A hot, sunny day in downtown today, had my K-7 and one lens, the DA 100mm f/3.5 macro. Standing in the shade, people-watching, when the sky darkened and KA-BOOM! Thunder, lightning and a hard downpour that lasted about an hour.
So, what to do but take photos of people scrambling to stay dry? Some were prepared, others weren't. A few waited under the overhang with me, then dashed to the shuttle bus. Others stood bravely at the stop. Moms with kids, business people, teens and adults, all coping with the weather in their own way. I ended up with 139 frames, some burst shooting but mostly singles. Lots of fun or interesting ones, picking 5 was the hard part. Oh, and I stayed dry the whole time, had a plastic bag in my back pocket for the camera when I finally left.
All photos with the 100mm@ f/4.0. shutter speeds between 1/125s-1/400s, ISO 400 up to 800 an the sky darkened.
Hope you enjoy these!
Ron

[Jean Poitiers]

A very nice series, Ron ... TFS, J

[rbefly]

Thank you, John. I had fun watching the scene unfold, but would have been less happy if I was caught out in the downpour. The camera is WR, but that lens isn't.
Ron

[daacon]

Nice series that would be fun to watch and record for sure.

[RoxnDox]

Nice captures, like you say everyone dealing with it in different ways... I was actually there watching those clouds and hoping it would delay long enough to get me and my luggage on the bus to DIA... Had one of those 'turn and burn' trips to a meeting out at the Federal Center, had to use RTD to get over to the airport so I was standing around Union Station keeping a VERY close eye on the approaching rainclouds... Fortunately the bus got there first so I'm not in one of your shots!

Jim

[rbefly]

Hi Dave,
It was interesting, for sure. Some of the folks crowded around me (I was under a building overhang close to the bus stop) watched me shooting and peeked over my shoulder as I chimped the photos. The last photo posted drew the most comments, some sympathetic, others humorous, but they all knew they were next!
Hello Jim,
Wish I knew you were a few blocks away! We could have swapped Pentax stories. The new construction at Union Station has helped merge the shuttles with the trains and express busses, but I do wish they'ed finish the restoration on the old building, it's a classic. Did you see the new Saint Anthonys hospital on the West side of the Federal Center? Guess they're leasing some of the land from the government, it's a nice medical facility now.
If you get back to Denver with some time to spare, shoot me a PM and maybe we can meet up?
Ron

[RoxnDox]

Hi Ron. Getting together would be fun (managed to get with Marc Sabatella a few years back and do some shooting up in the foothills), but it's unlikely I'll be back for a while. Those (*ahem*) "people" in DC have slashed our travel budgets to the bone, and it's a VERY rare occasion they allow us to have face-to-face meetings now.

The new hospital does look nice, I tried to talk my spousal unit into applying there when they were just starting to move clinics over...

Jim

[Bob Harris]

Guess if it rains it pours in Denver, we have been getting some rainstorms down south also, it is really greening the area up and we can even BBQ at the campground now due to fire dangers being lifted. That last photo cracked me up, if it is free I'm going to wait for it no matter what the weather is. Nice shots Ron, TFS.

[Sailor]

A great group of street shots, Ron. I admire the brave soul in the last one.

Jer

[MSL]

Ron,
Nice set, as others have noted. I find the tree a major distraction in the 1st and 4th photos. Might have better to use a more open aperture to have it blur out a bit, if possible. The other three are better story telling shots, especially the last one.

[rbefly]

Hi Bob, Yes, I saw your fog shots earler, figured you must be having some moisture South of here!
That lady is looking at her friends, all squeezed under one umbrella nearby. How she got nominated to be the bus-watcher, I'll never know. They were yelling to her, joking, stuff like "Is it coming?" "I think it's letting up!" and my favorite "Nice and dry here!". If I'd have taken another (wider) lens it would have shown them, could have been even funnier. It was a 'one lens' day.
Hey, Jer, good to hear from you! Yes, she was brave, but soaked. Luckily I couldn't hear what she said to her friends after the bus finally came, but I'm sure it was pretty descriptive, regarding just how wet is REALLY was!
Hi MSL, It wasn't possible to open up much, that FA 100mm macro is f/3.5 and I stayed at f/4.0 for the whole set, just changed (raised) the ISO as it got darker. There was only a small gap between the tree and other obstructions (to the right) to catch people across the street. Sometimes zooming with your feet or changing angles just isn't in the cards, and I certainly wasn't going anywhere until it let up. Merely tried to deal with what I had, limitations and all.
Thanks for your feedback, I'm sure it was given with the best of intentions, as it so often is.
Ron

[Kerrowdown]

This is great stuff, street photography in the wet, hats off to you.

[rbefly]

That means a lot, coming from the master of street photography. I've admired your street candids many times.
Thanks, Kerrowdown!
Ron

[charliezap]

A very nice series Ron.People watching can be rewarding as your pictures show.--charliezap

[rbefly]

I appreciate your kind words, Charlie. People-watching and photography are truly hand-in-hand, especially when there's lots of candid reactions to record.
I just tried to capture the event as it unfolded, luckily the timing and gear were good for the job!
I've attached 5 more from the files.
Ron