Evening Music
Low Key and Restful
Evening music embraces all the deep moods of the night, from deepest night to its edges. Here you will find low-key images of quiet places and moments; the night sky, moonlit landscapes, and sunrises and sunsets.
Super Moon Rising over Seattle and Puget Sound, 2020
By Michael Piraino
This moon over Seattle was called pink because of the time of year, not its color. But as the moon rose higher, this beautiful pink glow emerged. As I processed this this morning, I had to listen to the most appropriate song for the scene: Dvořák’s Song to the Moon:
“Moon, high and deep in the sky
Your light sees far,
You travel around the wide world,
and see into people’s homes.
Moon, stand still a while
and tell me where is my dear.
Tell him, silvery moon,
that I am embracing him.
For at least momentarily
let him recall of dreaming of me.
Illuminate him far away,
and tell him, tell him who is waiting for him!
If his human soul is, in fact, dreaming of me,
may the memory awaken him!
Moonlight, don’t disappear, disappear!”
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Half Dome and Full Moon, Yosemite Valley, 2020
by Michael Piraino
Half Dome resting in a bed of fog under the full moon. A black and white infrared shot. This scene brought one phrase to mind. I don’t known why it’s the French (though I often think in either French or Italian). It just seemed to fit: “la montagne va se coucher.”
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Midnight, Merced Wild and Scenic River, 2020
By Michael Piraino
The moon and the river; a few days after its much-hyped super blood wolf version, the moon had waned to this lesser size but I thought it the more evocative form. I had calculated the time when the moon would hang above this bend in the Merced River, and found myself there waiting in the freezing cold until 3:00am. The clouds added their charm to the scene while the river just kept its song going and going. A silver singing scene.
Mary Black “The Moon and St. Christopher”
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Moonlight over Merced River Canyon by Michael Piraino
By Michael Piraino
The moon and the river; a few days after its much-hyped super blood wolf version, the moon had waned to this lesser size but I thought it more evocative form. I had calculated the time when the moon would hang above this bend in the Merced River, and found myself there waiting in the freezing cold at 3:00am. The clouds added their charm to the scene while the river just kept its song going and going.
Mary Black “The Moon and St. Christopher”
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Milky Way and Monolith, Capitol Reef National Park, 2021
By Michael Piraino
After the buttes in shadowy blue light and the cottonwoods in brilliant sunshiny yellow, the stars of the Milky Way were a spectacular climax of the day in this peaceful and remote high elevation valley.
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Needles District, Canyonlands National Park, Utah, 2018
By Michael Piraino
Traveling through a landscape of deep canyons, ancient rock paintings, and natural arches, I came upon this glorious predawn scene in the Needles section of Canyonlands National Park. This location near the confluence of the Green and Colorado rivers is a less-visited section of the park with spectacular wide open vistas.
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Eroding Headlands, Rocky Cape National Park (pinmatik), Tasmania, 2017
By Michael Piraino
I spent two quietly wonderful predawns at this shoreline in Rocky Cape National Park in Tasmania. The rocks seemed to be reaching up to touch the amazing sky. With no one else around it was sublimely peaceful. The way the world should be. I light-painted the rocky shore, while the long exposure picked up the astonishing Milky Way. Worth getting up at 2:30am for this show on our last night in Tassy.
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Moonlight on Glacial Lagoon, Iceland, 2019
By Michael Piraino
The icebergs here come in two colors; white and blue, depending on how much air is in the ice. They make a musical tinkling sound as they crunch together, shift, and sometimes turn over. It’s magical at night, though more colorful during the daylight hours. A few seals were swimming quietly during this visit.
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Moonrise with Icebergs, Iceland, 2019
By Michael Piraino
A half-moon rising over a black sand beach littered with brilliant glacier ice. A trio of larger, beautifully blue icebergs sit in the surf. We had the whole beach to ourselves.
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Peeking Moon with Little Tahoma Peak, Mount Rainier, 2017
By Michael Piraino
Beginnings and Endings. I planned this shot carefully. My goal was to catch the moon as if it were shyly peeking out from behind the summit of Little Tahoma. On the first night, the moon was too far to the left. A couple of nights later, it worked.
“And the sun and the moon sometimes argue over who will tuck me in at night. If you think I am having more fund than anyone on this planet, you are absolutely correct.”
–Hafez, 14th century Sufi poet and outspoken critic of hypocrisy
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Puget Sound Moonrise from Bainbridge Island, 2021
By Michael Piraino
99% full moon. Carin, Tenaya and I enjoyed watching it rise into the clouds above Seattle, while talking with two interesting folks who were also appreciating the show.
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Moonlight on the Bay, Canada, 1973
By Michael Piraino
Moon, mountains, mist. Photographed in 1973 on 220 black and white film and forgotten until I recently ran across the negative. I scanned it and reprocessed the digital image, recreating the scene close to the way I remember it.
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Milky Way and Mountains, Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, 2018
By Michael Piraino
I wasn’t looking for a Milky Way shot. I was out for the sunrise. As I headed up into the rimrock, a meteor caught my eye, then a fireball, then this. I do wish I’d caught that fireball though. It was so bright and relatively slow. A slight glow from distant Page, Arizona, allowed me to keep the rock formation in the image, with the center of the galaxy in the upper right.
Music: “Bright Morning Stars”, The Wailin’ Jennys
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Milky Way and Mount Baker, Washington, 2016
By Michael Piraino
The Mountain, the Stars, and the City. The mountain is Mount Baker seen from the Kulshan Ridge. What looks like the remains of the day isn’t. It’s the glow of Seattle lights 84 miles to the south. Mount Baker is one of the snowiest places on earth; even in late July you have to cross a deep snowfield to get this view.
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Sunrise over Entrenched Colorado River Canyon, Utah, 2018
By Michael Piraino
Dawn Land. The Colorado River has carved itself into deeply entrenched meanders below Dead Horse Point near the Island in the Sky section of Canyonlands National Park.
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Sunset, Freycinet Peninsula and the Hazards (mayaluwarana), Tasmania, 2007
By Michael Piraino
The Last Hours of Day. We love this spot on the Freycinet Peninsula on the east coast of Tasmania, and have had two opportunities to visit it. This national park is fully of variety; red rocky shores, aboriginal sites such as shell middens, and secluded coves. On my second visit here, we watched this sunset which lasted a long, long time here in the far southern latitudes. And just as we thought the sunset was over, the full moon arose over to the left (not visible in this panorama). Coles Bay is in the middle ground with the granite peaks of the Hazards in the background. The Hazards were named for an African-American whaling ship captain, Albert “Black” Hazard.
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Sunrise, Broken Group Islands, Pacific Rim National Park, Vancouver Island, Canada, 2022
By Michael Piraino
Some things are worth getting up early for. Golden sun, islands in the sound, drifting veils of fog, and the symphony of waves, fog horns and buoy bells; an extravaganza. Hiking to this spot through the deep predawn darkness, I spotted animal eyes shining in the dark at me. Had a conversation with that animal, more likely coyote than bear, asking permission to trespass. I was grateful for the privilege granted.
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Barkley Sound Sunrise, Vancouver Island, Canada, 2022
By Michael Piraino
I had calculated the exact date and time to catch the sun rising between these small islands. The fog and mist were an added bonus.
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Autumn in the Enchantments, Alpine Lakes Wilderness, Washington, 2015
By Michael Piraino
Triumph Of Peace And Harmony. Prusik Peak, one of the Enchantment Peaks in the Stuart Range of the Cascade Mountains, from Gnome Tarn. On a very cold October morning, the early sun lights up the larch trees that make such a beautiful foreground for 8,040 foot Prusik Peak. The peak was named in 1948 for the Austrian inventor of the knot used by climbers. Gnome Tarn is one of the Enchantment Lakes in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. I feel very fortunate to have gotten this photo. We had to win the lottery to get a permit, then climb over 7,740 feet to get up there. And on the last morning, the wind died down and the clouds formed just as the light reached perfection.
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Sunset Over the Southern Ocean, Tarkine Coast, Tasmania, 2017
By Michael Piraino
Amidst gale force winds, the sun sets in brilliance on the Tarkine Coast of Tasmania. This spectacular area is thankfully remote, so not overrun with visitors. It’s a place of peace and power.
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