Sky color on the water

By Jack Booth

The color of the water can make or break a shot of the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia, particularly in the spring. And that depends largely on the sky colors, which reflect off the water. This morning was a good example. The swollen river was a muddy brown, except for a brief period when the sky was blue with pink highlights in the kind of tight clouds that tend to only be around in the spring and fall. This shot, taken from underneath one bridge, used that effect to maximum advantage. The shaded water acted like a big reflector and picked up the sky tones, as well as the golds from the railroad bridge. The brown in the water wasn't even apparent. These clouds lasted less than a half hour, and then a huge bank of dark clouds moved in. But the shot was in the bag, and the river looks good.

© Jack Booth