Papuan Sunset by Mangiwau aka Michael Thirnbeck – Top Orange Gallery

During the last part of July, 2008, Manam volcano, in Papua New Guinea sent low-level plumes 2.4 km (8,000 ft) into the sky where the volcanic ash drifted WNW.¹

As observed by photographer Michael Thirnbeck, “After the sun went over the horizon there was this special orange glow in the clouds. I suspect the strong colours were partially due to the effect of volcanic ash emitted into the sky from erupting Manam volcano to the east in neighboring Papua New Guinea.”

Michael took advantage of the orange ash glow and photographed the surreal clouds. I asked him how many pictures he took during this shoot. “It was such a spectacular sunset that I took around 150 photos during the sunset period. So I still have to check if there are any other good shots.”

Now that is some serious bracketing. I regularly ask artists how many pictures they took of a subject and I usually get about a dozen. This is more like it, over 150 photos means it will be harder to find the best ones but it also means there is more of a chance of getting great shots.

Michael described what was going on around him when he took the picture.

I was standing in a small elevated clearing beside the one and only road in the area. I had come to this remote part of Papua province to pay my respects to a recently deceased tribal leader in Usku village, about 130km south of Jayapura. I was by myself just enjoying the sunset with camera in hand.

I have in the past attempted to get sunset photos from this location, whenever I happen to be in this area. And I’d noticed small flocks of birds, including cockatoos, would fly from a swampy lowland area to an adjacent area of jungle-clad foothills around the same time shortly after the sun set over the horizon. So I knew they were coming and prepared accordingly. Also I’d read about ropen sightings in nearby parts of PNG – so I’m always on the lookout for ropens.

It looks like this time the beautiful pictures were a result of patience, observation, and being prepared.

Michael uses a Canon EOS 40D. Below are the specs from this photograph.

Camera: Canon EOS 40D
Exposure: 0.003 sec (1/400)
Aperture: f/7.1
Focal Length: 250 mm
ISO Speed: 400

I asked Michael how he was able to get the birds silhouette so crisp with focus. He said, “The birds were a way off – I tried to focus on a tree canopy that was just below the birds flight path.”

I’ve used a technique similar to this before. You point the camera at something that it can focus on then slightly press the shutter button. On my camera, this locks in the settings and you can then move the camera around (while still keeping your finger slightly depressed on the shutter) until you are ready to take the shot you want. I am sure in the better cameras you can lock in the settings for taking multiple pictures. I can’t see Michael pointing at the trees then shooting the sky 150 times.

Besides taking pictures of the sky, Michael has a real talent for taking portrait shots. If you look through his photostream you will see what I mean. I wish someone could take my picture and have it look as good as some of his portrait shots. He seams to be able to capture more than just images when he takes pictures of people.

Michael told me what he liked about taking photographs. “Thanks for the nice comment. I like taking photographs to record my interaction with people and places and to capture any aura of fun I promulgate.”

I think that is the key there when Michael said, “my interaction.” In Michael’s photographs we are interacting too because his subjects welcome us in to being more than just observers.

Michael’s profile on flickr – Michael’s photostream on flickr

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1. Retrieved from Volcano World Website: http://volcanoworld.wordpress.com/2008/07/31/manam-papua-new-guinea-4/ [↩]