Foto Friday: Standing in the Rain at Chimney Rock

Chimney Rock, near Ridgway, Colorado. Passing of the Rainstorm. Copyright 2021 Eric D. Brown.

In February 2021, my buddy Jeff and I were on our way to Moab, Utah, for some Milky Way photography and stopped near Ridgway, Colorado, for the day. Our plan was to get out for sunset out on Owl Pass without any real ‘subject’ in mind. We finally landed at Chimney Rock as a storm started rolling in.

It didn’t look like it was going to be a bad storm, so we decided to stick it out and head out to the middle of a big open field to find a good spot to set up for sunset.

On our way out, we had to jump across a little creek, maybe three feet wide and full of water, both of us carrying backpacks and tripods. It could have ended badly, but we both landed on the other side without issue and walked out into the middle of a field, and just stood there. Getting wet, waiting, and hoping.

We were out there for probably 35 or 40 minutes. The rain came and went and the light was flat. Part of me was thinking we should just pack it up and go find something for dinner and settle in for the night.

Then right at sunset, the storm started breaking apart. For maybe two or three minutes, this golden light punched through the clouds and lit up the face of Chimney Rock. Dramatic and subtle at the same time: warm, golden, and brief. Just enough time to get a couple frames off.

Then it was gone.

I think about shots like this a lot. You can’t plan that light. You can only put yourself in a position to catch it when it shows up. Sometimes that means standing in a field getting rained on for 40 minutes, wondering if you’re wasting your time.

Sometimes you’ve got to get wet to find the good stuff.

More of my photography at imagesbyericbrown.com or on Instagram .