Advance Planning! Do you plan your photographs “in advance”? Hopefully the answer is yes. During a prior drive down to Minneapolis I noticed a field of sunflowers in the distance which were almost ready to bloom. My brain immediately starting taking virtual pictures. Wouldn’t it be cool to photograph the sunflowers shortly after dawn?

Thus, four days ago I got up at 4 am and left early for the Twin Cities. My early departure was to arrive at my desired farm fields in the dawn’s early light. The night before I had researched farm roads on Google Maps which I thought would bring me to the sunflower  fields with the correct point of view relative to the sunrise. In addition I downloaded an offline version of central Minnesota from Google Maps on my smartphone.  Never trust you will have a cell signal when in remote areas!

This photograph was the end result … a sunflower field a few minutes after sunrise … in a location I had never visited in my life. Even when birding, I pick my locations and hikes to hopefully arrive at a desired area with the proper lighting / photographic conditions.

Do you advance plan your photographs?

Summer Sunflower Sunrise