How Blue Is The Sky?

The Sky Turns Every Shade of Blue

Dying Cottonwood Tree at Larry Moore Park, © B. Radisavljevic

City Daily Photo Bloggers are answering the challenge this month to show what the color blue represents to them. The first thing that comes to mind for me is the sky. It's always above me, I see it every day, and it's been every shade of blue I can imagine. For any regular reader of this blog, it's no secret I'm a sky watcher. The sky is what I photograph most often.

In the photo above we see a light blue transitioning into a darker blue. It provides a contrasting background to show off the dying cottonwood tree at Larry Moore Park in Paso Robles.

A Deeper Blue

Blue Sky Over My Rose Garden, © B. Radisavljevic

I often photograph the sky in from my own yard -- especially as sundown approaches. I took this shot from the rose garden in my backyard. I'm guessing I took it in late afternoon. I liked the way the clouds were making a horseshoe around that patch of sky.

The photo below was taken before a rainstorm. I also took this one in my backyard. It was taken after our late afternoon meal on a November day. The blues are lighter with tinges of gray in places. I consider clouds part of the sky.

Sky Just Before a Rainstorm, © B. Radisavljevic

I took this next shot while walking the Charolais Corridor Trail at Dusk. Together the clouds and sky provide many shades of blue.

Charolais Corridor Trail at Dusk in May, © B. Radisavljevic

Blue Sky in My Zazzle Wall Art

 Morro Rock, Fishing Boats and the Embarcadero Canvas Print Poster: Tree against cloudy blue sky. Poster

Birds Love the Sky

I find it hard to catch birds in flight. They are usually too quick for me. Here's one I did catch in a very blue sky.

Bird in Sky Over Paso Robles Wine Country, © B. Radisavljevic

Here's a crow I caught in flight.

See the full story behind this photo. © B. Radisavljevic

Usually I can catch birds high in a tree or on a wire. The shade of blue is a bit lighter in this photo of the bird at the top of this oak tree.

Bird at Top of Oak Tree, © B. Radisavljevic

This one is on a high wire.

Bird on High Wire, © B. Radisavljevic

Kites Also Belong in the Sky

The sky was very blue when we found this family flying a stunt kite at Moonstone Beach. I'd never seen a dual-string kite before and loved watching this.





I hope you've enjoyed our sky trek. There are more views of the blue sky in these related posts. Enjoy!

See how other City Daily Photo bloggers posted to this theme. 


Related Posts

Sky Journal with Day of Sporadic Showers: This past post shows everything from deep blues to grayish blues in the sky.

Down by the Station and Welcome Sunshine: This shows how the sky changed from late morning until sundown in several spaced shots on the day after a rainstorm. Lots of deep blue in these shots.

Old Wives' Tale Disproved: Have you bought into this folklore?

Old Wives Tale Disproved this Afternoon

This Old Wives Tale Isn't True

When I was young Mom had a wringer washing machine and dryers hadn't been invented yet. Everyone hung their clothes on a line to dry, and that line was normally inside. When it was overcast and the sky was full of clouds, it might mean rain was coming, but maybe not. I grew up, after all, in Los Angeles County in "sunny California."

So when the clothes were ready to hang, Mom would look up at the cloudy sky, as her mother had before her. Then she would say, "I can hang out the clothes. There's enough blue in the sky to make a Dutchman a pair of pants."  Today I scientifically proved that's not true. The photo above shows how the sky looked when I left to walk to my mailbox today. I didn't have any clothes to hang out, nor any line to hang them on. 

About halfway down the block, I stopped to take this photo. I'm sure glad I'd brought my camera bag. I'd brought it along to put my camera in when I had to use the key to open my mailbox. As it turned out, my camera might have been damaged without it. I took a few photos of the sky in different directions.

About then I noticed that raindrops were falling on my head and all around me. It wasn't heavy rain, but I would not have wanted my clothes on the line. Now, an hour later, the sky is as blue as when I started my short walk.The blue had never left the sky at all. There is a slight breeze. There are still many clouds, but they are moving toward the northwest. The sun comes and goes. It will be down in three hours. 

If I had hung the laundry on the line, would it have dried today? I doubt it. But the sidewalk is dry again, at least for now. There's still a 5% chance of rain for the rest of the afternoon. The temperature has reached its high of 49 degrees. 

Blue Sky with White Clouds, © B. Radisavljevic 

So, do you think if I'd had clothes to hang out when I left on my walk, they would have dried before dark?

Related articles

• A Lone Pine in the Clouds and Some Sky Posters
• A Glorious Sky with Promise
• In photos: Blue and cloudy skies
• What a Glorious Gift is the Sky