Satellite imagery this morning shows rain pushing in to far northern California, with high clouds filtering in over our SoCo.  As the day rolls on, clouds will thicken up, leading to a 40%  chance of rain tonight.  As this week progresses, the National Weather Service forecast predicts rain well into Thursday on the North Coast.  A Hazardous Weather outlook has been issued for low snow levels, high winds and large waves/swells at the coast.  If you are planning to be outdoors for Spring Break, take an umbrella and a sturdy jacket!

This is movie week for me. I like to watch films that are visually stunning, cinematography that compliments a script that tells a complete story.  If the flick incorporates weather photography, it’s a plus. Saturday night I was roped in to watching New Moon ( The Twilight Saga- PG-13) with my family.  I have to tell you, the first one was so visually boring, I stopped watching halfway through (also with my family).  With trepidation, I sat and watched this entire movie.

Bleh.

Visually, the movie is a disaster.  The special effects are downright cheesy and not believable at all. Vancouver, where the movie is filmed, arguably has the most stunning scenery of the Northern Hemisphere.  There is only one scene, where  JACOB BLACK (Taylor Lautner) is trying to revive BELLA SWAN (Kristen Stewart) on a beach after she jumped from a cliff in to the ocean. A great scenic here, but painfully short.  Otherwise, it was poorly photographed with lots of medium shots, too many tight shots (The movie Seven with Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman, pulled off the tight shots really well). In one scene, if you stop the film, you can actually see the rims of  flower pots in a field of flowers.

Blah, blah, blah.

In photography, scenery should be used to it’s full extent.  The movie was way to long, the dialogue was anti-climatic and the soundtrack was just weird.  More film should have been left on the cutting room floor.

As a habit, most photographers I know think visually.  We understand what makes a good photo.  Personally I look at everything as if it’s a 35mm frame.  I frame scenes constantly and believe that the viewer should be taken up in the photograph, overwhelmed.

On CD tonight is Fandango with Kevin Costner and Judd Nelson.