Picture of the Day - 2/17/2011

Iridescent Clouds - I caught this effect occurring last Sunday morning just prior to our church service. This somewhat common, but rarely noticed, event occurs because sunlight is hitting water drops or ice crystals in the cloud formation at just the right angle. Because this is a diffraction phenomenon, it works best with a thin cloud layer, so most of the sun encounters just a single layer of water drops or ice crystals. To get the "starburst" effect due to the sun, I positioned the camera so that just a tiny part of the sun poked out from behind the roof and used a small aperture (high "f" number). This was captured with my small Canon SX130 compact. Goes to show you it doesn't require expensive camera gear to get great shots! Image straight from the camera - unprocessed.