For those who have never heard the term 'sundog', it is a small rainbow on one side of the sun or another, sometimes both, usually seen on a fairly clear day, and created by sunlight shining through ice crystals in the atmosphere. The scientific name is parhelion.
I have a thing about sundogs. I always get excited when I spot them, and I have seen them at all times of the year, not just during the colder months. Sometimes they are brighter than others. Sometimes there is an accompanying ring around the sun, with a sun dog at equal distances to the left and right of the sun.
Always, I never have a camera with me, usually because most of the time I have seen them, I have been driving.
Actually, this time I was driving too. But I was driving the tractor (loader bucket full of chicken litter and headed for the compost pile near the garden), and I was able to park it and run to the house for the camera.
Finally armed with a camera, I proceeded to attempt to get a picture of the phenomena. No matter which setting I tried, the camera was not able to get the colors of the sundogs as sharply as my eyes did (and even more sharply when I wore sunglasses, perhaps I should have tried putting them over the camera lens, LOL). But I did get a couple of pictures where they at least show up, even if the colors are washed out.
This picture is the best one, you can clearly see both sundogs, and part of the ring around the sun.
Have I said yet, on this blog, how much I love working outside and observing nature?
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