Sumatra Sea Stacks

sky, it was difficult to belief that earlier that morning there was not a cloud in the sky. Satellite images had shown there were cloud formations approaching from the west out over the Indian Ocean. How long they would take to arrive and be visible from the coast was a question difficult to answer. I decided to take a chance and headed for the cliff. I found a position there around noon where I would be looking towards where the sun would be setting behind a cluster of sea stacks whose formation created a sight line to that spot on the horizon.

     With the equipment unpacked I settled down to wait to see what would develop in the sky. By early afternoon the clouds began to appear on the horizon. By late afternoon the clouds has advance to where the leading formations were overhead followed by what looked like an army of advancing clouds that stretch back to the horizon. The question now was whether or not the sun would be visible through the clouds just before it set or be totally blocked by them. I took a series of photographs beginning a few hours before sunset just so I would have images of the sun and clouds in case the sunset be a photographic bust. Sunset was a washout and my forethought provided a few epic images with the sun higher in the sky peeking through the clouds as they approached.