Stormy Skies and Sunset Lies

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Or: Why You Should Always Shoot in Bad Light

Photos shot with: Fujifilm X-T2 + Fujinon XF16-55mm f/2.8

Lean in. It’s time for some real talk from your friendly neighborhood Gen X Dad who survived dial-up internet, camera film, and pants with actual pockets.

Let me drop a little truth bomb on your creative brain: 📸 You’re playing it too safe with your photography. You keep waiting for that perfect golden hour, the ideal Instagrammable light, the “clean” sky with soft pastels and zero drama.

But guess what? Drama is where the magic lives. Ask any entrepreneur, growth doesn’t happen on easy street. It happens when the sky’s falling, the clouds are thick, and you're one dumb decision away from soaking your overpriced socks in beach puddles. Just saying...

The Setup: Welcome to Weather Therapy

These shots were taken on the Belgian coast. Yes, the actual North Sea where the clouds are moodier than a teenager at family dinner (and trust me... that does say something!)

I took my trusty Fujifilm X-T2 out for a spin, paired it with the XF16-55mm f/2.8, aka the “kit lens that could.” You know the one the internet says isn’t pro enough?

Yeah. That lens. I love it, and use it a lot. It ate this weather for breakfast and came back for seconds.

Shot 1: Beach Huts Under Judgment Day Light

Look, if the Book of Revelation had beachfront property, this would be it. The white beach huts are lined up like they’re waiting for their final report card from God, and He is not impressed.

🔥 Tip: Embrace contrast. Don’t over-edit. Let the sky do the screaming.

Shot 2: Lovers & Light Beams

There’s a couple walking along the beach like nothing’s wrong, while a literal apocalyptic lightshow rips through the clouds. And that’s the shot. Because life doesn’t stop being beautiful when things get dark — you just have to notice it.

🧠 Lesson: Shoot through discomfort. The story’s in the juxtaposition.

Shot 3 & 4: The City, the Storm, and the Reflection Flex

Here’s where the X-T2 and that underrated kit lens went full Beast Mode. Reflections. Moody skies. Ocean texture. If this isn’t a cinematic flex, I don’t know what is. The buildings are catching the last golden hits of sunlight while the sky is cooking up a mid-tier end-of-days cloud formation.

📷 Pro tip: Use puddles like a mirror. Mother Nature’s budget infinity pool.

But Why Shoot in "Bad" Light?

Because perfection is boring. Flawless blue skies? Meh. Give me clouds with attitude. Give me wind. Give me that split-second where the sun punches through like it’s trying to prove a point.

That’s where your portfolio stops being “nice” and starts being art.

What I Want You to Take Away:

  • Your gear’s good enough. Stop crying about not having the next lens. You’re just avoiding doing the work.

  • The X-T2 still slaps. This camera is like an old rockstar — a little grizzled, still shows up, and always delivers.

  • Help keep Hive strong and decentralized by supporting my witness node. Vote for @botlord -> https://ecency.com/witnesses (yeah, I had to throw it in somewhere, right?)

  • Shoot when you don’t feel like it. Especially when the forecast is “you’ll ruin your shoes.”

“Your photography journey is not about being the best. It’s about becoming the kind of person who doesn't flinch when the clouds roll in.”

So next time the weather turns, don’t stay inside editing your lunch photos. Grab your camera, channel your inner storm chaser, and go make something real.

📸💥 Back in my day, we didn’t wait for golden hour, we developed our negatives in the dark. For real. Literally.

Stay gritty, stay curious, and don’t forget to post your moody bangers to Hive or I’ll tell everyone you shoot in Auto.

📸 about my images

All photos are my own, shot on my iPhone and sometimes edited in Lightroom.
AI images? Those are created by me too, using my own prompts.

Explore more: Borniet On Hive

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44 comments
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As usual, awesome capture, brother Bjorn!

However, my favorite one is

!ALIVE

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Thank you! And appreciate your selection ;-) Love that one as well! Yet, my favorite is actually the one with the rolling clouds and the reflection.
!ALIVE
!BBH
!INDEED

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Great capture which shows that art is where drama lives.
!ALIVE
!INDEED

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Art and drama are always closely connected! ;-)
!BBH
!PIZZA
!MMB

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(Edited)

PIZZA!

$PIZZA slices delivered:
borniet tipped tydynrain
@tydynrain(6/15) tipped @savvyplayer (x3)
borniet tipped oasiskp2
borniet tipped hivecurious
tydynrain tipped borniet
savvyplayer tipped tydynrain (x2)
borniet tipped wanderelle
borniet tipped cryptoyzzy
cryptoyzzy tipped borniet

Come get MOONed!

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These photos from the Belgian coast are spectacular 💖 It's an awesome reminder that great art comes from shooting through the discomfort and using what you have 🙌

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Discomfort and using what you have are limits, and limits often increase creativity ;-)
Thank you for your very nice words!
!HOPE
!PIZZA
!INDEED
!ALIVE
!BBH

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Those are epic shots, brother, very nicely done indeed! I love contrasts like that! 😁🙏💚✨🤙

!ALIVE
!BBH
!LOLZ
!PIZZA

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YEs, me too! Love it when you can see the stormy weather rolling in, and still enjoy the last bits of sun ;-)
!HOPE
!PIZZA
!INDEED
!ALIVE
!BBH

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Indeedy, and the reverse too, where dark storms were raging, and then the clouds part, and rays from the sun pierce through the darkness! 😁🙏💚✨🤙

!HOPE
!INDEED
!MMB
!ZOMBIE

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Yes indeed for sure! The reverse is even more impressive and nice to witness!
!HOPE
!PIZZA
!INDEED
!ALIVE
!BBH
!STRIDE

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And it also bodes better for the near-future weather! 😁🙏💚✨🤙

!INDEED
!MMB
!STRIDE
!ZOMBIE

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Perhaps you also want to take "epic shots" of your local jungle community (prioritizing the skies) and sharing them here on Hive !INDEED! 😅

!HOPE !WINEX !ALIVE !PIZZA

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I do that every day, and I have for years now. 😁🙏💚✨🤙

!ALIVE
!HOPE
!INDEED
!PIZZA
!WINE

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In that case, it looks like most (if not all) photos of the sky that you take in your local jungle community are epic (at least for you) indeed! 😎

!LOLZ
!ALIVE

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They are usually pretty amazing, it's true. 😁🙏💚✨🤙

!ALIVE
!LOLZ

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If someone loves looking at the skies, then I don't think that there would be a time that the person would find the sky "ugly" any time of the day or night. 🧘‍♂️🤓

!BEER

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Perhaps, though gray, cloudy and overcast skies are not usually very interesting, especially for photography. 😁🙏💚✨🤙

!BEER

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Some people would say that regardless of how interesting the skies are, taking a photograph of the sky would still produce a picture worth a thousand words. 🧘‍♂️🤓

!WEIRD !PIZZA !ALIVE !UNICOIN !HUG

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Well, with an undifferentiated gray sky, that lacks any contrast, maybe a few dozen words. 😁🙏💚✨🤙

!ALIVE
HUG
!PIZZA
!UNICOIN
!WEIRD

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Perhaps someone would take a shot (of the sky) that is purely in one color (at least when viewed directly with the eyes), and still evoke about a hundred words. 🧘‍♂️🤯😅

!ALIVE
!LOLZ

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I'm very curious exactly which those 100 words would be. 😁🙏💚✨🤙

!ALIVE
!LOLZ

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We can start with the words "sky", "gray", "above", "one color", "no clouds", "simple", "photograph", "picture", and "still". 🧘‍♂️ That's already 10% towards having 100 words! 😆😅

!WEIRD !INDEED !HOPE !WINEX

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OK, keep going then! 😁🙏💚✨🤙

!ALIVE
!BBH
!HOPE
!INDEED
!WEIRD

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I prefer not to give 1,000 words for every single picture (that isn't just one color) that I encounter! 🖼️🤯😅

!BEER

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But giving 1,000 words for a picture that is only one color would test your lexical prowess! 😁🙏💚✨🤙

!BEER

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Perhaps we could be inspired by other people who have already done it before us !INDEED! 🤯😅

!WINEX
!ALIVE

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Well, then that begs the question of whether someone has actually done that yet! 😁🙏💚✨🤙

!ALIVE
!BBH
!PIZZA

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