Atmospheric distortion

One of the perils of shooting distant scenes is atmospheric distortion (as if atmospheric haze wasn’t enough of a challenge). While in Death Valley, I met an astronomer who explained that the twinkling of stars was a serious problem in some locations; it is caused by the movement of layers of air. It’s not just stars though—in examining images shot in San Francisco recently, I noted clear detail over the city, but a strange waviness near the bridge. Presumably there is a lot of air movement over the water, after all the fog and wind in San Francisco are no accident.

Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III + EF 300/2.8L + 1.4X teleconverter (crop)

Atmospheric distortion