Lmst

Full moon in Koh Samui’s…peach. 🌝
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#KohSamui
#ThailandNight
#IslandNights
#TropicalVibes
#PalmTrees
#NightPhotography
#StreetAtNight
#ThaiIslands
#SoutheastAsia
#TravelMoments
#Wanderlust
#NightLights
#CinematicMood
#MoodyGrams
#SlowTravel
#IslandLife
#RoadTripVibes
#ExoticPlaces
#TravelPhotography
#NoFilterMood
#TropicalNight
#SkyAndPalms
#QuietRoads
#DreamyScenes
#NightScapes
#TravelDiaries
#OnTheRoad
#AsiaTravel
#ChasingLight
#HiddenThailand

Where the earth breathes and the soul listens. 🌱✨. Nature never rushes, yet everything gets done. 🌿 #NatureLovers #IntoTheWild #EarthFocus #NaturePhotography
#GreenVibes #ChasingLight #ForestMagic #Sunlight
#PeacefulMoments #NaturalBeauty #FindYourCalm
#EcoAesthetic #NatureHealing #SereneScenes

Winter light, fleeting magic ✨
Just as the sun dipped behind the ridge, the light did something unexpected. A soft glow pushed through the clouds, and for a brief moment a rare circumzenithal arc, an upside-down smile of pure color, appeared over the snowy peaks.

It didn’t last long. Just enough time to remind me why being patient in the cold is always worth it. These quiet, in-between moments are the ones I remember most. ❄️

Here’s to a day full of unexpected beauty. What’s one thing you’re looking forward to today?

#PNW #LandscapePhotography
#NaturePhotography #ChasingLight
#CircumzenithalArc

A breathtaking winter sunset scene over a snow-covered mountain landscape in the Pacific Northwest. In the deep blue sky, a brilliant circumzenithal arc—often called an upside-down rainbow or "smile in the sky"—arches high overhead like a colorful upward-curving smile. The vibrant spectral colors transition from red at the bottom outer edges through orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet toward the center. A fainter secondary arc appears above the main one. Below, dense evergreen forests dusted with fresh snow stretch across rolling ridges, leading to jagged, cloud-shrouded peaks glowing softly in the last rays of sunlight breaking through dramatic storm clouds. The overall mood is serene, magical, and fleeting.

As a landscape photographer, I'm no stranger to hiking in the dark to be set up and ready when the light hits the sweet spot early in the morning. Today was different; today I found myself running through a frozen field in my pajamas because the light was ready and waiting when I looked out the kitchen window.

#chasinglight #sunrise #drama #goldenhour #landscape #winter #sweden #värmland #telephoto #cinematic #mist

🚗✨ “The past is closer than it looks… and still trying to shine on you.”
🌅 Sometimes the universe sends a sunset in your rear-view just to remind you:
➡️ Keep moving—beauty follows.

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#sunsetvibes #mirrorphotography #roadtripmood #goldenhour #deepthoughts #travelinspo #lifeontheroad #aestheticshot #mindfulmoment #wintervibes #chasinglight #visualpoetry #storyintheframe #travelgram #exploremore #momentsofmagic #viewfromthecar #dailyinspiration #sunsetlover #keepgoing

Yesterday morning felt like one of those quiet bets you make with nature. The night had frozen everything solid, so I suspected there might be low-hanging fog waiting somewhere between the fields and the treelines. As I walked in, part of me was afraid I had already “mist” it — but as the sun crept closer to the horizon, the air began to thicken, soft and silver, like the world taking a slow breath.

Just before sunrise, something unexpected happened. High above the forming fog, an ice cloud lit up in iridescent colours — mostly red, orange, and yellow, with subtle hints of green and blue. Ice crystals at high altitude can refract sunlight much like tiny prisms, creating these fleeting rainbow glows known as irisation. It felt like a quiet scientific miracle happening in real time.

That’s when I saw the leafless tree. Stark, skeletal, patient. And suddenly the composition clicked: a tree seemingly losing its last colours into the sky, like a gentle puff of smoke drifting upward. It’s not my most dramatic image, but there was something special in its simplicity — a moment where winter, light, physics, and imagination lined up just long enough to press the shutter.

Photography, after all, is just another way of studying light and life.

#wonderinglens #ByMaikeldeBakker #NaturePhotography #LandscapeLovers #MorningMist #IceCloud #Iridescence #AtmosphericOptics #WeatherPhenomena #TreeSilhouette #WinterLight #DutchNature #LowlandsMagic #SunriseGlow #ColorInTheSky #FoggyMorning #PhysicsInNature #ScientificStorytelling #CanonPhotography #OutdoorLife #NatureStory #MagicalRealismInNature #NaturalWonder #SkyWatcher #EarthObservations #LightPlay #WanderingWithACamera #DailyExploration #MomentOfCalm #VisualPoetry #CreativeVision #PhotographersLife #ArtOfSeeing #NatureMood #WinterVibes #FieldNotes #MindfulPhotography #NatureIsArt #ChasingLight #StoryThroughLens

I can’t even put into words how last night felt. It was the second time in my life that I saw the northern lights but somehow it felt completely new.
The forecast showed a solar storm, barely a 1% chance for my region. I set an alarm for 3AM. I jumped out of bed, looked out my kitchen window and froze.

My heart started racing. I grabbed my camera, ran out into the night across empty fields. -1°C, silence all around me, just me and the sky.

This time I could actually see the lights with my own eyes. For a few minutes I forgot the cold, forgot how tired I was. I just stood there completely still, smiling like an idiot at 3:30AM.

The photos aren’t perfect. The lens wasn’t right (first to pics made with my phone) But that moment. that feeling of being so small, yet so connected - that’s something a picture could never truly capture.

Two nights in my life that I’ll never forget.
And last night was pure magic💜

#northernlights #auroraborealis #aurora #nightphotography #skywatching #grateful #naturemagic #aurorastory #aurorahunting #germany #auroranight #chasinglight #onceinalifetime

Experimenting with Double Filters

Yesterday morning I woke up at 5 a.m. It was dark, cold, and quiet — the kind of silence that makes you wonder if you should just crawl back into bed. But the sky was clear with some clouds forming near the horizon, and experience told me this could become one of those fiery sunrises worth losing sleep over.

So I packed my Canon 5DsR with the Sigma Art 24–70 mm and headed to the Loonse en Drunense Duinen. Besides chasing light, I had something else in mind — a little experiment. I wanted to see what would happen if I combined a polarizing filter with a transparent plastic petri dish (from Corning).

If you’ve ever looked at a car’s rear window through polarized sunglasses and seen those oily rainbow patterns — that’s birefringence at work. When two polarizing surfaces interact with certain plastics, they reveal hidden stress patterns in vivid colors.

So I rotated both filters until the sky exploded into gradients of purple, turquoise, and gold. No Photoshop tricks here — just light, plastic, and curiosity playing together.

Sometimes, science and art meet right in front of your lens.

#ExperimentalPhotography #CreativeFilters #PolarizerEffect #OpticalPhenomena #Birefringence #PetriDishExperiment #ScienceInArt #NatureAndLight #SkyPhotography #ColorPlay #OpticsInNature #PhotographyExperiment #LandscapePhotography #AtmosphericLight #SkyMagic #MorningGlow #NaturalLight #PhotographyArt #ExploringLight #CreativeProcess #FieldExperiment #AbstractNature #PhysicsOfLight #Canon5DsR #SigmaArt2470 #DutchLandscape #LoonseEnDrunenseDuinen #NaturePhotography #VisualExploration #CuriousMind #ArtOfSeeing #PhotographyIsScience #ChasingLight #SkyWatcher #ExperimentalArt #BehindTheLens #ColorInspiration #LightAndShadow #OpticalArt #ByMaikelPhotography

Golden vibes in the studio today! Capturing elegance and confidence with every pose.

#GoldenHourVibes #NaturalLight #AuthenticBeauty #EffortlessStyle #CandidMoments #SimplyBeautiful #LifestylePhotography #EverydayElegance #ModernMuse #ChasingLight #Lanewgirl

Photography in a Nutshell

Sometimes photography is romanticized — as if every step outside delivers a masterpiece. But the truth is gentler and more humbling. Out of a hundred frames, maybe one or two feel “good.” And the truly great ones? They appear like rare gifts, one in a thousand.

You plan your walks, chase forecasts, and watch the light… only to find that nature doesn’t follow your schedule. The storm breaks too far away. The colors fade just before you arrive. But once in a while, the sky ignites — red, orange, and gold tearing through the dark clouds — and for a few seconds, you remember why you keep coming back.

Stay too long in one place, and you’ll miss a hundred unseen wonders. Chase too many horizons, and you might overlook the beauty right before your lens. Photography is that balance — between patience and pursuit, light and shadow, control and surrender.

In the end, anyone can take a picture. But those who see — who feel, wait, and listen to the world — capture something more.

(Taken with the Canon 5DsR and Sigma ART 24–70mm lens at Westkapelle.)

#PhotographyJourney #NaturePhotography #LandscapeLovers #PhotographyLife #Westkapelle #SunriseMagic #StormySky #DutchCoast #CanonPhotography #SigmaArtLens #FineArtPhotography #PhotoOfTheDay #ChasingLight #GoldenHourMagic #VisualStorytelling #NatureInspires #MoodyLandscapes #LightAndShadow #EmotivePhotography #PhotographyInANutshell #CoastalScenes #PhotographyIsLife #SeascapePhotography #NaturalDrama #CreativeMindset #BehindTheLens #RealPhotography #PhotographyReality #PhotographyTruth #DutchNature #ArtOfSeeing #MasteringLight #Canon5DsR #Sigma2470Art #WestkapelleMoments #MoodyMorning #PhotographyWisdom #PhotographyTips #ByMaikelPhotography #MaikeldeBakkerPhotography #ByMaikeldeBakker

Jennifer Smutek’s photography is stunning, but Chasing Light with Dad is more than just a Series. It’s a beautiful, heartfelt tribute to Chesapeake Bay, a lifetime of memories, and the quiet joy of chasing light with someone you love. Don't miss it.

https://gls.photo/7XsTUh

#photography #photographycommunity #glass #chasinglight #chesapeakebay

#GoldenHourPhotography, #GoldenLightMagic, #ChasingLight, #SunsetPhotographers, #BacklitBeauty, #LightAndLandscapes, #PhotographersOfInstagram, #PhotographyWorkshops, #PhotographyWorkshopLife, #LearnWildlifePhotography, #LandscapePhotographyWorkshop, #TravelPhotographyWorkshop, #MasterTheLight, #CaptureTheGlow, #PhotoWorkshopAdventure, #SeeMoreCaptureMore, #ProfessionalPhotographyTips, #LightChasers, #OutdoorPhotographyTips, #AdventureWithPurpose, #CreativeExposure, #PhotographyEducation

My goal at Robert Moses State Park was to shoot with my 35mm prime on my Sony. I’m planning to pick up a new camera and trying to decide on my first lenses. Still torn between sticking with a 35mm or a 28mm and a 50mm. I did notice I tend to prefer the 50mm focal length — which tracks, since I’ve basically been shooting with a 43mm for the past year! Feels like I’m right back where I started. Here’s batch two! #beach #lighthouse #nature #chasinglight #landscape #fireisland #coastal

Decided to give my desk a break this weekend and get some fresh air at Robert Moses State Park. The weather was absolutely beautiful—if a little warm for this time of year—and I took the opportunity to shoot some photos of the Fire Island Lighthouse. I’ve split the shots into two posts—this batch features my horizontal images. #beach #lighthouse #nature #chasinglight #landscape #fireisland #coastal #sonycamera #sonya7rⅴ #sony35mm14gm #sony100400gm