LITTLE BUTTERNUT KEY 1 © 1997

Florida Bay

If you want to grasp the power of nature, watch the energy of a cloud as it builds into a thunderstorm on a Florida summer afternoon. I spent a week photographing the upper Florida Bay, near Key Largo, capturing the most southern portion of the Everglades. This photo was taken as a storm approached. The sandbar made the perfect foreground for the dynamic scene as the storm clouds formed over Florida Bay. The Chamber of Commerce for the Florida Keys fell in love with this image and chose to use it for advertising the Keys. I donated the image, the Chamber of Commerce created a poster using my image, and together, we donated all the funds from the sale of the posters to the Artists Environmental Foundation of the Florida Keys. Everglades Estuary: Where the River Meets the Sea Bounded by Everglades National Park to the north and the Florida Keys to the southeast, Florida Bay is considered the endpoint of the Everglades ecosystem. Here, life abounds. Fresh rainwater meets the salty waters of the Gulf, after flowing hundreds of miles across prairies and swamps, creating some of the most productive estuaries in the world. Within these brackish habitats, the shelter and food offered by mangroves, seagrass meadows, and saltwater marshes make this final stage of the Everglades a prime fish nursery. The bay fuels both the commercial and recreational fishing industry and also sustains diverse sea life, attracting tourists who enjoy boating, snorkeling, and scuba diving. Little Butternut Key 1 was taken with a Deardorff 8×10 camera on T-Max 100 film. This photograph is hand-printed in Clyde’s darkroom on fiber-based paper, selenium toned, then mounted and matted to current archival standards. The photograph is a limited edition and signed by Clyde. Camera settings: f/45 | 120mm Nikkor SW lens | orange filter | 1 second Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click here.