I took this during one of the most insane sunsets I have ever witnessed. I was shooting with Roman Racela, Steve Phang, Chris H. Nguyen and John Paul DeRousseau and we almost didn't stay for the show. The clouds came in rather heavy and thick and it looked like we were gonna get skunked. We had actually started to leave and stopped at the overlook point toward the top of the White Mountains.From there we could see down into the Owens valley and noticed a break in the dense cloud cover. We predicted it would work out perfectly for sunset and quickly hauled ass back up the hill. We jumped out of the car and hiked up the steep part of the mountain, foregoing the much easier trail from the parking lot for the sake of a more expedient route. While waiting for what we hoped would be an epic sunset, we sat through a few bouts of rain and wind. Suddenly the rain stopped and the sky opened up and we had our amazing sunset. Now I know the location is overshot. I never fail to get at least one comment about this on 500px. But I don't care. It is an amazing spot and an awesome old Bristlecone. It is overshot for a good reason. The first shot I edited and already posted can be seen here: https://500px.com/photo/111517321/wood-flame-by-michael-bandy?ctx_page=1&from=user&user_id=80203 This shot I am posting here today was taken toward the end of the sunset. Roman shouted out that there were Mammatus clouds forming above us and to the North. I ran over and shot this comp handheld at around ISO 800 or so. The clouds were crazy and the likelihood of ever getting to see Mammatus clouds in California is pretty small. I was stunned and excited at the same time. A great evening spent with good friends doing what I love to do while nature puts on an amazing show. Sounds like a hell of a good day. And it was!
Gnarly Mammatus Madness
