There are few places in Great Smoky Mountains National Park where the elements of design and the quality of the light combine to produce more amazing sunrises than at Purchase Knob. The 530+ acre gift of Voit Gilmore and Kathy McNeil to the Park Service in 2000 is a treasure of beauty and educational opportunity that has benefitted everyone, even if you’ve never been to the site. Since its inception, Purchase Knob has been the locus of the Smokies ATBI (All-Taxa Biodiversity Inventory) and the DLIA (Discover Life in America) efforts on the North Carolina side of the park.
A focal length of 147mm, short telephotoland, gave me the angle-of-view and compression/magnification that I wanted. An aperture of f/22 provided depth-of-field; and a shutter speed of 0.4 second at ISO 100 gave me an overall somewhat darker-than-medium exposure.
The gift of private land to increase the common wealth is an act of both extreme generosity and expectation. We owe to those thoughtful people the response of appreciation and stewardship. This land was their land; now it is our land.
Beautiful! Such a vision of hope.
Hi Nancy. Thank you very much for joining us for this conversation. I hope all is well with you. It is so true that images with strong light elements lend themselves so readily to metaphorical interpretation, and your suggestion of this light as hope rings very accurately for me. Thanks for offering it.
Such beautiful light!
Hi Melissa. It is often said that good light will make for a great image out of an average subject, but that even a great subject cannot be saved by so-so light. I was so awed by the light at this time on this morning, I almost forgot to do the work of creation. It was truly wonderful light. Thanks for your thoughtful comment.
Ps 121:1&2
“ I lift my eyes to the mountains. Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of Heaven and earth.”
Hello My Dear Sister. I hope you are safe and well. You may know the the title of the renowned Tsalagi drama, Unto These Hills, comes from this passage. It has long been very special to me for this reason. As I go from Cherokee up the mountain toward Newfound Gap, there is a place along the highway where I can look out across the mountains and these words always run through my mind. Thanks.
Perfect!
Aw shucks, Joani. I’ll keep trying until I get it just right, and in the meantime I’ll be grateful for your very kind comment. Hope your shoulder is continuing to heal and you and Mark are well. Walk in Beauty.
Don, I swear it’s really a painting! The brilliant light next to the moody darkness reminds me of those incredible early paintings of the American west (like Thomas Moran) that helped persuade an uninformed Congress to start paying attending to places worth protecting. I really like all the diagonals and the gift of the peak on the horizon. Thanks!
Hi Ray. It’s always good to hear from you. My Valentine’s gift for Bonnie this year was a dozen trees planted by the National Forest Foundation (and chocolate, of course). That was an excellent offering you folks came up with. To have an image compared to a Moran painting is indeed a singular honor; thank you very much. I hope my work can provide a similar motivation to a country in need of preservation encouragement. There is much work now to be done, and we all have a part in the production.
Clouds and fogs are often concealing image surprises. They make the creation of image a lot of fun. Thanks for pointing out the peak. Have an excellent week.
Don, thanks for your note and for your wonderful gift of trees. That’s very thoughtful. We got 5 million in the ground last year, and are working toward 8 million for 2021!
Ray, you are more than welcome. Thanks for the work of the foundation. I’ll try to help out whenever I can. Walk in Beauty.
So beautiful. Thanks for sharing it.
Hi Louann. Thanks for being with us and for your kind words. Having the opportunity to share what I do with all who wish be a part of my creative efforts is the epitome of being a photographer. I am blessed with Beauty everywhere I look. Stay safe and be well.
Lovely image
Hey John. It’s great to hear from you! I hope you are well and finding lots of opportunities for creativity wherever you travel. Every time we go to Purchase Knob something wonderful happens, and the light is different each and every time. I’m glad we were able to share this place with you.
Love the image. Beautiful sunrise. The diagonals along with the dark moody clouds add interest.
Hi Sandy. Thanks for joining us for this conversation. It’s always a pleasure to have you with us. It was truly a beautiful sunrise and you well-know that this place is full of beautiful sunrises. You are exactly right about the diagonal light beams and the contrast. Since the foreground ridge was inevitably going to be in shadow, it seemed only appropriate to allow the contrast to become an important element of the composition. Be safe and take good care.
I love Purchase Knob! Some of my favorite images from the Smokies were taken there. This image has drama in the sky, creating a lot of contrast in both the light’s brightness and the shape compared to the quiet ridges. It looks like a wake-up call. I know your wake-up call had to be really early for you to get there in time to capture the sunrise. Thanks for showing up, capturing, and sharing this special moment at this special place.
Hey Nancy T. I do know how much you love Purchase Knob and over the years I have really delighted in being able to share it with you. The light and the contrast are truly the stars of this image. You have remembered Purchase Knob all too well. To be there for sunrise is an exercise of love and devotion. I’m very glad to have had the opportunity over the years to visit quite a bit and I hope there will be opportunities ahead. Take good care, Dear One and stay safe.
So beautiful, and so calming, Don: thanks for sharing it.
Hey Lynne. One of these days I’m going share this place with you and John. It is very special. I really appreciate your thoughtful comment and kind words. I have been calmed of many occasions simply by being at Purchase Knob and amid the awesome Beauty that surrounds it. Looking forward to Sunday. Stay safe.
This is a wow.
Hey Linda; this is a very big Thank you! for those kind words and for being with us. I hope you have been safe and well in Ashfield. Your thoughtful comment is a “Wow” to me.
Wow—–inspired the minute I saw it.
Hi Robin. Thanks for being with us and for such a delightful response. In scenes from Nature such as this, inspiration is easy to come by. Mother Nature gets all the credit and all I have to do is “show up.” It’s a pretty lopsided deal, but I don’t mind at all. Hope you and the Boss are safe and well.
Having recently sung Felix Mendelssohn’s powerful oratorio, “Elijah,” my cross-wired brain linked seeing your majestic, evocative image with singing one of his texts, from the Book of Isaiah, “But the Lord, from the north hath raised one who from the rising of the sun shall call upon his name and come on princes.” Your image would make a perfect visual backdrop for that movement.
Hey Donald. It’s great to hear from you! I hope you are safe and well wherever you are, and it sounds like it may be the Windy City. I would love to see the combination you suggest. Sounds like a very interesting visual and auditory experience. I applaud your “cross-wired brain.” It’s one of the things I truly appreciate about you, my Friend, that you know that sound and sight are merely continuations along the same spectrum.
OMG, a capture of mother nature lite by the hand of God.
Howdy Michael. It’s always a pleasure to hear from you. I hope all is well in the Ocean State. I am humbled by your kind words. Take good care, my Friend and enjoy the Beauty of the winter that surrounds you.
Don, So beautiful.
Hi Michelle. It is wonderful to hear from you and to have your very kind words. I hope you are doing very well and staying safe. This place is so special that grace just spills out from it. I am always awed by being there. Take good care and walk in Beauty.
Thank you, Everyone, for being with me for this discussion and for sharing all of your kind words and thoughtful comments. It is so interesting to me that nearly all of your thoughts were expressed with such succinctness and yet they carry such power. I am very much in awe of your responses. Purchase Knob seems to bring forth this sort of outpouring. Have an excellent week and all be well and safe.
This is stunning!
I came across the photos from my JCC Folk School photograpy adventure just this weekend. I have tried to diligently and creatively apply what I learned to the pictures I have taken since. That was such a positive experience on all levels! Thank you.
Hi Sheri Lyn. Thank you very much for joining us. Wow! those images have been in hiding for a while. My last class at JCCFS was in 2015. Those were, indeed, some wonderful adventures. I really appreciate your thoughtful comments and hope your creative journey in photography has been a fulfilling one; and if some thoughts I shared with you have been positive aspects of your journey, then I am honored to have been along for a small part of it. Take good care and be well. Please feel free to share your thoughts and observations at any time.