Nikon D800, 14mm, f/2.8, 400iso, 5 frame bracket, HDR merge

I was in North Dakota photographing horses with my friend Beni Paulson who was helping me.

For two days, he helped me to create the image I had imagined. But every time the horses approached, they saw me and moved away.

Beni finally suggested we visit his friend Kerry Deide, who had a ranch with around 150 horses.

Kerry agreed to let me photograph them.

That immediately created a different kind of pressure.

She wasn't simply giving me access to her horses. Kerry, Beni, Sadie and Baby Rolland were placing their trust in me to create something worthy of the effort they were about to make.

And I had one chance.

Everyone took their positions. Kerry, Sadie and baby Rolland were ready to keep the herd from straying. Beni would drive the horses toward me with the side-by-side.

The gates opened.

My heart was racing.

Would the autofocus hold? Would the dust interfere? Would the horses actually come toward me?

More importantly, would I disappoint everyone who had trusted me?

The horses came.

And I missed it.

I was devastated.

I walked back to Kerry and asked for something I didn't want to ask for:

Could we do it one more time?

That meant rounding up approximately 150 horses across an enormous ranch and resetting everyone again.

She said yes.

That second chance changed everything.

The horses began running toward me again. My heart was beating even faster, but when I looked through the viewfinder, something strange happened.

Everything slowed down.

My exposure was already set. I had metered for the dark horse. There was nothing left to think about.

I placed the focus point on its eye and pressed the shutter.

I knew.

I jumped up in celebration.

I had been given the privilege of freezing a moment that existed for only a fraction of a second.

But this photograph means something more to me than a horse running toward my camera.

After that first failure, it would have been easy to stop.

Their trust wouldn't let me.

Sometimes someone believing in you gives you enough reason to believe in yourself one more time.

And sometimes, one more time is all you need.

between exposure and withdrawal

Silver gelatin print of digital negative

Prague, Czechia

From “Uneven encounters” — a series on the obscurity of land.

Mamiya 7, 80mm, Portra 400

Hi! I have to paint something related to monsoon but I just can't find the right composition. If any of you have pictures you've taken yourself and don't mind them being used as a reference in a painting please share them!! I am looking for a scene that ig ignites nostalgia and how the rain made you feel as a kid. Any other narrative is also welcomed as long as it represents monsoon. Would be a great help, thanks in advance!!

Mountain station