Like all mountain ranges, the Sandia range, just east of Albuquerque, tries each day to amaze us with a unique light show. Each day is different but when you see this show everyday, certain patterns start to emerge. On several occasions, I’ve seen late evening clouds to the west (behind the camera) move east towards the mountains and cast a progressive shadow on the west facing slopes. First, the lower mountains become dark as the cloud approaches and passes under the suns path. An eclipse of sorts. Then, almost as if activated by a switch, roles are reversed as the lower mountain illuminates and the taller escarpment behind becomes dark. It’s all a function of the ever changing angle between sun, cloud, wind and mountain. A moment later, the entire scene is back to baking in the brutal, high altitude, west facing, solar barrage.
I’ve tried to get to my camera in time to capture this phenomena several times in the past but it all unfolds in less than 5 minutes. Once, on a drive back from Santa Fe, this happened as I approached the Bernalillo exit on I-25 and by the time I could exit and grab the camera, it was gone. This time, I had my camera ready. While some background clouds – which are almost always present over the Sandia except today – would have been nice, the shadow setup was perfect. Check out the contrasting pictures below – taken from the the same location and both taken about 4 minutes apart.
Shadow in Front
Shadow in Back
The conclusion is evident: Sitting on the back porch with a cocktail and watching the ever changing light patterns cast onto the Sandia is an entertaining way to blow an hour in the cool, waning hours of a high desert day.
Photos taken from Corrales area on 5/30/2018 4 minutes apart starting at 19:34 with Canon 7D, 200mm, ISO100, F6.3 & F10 respectively,1/200 & 1/60 sec respectively.
P.S. Below is a picture taken 45 seconds after the first one and clearly shows the lighting as it transitions from the shadow in front to the shadow on the back.
Transition