In late October, 2011, I took a drive at dusk along Dry Creek Road, heading east through the vineyards. I was on the lookout for a scene which would capture the blazing autumn color of the vines. There are very few places on this drive where it is safe to pull out. It is tricky to drive, keep your eye on the road, look for light and composition, and then to find a place to park to capture it all in your camera. When I rounded the bend to the scene in this photo I was stunned. The setting sun to the west had set the vineyards and the trees in the foreground on fire. I knew that I had only moments with my camera to capture this magic. Luckily, I found a quick pull out. Grabbing my tripod and camera, I had to hack my way through a jumble of blackberry vines to get into position for this composition. Not a moment too soon, I found the frame I liked and made the shots, using my hand as a sun shield to keep the sun in the background from causing lens flare on the image. It is tricky to shoot directly into the sun, but backlighting like this is, to me, simply magic .