Divine Providence
I could not believe my eyes as I saw this rainbow start to form *right over* Mont Saint Michel, one of the most famous and spectacular religious sites in the western world. It was one of those moments that could challenge ones beliefs and at the very least leave one in absolute awe of the beauty of nature's finest and man's finest coming together in such an astounding way.
I scrambled frantically to wipe the rain from my lens as the light from the rising sun over my right shoulder peeked over the extensive clouds for just a brief moment and created this beautiful display of the visible light spectrum, and it struck me then that I might stand in this spot every day for a year (probably longer) and never again see this confluence of elements. The OED definition of providence is "the protective care of God or of nature as a spiritual power". It did seem some spiritual power intervened on my behalf on this day but of course that would be incredible self-centered of me and it doesn't jive with my world view, but being lucky is perhaps just as good in the end as being under the protection of a higher power, and embrace and be happy with the occasional lucky bounce.
For a little backstory: I have been caught up in a grueling few months of work with little room for picture taking. I had two weeks of business activity in Europe and it didn't make much sense to try to fly home in between so after some indecision on how to spend the weekend, I settled on a stopover in Paris and a drive out to the Normandy region, backpack full of photo gear in tow. I've always loved the images of Mont Saint-Michel in all its grandeur rising up above the green pastures and tidal grasslands surrounding it, and rather than trying for a quantity of different photo locations, I decided I'd settle in and thoroughly scout this one location. The weather unfortunately turned to typical North Atlantic spring weather, cold, rainy and dreary, the moment I showed up. Nonetheless I hiked all around, probably at least 12KM in all in 5 or 6 different locations around the bay trying to find just the right foreground and viewpoint. I finally found my ideal spot on Saturday afternoon, shot some photos in dreary and high wind (50+ KPH!) conditions and then retired for the evening back to town to sample some of the local Abbey ciders (quite nice!). I consulted the weather apps and concluded that I was not going to be blessed with the hoped for sunrise light. I set an alarm and decided to wake up in time to double-check anyway but I perhaps secretly longed for a sleep-in.
I woke up, cursed my 5:00am alarm, consulted the weather apps again, and nearly went back to the warm bed when something made me decide "screw it, I'm here, I came to take pictures, and you never know, sometimes the best light comes when you're sure it looks hopeless". So I gathered my raingear and hiked out across the dikes to my reconoittred spot, and as I walked I could see a hole in the clouds forming to the east and some hints of light emerging! I picked up the pace and arrived literally moments before the sun broke through and cast its beam through the front line of this incoming rainstorm, fracturing in to its component color bands. I was momentarily stunned and I scrambled to get the camera on the tripod and in place to grab a couple of wide angle shots. Then the rain and wind started driving in on me, so I swapped the wide angle for a zoom lens and just started shooting handheld. I may post one of the telephoto shots in future.
An amazing experience and perhaps a small personal reward for the many, many times I've gone out in the soaking wet and/or bone-chilling wind only to come away with nothing. And a strong reminder that one never knows when nature will put on its show or what form that will take, so get out there and persevere and if it doesn't appear today, keep faith that the rainbow will come out tomorrow!
Also, Mont Saint-Michel is incredible. The island is a classic medieval fortified town design, with the abbey's gorgeous cathedral at the pinnacle of the mountain. A UNESCO world heritage site, it is in beautiful condition (it's defenses were never breached in spite of several attempts). If you ever get the chance, I highly recommend a visit.
Divine Providence
I could not believe my eyes as I saw this rainbow start to form *right over* Mont Saint Michel, one of the most famous and spectacular religious sites in the western world. It was one of those moments that could challenge ones beliefs and at the very least leave one in absolute awe of the beauty of nature's finest and man's finest coming together in such an astounding way.
I scrambled frantically to wipe the rain from my lens as the light from the rising sun over my right shoulder peeked over the extensive clouds for just a brief moment and created this beautiful display of the visible light spectrum, and it struck me then that I might stand in this spot every day for a year (probably longer) and never again see this confluence of elements. The OED definition of providence is "the protective care of God or of nature as a spiritual power". It did seem some spiritual power intervened on my behalf on this day but of course that would be incredible self-centered of me and it doesn't jive with my world view, but being lucky is perhaps just as good in the end as being under the protection of a higher power, and embrace and be happy with the occasional lucky bounce.
For a little backstory: I have been caught up in a grueling few months of work with little room for picture taking. I had two weeks of business activity in Europe and it didn't make much sense to try to fly home in between so after some indecision on how to spend the weekend, I settled on a stopover in Paris and a drive out to the Normandy region, backpack full of photo gear in tow. I've always loved the images of Mont Saint-Michel in all its grandeur rising up above the green pastures and tidal grasslands surrounding it, and rather than trying for a quantity of different photo locations, I decided I'd settle in and thoroughly scout this one location. The weather unfortunately turned to typical North Atlantic spring weather, cold, rainy and dreary, the moment I showed up. Nonetheless I hiked all around, probably at least 12KM in all in 5 or 6 different locations around the bay trying to find just the right foreground and viewpoint. I finally found my ideal spot on Saturday afternoon, shot some photos in dreary and high wind (50+ KPH!) conditions and then retired for the evening back to town to sample some of the local Abbey ciders (quite nice!). I consulted the weather apps and concluded that I was not going to be blessed with the hoped for sunrise light. I set an alarm and decided to wake up in time to double-check anyway but I perhaps secretly longed for a sleep-in.
I woke up, cursed my 5:00am alarm, consulted the weather apps again, and nearly went back to the warm bed when something made me decide "screw it, I'm here, I came to take pictures, and you never know, sometimes the best light comes when you're sure it looks hopeless". So I gathered my raingear and hiked out across the dikes to my reconoittred spot, and as I walked I could see a hole in the clouds forming to the east and some hints of light emerging! I picked up the pace and arrived literally moments before the sun broke through and cast its beam through the front line of this incoming rainstorm, fracturing in to its component color bands. I was momentarily stunned and I scrambled to get the camera on the tripod and in place to grab a couple of wide angle shots. Then the rain and wind started driving in on me, so I swapped the wide angle for a zoom lens and just started shooting handheld. I may post one of the telephoto shots in future.
An amazing experience and perhaps a small personal reward for the many, many times I've gone out in the soaking wet and/or bone-chilling wind only to come away with nothing. And a strong reminder that one never knows when nature will put on its show or what form that will take, so get out there and persevere and if it doesn't appear today, keep faith that the rainbow will come out tomorrow!
Also, Mont Saint-Michel is incredible. The island is a classic medieval fortified town design, with the abbey's gorgeous cathedral at the pinnacle of the mountain. A UNESCO world heritage site, it is in beautiful condition (it's defenses were never breached in spite of several attempts). If you ever get the chance, I highly recommend a visit.