After coming home from a business trip last week, I was waiting for the bus at KCI (Kansas City International Airport, who is a client) and I remember turning my head- looking up- and being hit swiftly in the face with one of the most stunning skyscapes I’ve ever seen. I even uttered the words, “oh my god” when I saw this. This was taken at 9:00 PM at night (which is hard to believe right?) and the opening in the sky disappeared only 1-minute after I noticed it. I believe what happened here was a storm has just passed through Kansas City, and what I was seeing was a rare opening /break in the thunderstorm clouds, with the sunset bouncing and reflecting up and through the opening.

It’s an incredible shot, don’t you think?

I have a lot of fun with photography. Sometimes there are shots you take that are very contrived and staged. You position something, move it, adjust it, tweak it, and get it just right. And with enough practice, you can grab a good picture here and there. However, my favorite photos, are the ones you don’t setup or plan for.

Back in 2008, I got to meet one of my favorite local photographers, Mike McMullen. I have purchased a couple framed prints from him, and I’m a huge fan of his work. I had a chance to interview him in a video blog, and he said something, I’ll never forget, that I can especially relate to when describing how I came across taking this photo above. Mike shared…

“Sometimes you just happen to recognize something, and it’s very compelling, and as soon as you know it- there it is- all I can do is screw this up. It just happens to hit you over the head- and wow, I’m so lucky I’m here …all I can do is screw it up.”

I only could take 2 shots of this skyscape with my point-n-shoot Canon S90 before the bus pulled up. And I’m so lucky to have seen it myself and get to share this with you. It’s incredible don’t you think?
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Anyone who lives in the Midwest knows the weather here is completely unpredictable. Take for example the weather we had this weekend: 6 inches of snow on Saturday, 60 degrees 50 degrees and sunny on Sunday!

I took 2 photos on my street at exactly the same time, 24-hours apart, in roughly the same area, just to prove how crazy Kansas City weather is. This kind weather sure doesn’t make for a boring life here in KC — ammirite?