Mt Hood Skinnydippers

As I unloaded equipment from my car, a fully occupied, muffler-deficient vehicle drove into the dead-end road and parked next to me. Its boisterous occupants piled out and gradually noticed me as they tried to organize themselves for the next phase of their outing. Their effervescence subsided momentarily as they tried to figure out why a lone man with a red flashlight would be at the end of this road at midnight. One of two women in the group, after confirming my non-relationship with law enforcement explained, "We're going skinnydipping, so what're you doing? Wanna join us?"

I politely declined.

As I set up my tripod and framed the picture I sought, the party continued at the shore, their jokes and laughter flowing out over the lake surface, but otherwise not affecting the composition in my viewfinder. I opened the shutter, hoping to get an hour's worth of startrail arc. Maybe the group would forget about swimming, now that they were actually at water's edge. It's one thing for someone to make the suggestion, quite another to carry it out.

A sudden splash followed by an excruciating scream interrupted my vicarious participation in the party. Another splash, another scream, then more with associated hollering.

I had learned better than to close my shutter and pack up. With nighttime pictures one is never certain of the results, and even though it was certain that my intended shot had vanished, there is always the possibility that some other, unexpected effect might be captured instead.

And this is an example of such unexpected imagery. The activities of the skinnydippers, though invisible to me, were exposed by the patterns of light recorded over the hour that the shutter was open. An interesting combination resulted, the prelude of calm allowed the reflection of the mountain to make an impression on the film, and then, when the rough surface finish dissolved its image, the reflection of the lights from the mountain's ski area distorted into flares of color. The film adds all the light together to make the picture.

One final detail was captured. Though I could not see the partiers as they splashed around, evidently there were favorite resting places in the water. A close look at the lake surface reveals their shadows as they paused to enjoy the sensory experience of swimming under the stars at midnight.