Planetary Conjunction

Three bright planets were in conjunction tonight - clustered within an arc of three degrees. Over the past few days I had been watching them move closer together. The last few nights the planets played hide and seek with the clouds. Tonight, the night of the tightest cluster, the clouds behaved, and we were treated to this sight that only happens every couple of years.

On the top is Mercury, to the left is Jupiter, and on the bottom is Venus.

More information can be found at NASA.

Using a Gradient Tool to Improve Pictures Taken on a Hazy Day

I really like the Gimp for photo post production. Here's a technique that takes me back to my film and darkroom days of "dodging" and "burning". Dodging is the technique of giving less light to underexposed areas of a negative. Burning adds light to overexposed areas.

This photo was taken on a somewhat hazy day. As you move towards the top of the photo, the scenery fades further in to the hazy distance, giving it a lighter appearance.

To darken hills in the distance so that they match the foreground, I used a gradient burn. First, use the toolbox to set the foreground color to a medium gray and then select the gradient tool.

Now set the gradient tool to burn.

Click and drag the cursor from top to bottom.

When you release the cursor, you should see an improved image.

I think this makes a good substitute for when you don't have a polarizing filter. Also, unlike the polarizer, it works well whatever your orientation to the sun.