The Story Behind Iconic Photo ‘Shiprock Storm’
A 4am wake-up call, a 50 mile drive, ankle deep mud and the mid-winter desert chill
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One of my favorites is the image “Shiprock Storm,” It was shot in the Navajo Nation near Farmington, New Mexico. I just remember planning the trip for a few months and eventually taking my family to Farmington, New Mexico, for 10 days. After being out there for eight days, getting a lot of good images but not what I wanted or envisioned I woke up at four in the morning on the ninth day. It was freezing, as it was the end of December.
I got in my truck and started driving out to the location which was about 50 miles away. I was in the rain, and snow, and sleet, and in the dark, and I was like, “You’re an idiot. What are you doing?” I had to drive 50 miles and it was like, “You’re not gonna get anything. You could be sleeping in a warm bed and relaxing. What are you even doing?”
But when I finally got out to the location, there it was…. a lowering cloud was covering the entire structure of Shiprock. I was like, “This is it.” I just stood out there in ankle-deep mud and snow for like, four hours. And as the cloud lifted the light was perfect. It was the image I had envisioned in my mind months earlier when I started to plan the trip.
That shoot showed me that if you’re dedicated and are tenacious enough to move through your low points and dismiss all the things that you think are somewhat negative about your abilities — you can accomplish things. And that feeling of wow, I really accomplished this…nobody knows what it took. For me, that’s what my art is about; it’s kind of what I live for.
Mitch Dobrowner is an award-winning fine-art photographer based in Los Angeles, CA. View his portfolio and follow him on Twitter.
