Just a few feet higher on the wall I photographed in the previous image, the splashes of graffiti produce an effect resembling Asian characters. The patches of light, color, and shadow that play upon the wall at this moment seem to energize these characters – they appear to dance before our eyes. The effect lasted only a few minutes. As we left the ruins of the Pondosa ghost town, the light on the wall had faded into a bland shadow, erasing the magic of the moment. This example offers a lingering lesson for photographers – early (or late) light is transient. We have only a few minutes to reap its benefits.