Ennis Bluebonnet Trails 2016: Sunrise

Today I returned to Ennis to shoot the bluebonnets. My visit last year was an absolute blast -- I hit the flowers at peak, had gorgeous weather, and took more than 700 pictures. I wasn't necessarily expecting to recreate that same experience. Instead, I was curious how it would be different.

First change: new location for sunrise.  The extremely helpful Gina Rokas from the Ennis CVB actually recommended going back to Sugar Ridge Road where I'd gotten a great shot last year.  Then I saw a tip in the Adventures in Photography of North Texas Facebook group about a spot on FM 660 and headed there instead.

I wasn't exactly sure what spot I was looking for.  And it being dark didn't help.  But I passed a pond that looked like it could provide some nice reflections where another car (presumably with a photographer inside) was already waiting.  I circled around and came back to find two more cars also pulling over.  Validation is a powerful thing.

It turned out the other folks were all part the same Facebook group where I'd seen the original tip, so we chatted and fussed with trying to find just the right location as the colors in the sky intensified.

I don't typically do much HDR.  And I don't typically care for much of the "hand of man" in my nature shots.  But I do think the additional detail from the buildings on the left and the small island on the right enhances this shot.

Sunrises and sunsets are like songs to me -- not just fleeting moments, but several minutes to be enjoyed and savored.  Each moment is different than the one before and the one coming up next as the light changes.  But they work together to form a cohesive whole.

The low clouds on the horizon provided an opportunity for what I like to call a "second sunrise."  So I left the pond and hurried over to the spot on Sugar Ridge Road where I'd shot last year.  There weren't as many flowers blooming, but there were a lot more photographers wandering about.  I was challenged to find a relatively clear view, and when I did I went with some bracketing and HDR on the computer again to yield this result.  And it still has a photographer in the distance, who I may end up taking out of the shot digitally at some point.

When I get up for sunrise and get shots like these, I feel like the excursion has already been worth it and anything else I get is gravy.  Stay tuned for some gravy!