The Story Behind the Image

"Windy Sunset"
and the WOW! factor

I drove to Missoula, Montana in the summer of 2006 for the sole purpose of attending the Summer Intensive program at Rocky Mountain School of Photography, hoping to improve my photographic skills. Montana is where the story behind this image began.

Orientation Day at RMSP commenced with copious handouts and the usual introduction of staff and instructors. Among the sheets of printed information was a list of places in Western Montana to use as a guide when scheduling our personal shoots. One of them was Ninepipe National Wildlife Refuge in the heart of Mission Valley

I arrived at Ninepipe NWR, outside of Charlo, Montana, in late afternoon under an overcast sky to learn that the nearby Indian tribe charged visitors a hefty fee to use the area. I refused to pay the outlandish fee, so I chose, instead, to tour the Mission Valley on county roads, making stops when, and where, I felt the conditions were advantageous to making a good photograph.

The point at which I snapped “Windy Sunset,” the sun had just peeked through a window in the clouds, and produced what photographers call squall lighting. I parked along the side of the road, positioned my tripod in a stiff wind, and managed to capture the mood of the moment before the sun slipped, once again, behind the clouds.

I chose this image to submit in fulfillment of an assignment, and when the image was projected for the rest of the class to view, the instructor’s first reaction was, “WOW!” That is, until he discovered it was my image, then changed his tune to, “oh . . . but it’s blurry.”

“Of course it’s blurry.” I wanted to scream, but I merely stated, “It was windy.” I waited intently for a critique, and suggestions on how to control the combination of low light and wind. But instead, he quickly changed the slide and proceeded to the next student.

I found this behavior a bit disturbing, especially since he was also the owner of the school. I expected to learn the tricks of the trade from professional photographers, but in this case, I didn’t. Hence, to compensate for the blurriness of the image, I titled it, “Windy Sunset,” and, to this day, I’m still experimenting with techniques to conquer the blur created by low light and wind!