I’ve been taking photos of sunrises and sunsets from my car these past six or so months. A car isn’t the ideal vantage point for a beautiful photograph, but it’s where I find myself when I’m gazing skyward these days. I don’t spend a lot of time in my car, mind you. It just so happens that my morning and evening commutes provided the perfect view of early and late light in the fall and winter. I like pretty things, so I’ve been catching these images when I’m at stop lights or stuck in traffic.
At least that’s what I’ve been telling myself – that I want to keep the sky in pretty pictures on my phone, and that’s why I’ve been snapping shots of it. The funny thing is, I don’t often look at pictures on my phone. I post stuff to the Grand Overseer, sure, but I don’t look at or share photos on my phone. So I’ve started to ask myself why I’m still taking photos. I have no training in photography or cameras and know little about the interplay of color and light beyond my personal fashion and decorating tastes. So, my motivation to take pictures isn’t to improve a talent or skill at photography. Hell, half the time I can’t really see what I’m shooting because I don’t have my glasses on! [I don’t need them to drive.]
Hmm…Maybe there’s more to this sky log than I realize. I think I’m taking these photos to feel connected to the wider world. To the universe. To everything. I mean connected in a grounded, in-the-moment way. Not in a ooh-I-want-to-post-this-photo sort of way. Like I said, I do post photos, but not all of them. In that moment, when I focus and click, I’m a witness to to the world. I’m seeing something millions of other people are seeing at the same time (if they are looking up). In that moment, I feel like the sole survivor at the end of the world and like a dancer in the biggest flash mob ever, at the same time. It’s invigorating. I’ve come to think of my sky log as moments of meditation of  my place in the world. Like most people, I struggle with figuring out what that place is. But in these moments when I capture the sky, my place is definite. I like that feeling.
Here are a few of my “sky from the car” photos. What about you? Do you snap thematic shots of the world around you?
Breaking Rays
- Spreading Joy
Coming Through
Treemendous
