LITTLE BUTTERNUT KEY 2 © 1997

Florida Bay

I spent a week photographing the upper Florida Bay, off Key Largo Island, to capture the final ecosystem of the Everglades. As a storm was in the midst of being created, we came to this sandbar. It made the perfect foreground for the dynamic scene forming in the sky over Florida Bay. 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 2 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.