Skyscapes

Amy has invited us to thumb through our archives for this week’s Lens-Artists Challenge #250 and choose skyscapes and clouds. I’ve found it impossible to be dispassionate about this. There’s something about these images that’s so bound up with memories that I can’t distinguish good photos from the merely ordinary. I’m transported to that place, that time, that set of souvenirs.

Take my header photo, for instance, which I’ve posted before, more than once. It takes me immediately to that special day when I was part of an evening boat trip quietly floating through the lagoons of l’Albufera near Valencia, while birds made their final flights as the sun settled below the horizon. It’s a memory which will never leave me, whether the photo is a winner or not.

Longish sea trips to the continent bring memories of languidly looking at cloudscapes from early morning till nightfall as our ship smoothly purrs towards its destination. Here’s one …

… or this…

Or there are those memories of January days in Cádiz. An unmissable part of our routine was to head to the beach at dusk to watch the sun slowly disappear into the sea.

This shot, from our time in the Balkans shows that a slightly neutral skyscape can be a perfect backdrop for a questing bird of prey. And this was a holiday of birdsong, wild flowers – and memories of a still wild landscape.

A quick visit to France, to the Minervois for a moody sky. This was a trip just a few weeks ago, when on the same day as this shot was taken, we saw tiny daffodils sheltering from the brisk wind.

I can’t leave this post without a local shot, taken as we walked a habitual path alongside our River Ure.

Author: margaret21

I'm retired and living in North Yorkshire, where I walk as often as I can, write, volunteer, and travel as often as I can.

48 thoughts on “Skyscapes”

  1. These are glorious! After many years, I’ve managed to get my partner to appreciate the beauty of a grey winter sky, a handy skill to have in the west of England. Still hanker after New Mexican blue, though.

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  3. I love how each photo has associated memories for you. I love your pink sky. This theme took me back to my cloud series of early 2021 when we were back in lockdown.

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  6. I knew you’d have some beautiful moments to share with us. If ever there was an advocate for smooth sailing, it’s right here! Hope I can find that lovely spot when I finally make it to Valencia. And Cadiz 🤗💜

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  7. I understand completely what you’re saying about the memories associated with an image making it hard to assess it dispassionately – I have the same problem quite often. But these skies are definitely lovely enough to stand alone for the rest of us who don’t have your connection to the time and place. I especially love the drama of the first of your ferry shots and that gorgeous pink/purple sky in Cadiz!

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  9. The first image is poetically beautiful. The sky and clouds of your Longish sea trip are priceless. The purple, pink, blue sky… leaves me speechless. Thank you for sharing with us. 🙂

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  20. This is the second time around for me, Margaret. Brilliant captures. What came to mind was this quote: “There is one spectacle grander than the sea, that is the sky; there is one spectacle grander than the sky, that is the interior of the soul.
    Victor Hugo, Les Misérables

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  21. Loved all of your choices Margaret and agree wholeheartedly with your comment about each image bringing special memories along with it. One of my absolute favorite things about photography, and also about blogging. That image from Cadiz is incredible!!

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  22. Magical, Margaret! So many lovely memories, I understand completely – that’s the way it is. I have a favourite, one that stands out for me, and that is the blue sea trip. It makes me sail along up into the skies. Truly magical.

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