Driving home from work in February, the late afternoon clouds were beautiful while resting in the sky of a lovely shade of blue.
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cloudsperspective

Oftentimes, I have found myself standing in the middle of a parking lot when I am struck by the beauty of the sky/the clouds/the sunset/the trees. I am in the habit of bringing my camera with me everywhere. Sometimes I feel like a “storm-chaser” but instead, when I see a gorgeous sky, I am frantically looking for a good vantage point to stop and take some pictures. It is not easy to just pull over a 15 passenger van (my wonder wagon) to the side of a road, especially a road with snow-covered shoulders. Truthfully, I am still looking for the best place to view a sunset near my home. Whenever I am facing west, the view is blocked by telephone poles, wires, houses, and trees – the suburbs of New Jersey.

One fun thing about taking pictures while in a parking lot at a shopping center or doctor’s office is that people look up at your subject. I’ve heard people tell their children, “Look at the sky!” or “Isn’t that pretty?” One woman was excited for me and pulled her car up next to me to ask me if I got any good shots.

Many of the pictures I have posted lately are specially designed shots like the first one above. I usually take pictures like this, “cropping” out things I don’t want the viewer to see even before I edit my pictures on the computer. From my perspective, I am standing in a busy parking lot. From your perspective, you see a beautiful sky. I took the second picture because I was struck with the contrast. One of these days I will find a place with rolling hills with just a few trees near my house where I can sit and watch (and take pictures) of a beautiful sunset. Believe me, you guys will be the first to know.

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This is a response to the Weekly Photo Challenge:Perspective

This is also a response to Nancy Merrill’s A Photo a Week Challenge: Blue and White