OLD CORRAL AND APPROACHING STORM, ANTELOPE FLATS, GHOST RANCH, NEW MEXICO 2005
Photograph by ©Craig Varjabedian  All Rights Reserved

I drove up the road, through the dust. The clouds were moving in quickly, and I could see many possible images unfolding. Earlier I had fallen into the trap of trying to force subjects to fit within the frame of my camera. Now I felt engaged with the scene and called by it. I was driving as quickly as I could, trying to race the storm to the corral.I reached the corral and knew I needed to be up high in order to give a sense of it within the landscape. I backed the truck in, fussing with it to get the angle just right. I set the tripod up fairly high and stood on the tailgate to focus and adjust the camera to achieve the view one would get from horseback. And just then, a hole opened in the tempest of clouds and illuminated the scene. The foreground glowed. I had to readjust the lens for the extra light that had appeared. Miraculously, I was ready. I said, “Oh my God, look at this,” and made the photograph.

I drove up the road, through the dust. The clouds were moving in quickly, and I could see man possible images unfolding. Earlier I had fallen into the trap of trying to force subjects to fit within the frame of my camera. Now I felt engaged with the scene and called by it. I was driving as quickly as I could, trying to race the storm to the corral. I reached the corral and knew I needed to be up high in order to give a sense of it within the landscape. I backed the truck in, fussing with it to get the angle just right. I set the tripod up fairly high and stood on the tailgate to focus and adjust the camera to achieve the view one would get from horseback. And just then, a hole opened in the tempest of clouds and illuminated the scene. The foreground glowed. I had to readjust the lens for the extra light that had appeared. Miraculously, I was ready. I said, “Oh my God, look at this,” and made the photograph.