Copyright Kristine Paulsen 2007This photo was taken on Flathead Lake this summer for my internship at the Daily Inter Lake in Kalispell, Mont. I was super psyched to get this assignment: go and hang out with sailboat racers on Flathead Lake in the evening. I mean, come on. That's a pretty sweet setup for an intern. I was even happier to think about how great the light was going to be and it was amazing just as I thought. The reporter and I hung out with the two manning the boat for a couple hours, just waiting for the cool air to drop down and start filling the sails. And then it all began happening.
The sun slowly started to sink behind the mountains. The light skipped across the surface of the water turning its texture to shining jewels. The sun got caught in the billowing sails, causing them to glow softly, sort of like large softboxes all over the lake. People began to move around their boats, readying themselves for the beginning of the race. The tinny sounding horn blared a tiny blare, and race we did, oftentimes barely missing other boats. I could have jumped across to them if I had wanted to, which I didn't. I was sure to anchor myself firmly to the mast with one arm, shooting with the other and hoping I was steady enough for a sharp shot. (That's another story in itself...it's pretty darn difficult to shoot on a rocking sailboat. And I sure as heck wasn't going to be “that intern who fell into the lake.”) So, we raced. And raced and raced. And, what do you know, we won! The couple who actually did all the work was ecstatic because they'd never won before. They, very nicely, told the reporter and I that we were their good luck charms. We headed the boat back into the slips, sipping beers as we lazily maneuvered in the general direction. It was right before we docked that I took this photo. I was so happy to have experienced such a wonderful evening with so many photo opportunities and so much laughter – and then I saw this shot with Brian and the masts silhouetted in the waning light, oh, and that light on the water resulting in such beautifully rippled reflections. It was delicious. I took the shot, drove back to Kalispell and put together a nice package for the Sunday paper. Voila. I love being a photographer.
– Kristine Paulsen
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