PUBLICATION:  Our State Magazine
ARTICLE:  Queen of the Mountain
PHOTO USE:  Two-page spread, pages #100-101

I was honored to place a photograph within the May 2020 issue of Our State Magazine, the Hiking Issue.  The article, Queen of the Mountain, begins on page #86 and is a celebration of the Rhododendron that bloom within the state of North Carolina.  Anyone who has spent time hiking the mountains of Western North Carolina is familar with the unmistakable magenta blooms of Catawba Rhododendron.  From the Great Craggy Mountains, through the Black Mountains, and into the Roan Highlands, Catawba Rhododendron are the great spring finale in the high mountains:  the signal that summer has arrived and that  summer wildflowers are just around the corner.

This photograph was taken on Grassy Ridge Bald, part of the Roan Highlands proper.  On this particular morning, thick fog broke free and an inverted cloud began to sweep across the mountains from west to east.  The whole thing happend pretty quickly; I was lucky to be in place and ready to shoot.  The early morning light can be seen filtering in over my right shoulder and hitting the mass of blooming Catawba Rhododendron.  It’s no secret that I’ve always been a bit unsettled with this particular image.  The scene was spectacular; however, I as a photographer was less so.  It was 2012 and I was just beginning my journey behind the lens.  I didn’t have great gear to work with yet and I made a number of small mistakes in executing the shot that I wish I could redo.  Suffice it to say, the conditions were so spectacular that none of it really mattered.  The moment has carried this one far and wide and continues to open up opportunities for me.

A huge thank you to the folks over at Our State Magazine for the opportunity, and specifically this year (2020).  We’ve all been knocked off our plans in response to the novel cororna virus and opportunities are much harder to come by.  I appreciate this one.  Thank you.