After a year and a half of including a ‘pic of the week’ at the end of my weekly training summary, I’ve decided to let it stand as a post of its own.  I’m also implementing a rule that the Friday Foto needs to have been taken sometime in the last week.  No recycling.  I am doing this to keep me engaged in building my photography skills, and to make me work harder to get fresh shots.  Click hereto see my previous Friday Foto posts.

This is a shot of some crepuscular rays created by a departing storm last Friday afternoon high above Leadville, CO. While the rays are real, the angle of their appearance is an illusion created by linear perspective. The rays are actually parallel. They appear to converge at a point in the clouds just like railroad tracks come together when you look along their length.

The rays go by many names. One that I found interesting was the Ropes of Maui, from the Maori legend that describes Maui Potiki restraining the sun to make the days longer because they were too short for everyone to get their work done.

There is also speculation that the appearance of rays like these may have influenced the ancient Egyptians to build the pyramids. Looking at this picture, you can certainly see the possible connection. It looks a lot like the Eye of Providence (or all-seeing eye) on the back of a dollar bill. Either that, or a giant bar-code scanner.

Catching Some Rays
1/60, f/13 – 10mm @ ISO 100