The Peg Sagen People’s Choice Award for the Dahl Mountain Photo Exhibit & Competition went to Rapid City photographer Erica Harvey for “The Fiery Heavens Above” (Jenny Lake, Grand Teton National Park, WY).
“This image was taken back in October 2014 while my mom and I were exploring Grand Teton National Park. We had been gone for almost two weeks and if you can believe it I had only seen the sun for a few days that whole time.
It was my last night in the park and I still had not been able to capture a sunset and unfortunately the weather did not look like it was going to cooperate, but sometimes you just have to take a gamble and run with it.
In all my other visits to the park I had never had the opportunity to photograph Jenny Lake so it was easy to decide on my sunset location. As I pulled into the parking lot I soon discovered I was the only person there.
I had been surrounded by hundreds of photographers since arriving in the Tetons, so the solitude I just encountered was a welcome treat. I quickly headed to the shoreline to set up my shot and right as I was dialing in my composure, the sun began to peak through the heavy cloud cover.
I could tell I was in for something special; I just didn’t know what. The sun started out very warm and gold, even a few sunrays peaked through. It appeared as though a doorway into heaven had opened up in the clouds with the way shafts of light pierced the sky above the rugged Teton peaks.
As more time passed the sky then began to “light on fire” with shades of red and pink. It was at this point I decided to use a longer shutter speed, 30 seconds, to soften the water and add movement to the clouds. I felt so privileged to witness to this event…” Erica Harvey.
The People’s Choice award was created in honor of former Rapid City Journal editor Peg Sagen who was instrumental in launching the annual Dahl Mountain Photo Competition and Exhibit. The award allows the public to voice their opinion for their favorite photo each year.
