Among LDS Temples the Salt Lake Temple is an icon. It seems to be the most familiar Temple to people outside the Church and the favorite of many within. I always wanted to photograph the Salt Lake Temple but went years without ever getting around to it.
     Nowadays, I'll travel specifically to photograph Temples. When I made this image I was with my family and in-laws on a mini-vacation. It's always tough to plan photographs in those situations, and most of the time I just take whatever I can get. We were staying close to Temple Square so I ran over with my gear just after sunset. Normally I like to take time to scout around to be ready when the light is right. This time I just set up on the lawn to the east and waited for the light level in the sky to balance with the artificial lights on the Temple. The lights projecting onto the Temple have a greenish cast to them, but I didn't correct that so I could preserve the color of the sky. That correction can be done pretty easily in Photoshop, but I wanted to show the natural color that existed when I made the image.

    
    
     Setting up large format gear entails taking the camera out of the photo backpack, assembling it and placing it on the tripod, mounting a lens, leveling the camera back, focusing, inserting a film holder, closing and setting the lens, and starting to take light meter readings. It's not a quick process, but can be done in just a few minutes with a little practice.
     No sooner had I gotten set up than the sprinklers came on immediately to the west. You can see them at the bottom of the image. Having thousands of dollars of gear out made me worry a little, but the light changed in time for me to make several exposures and move before my section of lawn got wet. The exposure times were close to 20 seconds and you can see some blurring in the clouds as they moved across the sky.
     On the way back to the room I scouted out a great location for the following day when I knew I'd have a little more time. I showed up early in the late afternoon and got set up on top of a large planter. My tripod legs extend to nearly 10 feet, so I can shoot in places where many others can't. Everything looked to be about perfect; clouds in the background, no clouds near the sun, little wind, etc. Just before the light got great a small cloud to the southwest grew to a black, ominous beast. It unleashed a flurry of lighting and rain that sent me packing and running. I was completely soaked before I got halfway back to the motel. Only the inside of my camera pack didn't get wet. Almost five years passed before I got back to recreate the composition.