Spirit of the Valley, Yosemite Valley, California

This was the most dramatic sunset I have experienced in Yosemite National Park. I had anticipated spending this evening enjoying one of Yosemite's most iconic views, and hoping for a nice sunset. Well, I got more than I had even hoped for. I set up my 8x10 view camera, selected the right focal length, and waited. While it was extremely cold, as the clouds flowed into the valley, the anticipation of what might come was worth the "suffering". Hey, you have to earn it, don't you? Obviously, everything came together. As the clouds dramatically lit up, the valley below fell into shadow. I chose to use one sheet of Ektar 100 print film, which has an amazing exposure range (latitude). Honestly, I was a little surprised I was able to hold this exposure together. As is my practice, this shot was done in one exposure, and it was a good one! Shooting that big camera really puts a smile on my face.
Note: This piece of film was cropped to 5x10 inches, in order to fit the composition I had previsualized. All limited edition prints are produced in this proportion.