Forest Moonlight Running

Late one evening, in the forest of the Crocker Range, I was wandering the forest footpath back to the village after a community gathering. This was a forest island of fruit trees mixed with community lands, large trees and the surrounding park. Moonlight filtered down through the forest and clouds rolled up. Muffled laughter filtered down the hill from the church, through the forest, through the mist. Just years ago, a decade or two, men and women carried salt from the coastal areas to this community. Now, it’s flown in by helicopter when the bridges that span the rivers need to be repaired. To arrive under the moon, via logging road and the path that links the sea to the forest is to experience what this might be like -- years ago. Crossing a bridge under the moonlight with a loaded pack and a roaring river below is like reenacting the migration. In this forest, though, I heard bare feet pounding the forest path. The large canopy parts and moonlight and clouds pool. I set my camera back in the forest, well off the footpath and made a single exposure to illuminate the night forest and moonlight. In this same exposure, I managed to catch the the gang of kids, running home, with just one flash exposure using two remote flashes near the forest trail, firing at 1/20,000 of a second.* The night was cold, fog passing through the forest created some condensation on my camera lens adding to the mystical effect and warmth of this image. Later that night, I fell asleep to the voices of river murmur and moonlight and things that blew down the forest path, past my sleeping hut and deeper in. * Pocket wizards were used to fire my remote flashes (and both illuminate and stop the motion of the children) while my camera shutter remained open for approximately 10 seconds.