of hours!
Dan
Indeed there is a lot we don’t control. You just take your best guess and hope for the best, and sometimes something wonderful and unexpected happens.
Wow! Reading your post and seeing the photos gave me the goosebumps. But I have to tell you, when I read your email subject:”Should I Stay or Should I Go?”, I was immediately alarmed and said “Stay!”, mistakenly thought you were leaving Mariposa.
Thanks Sharon. Don’t worry, I’m not leaving the area. 🙂
Beautiful images and a great story, Michael. Yes, sometimes we must move on, but rarely without that little gnawing feeling that it might be a mistake. I guess wisdom and knowledge help, though. Many thanks.
Thanks Bob. I get that gnawing feeling more often when I stay, and realize that I should have gone, but it’s probably too late.
Hey great story Michael! Keep up the great work.
Thanks Ray!
Your photographs never fail to inspire and fill me with awe. Thank you!
From an old movie buff — “Did You Ever Have the Feeling That You Wanted to Stay?” was written by Jimmy Durante and first performed in the 1942 classic film “The Man Who Came to Dinner” with Monty Wooley. Here is the clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lZSwZPnCHY
Thanks for that link Nancy! I hadn’t heard that song before, but it certainly fits the theme of this post.
Michael, great photographs as always. Thank you for sharing with us. A great email to wake up to on a Monday morning in England. I especially liked the first photo with the light on the valley floor.
Thanks very much Jane!
Michael, Thank you for the great tidbit about turning the polarizing filter 90 degrees for being able to enhance a rainbow! I have had the great fortune to also capture a double rainbow from Tunnel View on the evening of the park’s 125th anniversary! What a treat that was! Due to the shower that came through, many people weren’t staying long enough to capture it, but I was like you that evening, determined to enjoy every last moment at Tunnel View and was rewarded with nature’s grand color spectacle!
Thanks again for sharing your experiences with all of us as well as your expertise!
You’re welcome Alma, and I’m glad you got to photograph that double rainbow – quite a treat!
I guess you can always flip the coin rather to stay or go. It’s a hard decision as I have done myself, deciding to go then a missed opportunity I should of stayed. Great article, Michael.
Glad you liked the article Randy. It does sometimes amount to a coin flip, but you have to try to use your judgement and instincts to make the best decision you can. Sometimes the decisions are not so tough; I’ve sometimes seen large numbers of photographers waiting at some iconic spot like Tunnel View, when it was obvious to me that there were better opportunities elsewhere. Sometimes perhaps they just don’t know where else to go, because they’re not that familiar with the area. Or maybe they don’t trust their own judgement and are influenced by the herd – if all those other photographers are there, it must be good, right? The more experience you have, the better your ability to assess the conditions and the possibilities. No one is ever going to get it right every time, but you can increase your odds, and at least recognize when something isn’t going to work.
Good Morning Michael
Love early mornings with fog or mist. We don’t have much of either in Southern Ca. I feel really lucky to be able to enjoy yours.
Roger
Thanks Roger. You need rain to create fog or mist, so I hope you get some soon.