Lesson Learned

tripod, Fujifilm XT-20, Fujinon 18-135mm lens at 29mm, f/20, 0.8sec @ ISO 200

If out with my camera in the evenings, and the light seems to be gone, and therefore my shooting done, I head back to the Camry.
If I'm in a public place, I mostly stop at a convenient park bench and go ahead and turn everything off and put everything away in my camera bag. I completely fold up the tripod for the night.
When I get to the car, I can place packed bag and folded tripod in the back seat and head home.
When I get home, hey!, the camera's ready to grab and take inside. Simple.
Problem is, I often see "One More Shot" on the way to the car that I would take if I still had my camera out. Or as I pull away in the car I see another photo screaming to be made.
I have often ignored that urge for one more shot because I simply don't feel like unpacking my camera and unfolding my tripod, setting it all up again for three or four last shots.
Pure laziness. Inertia.
Saturday night in Port Canaveral, Florida, I had been taking some sunset photos that featured the nifty-looking Exploration Tower.
As explained above, I passed a seating area after the sky's color was deadened, and put all of my equipment away.
I got in the car, backed out, drove to the first good place for me to turn around and turned and headed toward home.
Well, as I looked at the tower to my left, I saw a lovely photo with the tower, whose lights were now coming on, against the very last, pale sunset colors.
Without trying, I envisioned the photo you see above, and knew that this time I could not just ignore the impulse for one more shot. In my mind I had already jazzed up the colors and contrast to something gorgeous.
I pulled into a parking spot again, and it turned out to be the exact parking spot I had just left.
I quickly jumped out (if you can in any way consider my slow-motion to be "quick" or "jump" in any way) and unpacked the camera and tripod.
I simply took about three paces in front of the parked car and set up the camera/tripod and framed and shot about five images.
Then I had to pack it all up again and head home. For real this time.
When I got my photos on the computer, this one caught my eye as having the most potential.
I jiggled it in Lightroom and resized it in Photoshop and ended up with my favorite image of the whole day's shooting.
From now on, I will not fully put my camera away, and fully fold up my tripod until I get home.
Lesson learned.