Solar Bisection, photo by Harold Davis. View this image larger.

One of my favorite spots for observing sunset over Mount Tamalpais and the Golden Gate is a vacant lot on upper Euclid Avenue in the Berkeley Hills. I don’t know the real estate history of this lot, but it seems at this point like a small city park with a fence protecting people from the drop that overlooks the view.

I’ve tried the solar bisection of the tree trunk idea at this spot before. The trick, of course, is a matter of timing: there’s only a split second in any given sunset in which the sun will be in the right position.

[Nikon D300, 18-200mm VR zoom lens at 42mm (63mm in 35mm terms) with image stabilization engaged, 1/640 of a second at f/13 and ISO 200, hand held.]