Driving around to find a good vantage point for the sunset, I spotted a group of trees arranged attractively. It was a quick photo, as we’d collectively decided to challenge the remaining minutes of sunlight by driving elsewhere for a different view.

Thinking before pressing the shutter button and visualising the final photo: the shape and position of trees for my composition – the detail in the tree trunks and branches was not important – communicating feeling through light, colour, and shadow.

I underexposed to throw the foreground of trees into strong shadow. The detail and texture of bark didn’t matter so much as the shape and silhouette of each tree.

During editing, I decreased the Shadows and Darks further, increased White Point, and increased Saturation slightly to amplify the golden glow.