Under the Surface: Montana Mountain Stream, Big Creek

May 13, 2026

Under the Surface: Montana Mountain Stream, Big Creek

There is a world of color hidden just beneath the surface of Montana’s glacial waters. This piece, "Montana Mountain Stream, Big Creek," is an immersion into that world—quite literally.

A low-angle, wide-path view of a clear Montana mountain stream (Big Creek). In the foreground, vibrant red, purple, and gold stones are visible beneath the crystal-clear water. To the right, the water flows with a soft, silky motion blur. The stream is flanked by lush green evergreen trees under a bright blue sky with a few soft white clouds.

Getting the Shot: Camera on the Water

To capture this perspective, I didn't just stand in the creek; I became a part of it. I removed the center post from my tripod and inverted it, lowering my camera until it was literally on top of the water. With the current rushing across the top of my camera and barely brushing the body, I used a phone app to remotely trigger the 16mm wide-angle lens. It was a risky setup, but it was the only way to get this low, immersive view of the riverbed.

The Science of the "Pop"

People often ask how the colors look so vivid. I used a combination of a polarizer to cut through the surface glare and a three-stop ND filter. This allowed for a half-second exposure, which created that beautiful, silky motion in the water on the right side while keeping the vibrant red and purple stones—iconic to the Glacier and Flathead regions—sharp and saturated.

From the Mountains to the Gallery

I am incredibly honored to share that this piece was selected for the Arts Alive Gallery Exhibition at the Kennedy-Douglass Center for the Arts in Florence, AL.

Living here in the South, we are surrounded by beautiful limestone and sandstone landscapes, but we don't often get to see this specific explosion of color in our waterways. This piece has always been a conversation starter at festivals, and I think it’s that "unique-to-the-region" factor that makes it resonate so well with a gallery audience.

Visit the Exhibition: You can see "Montana Mountain Stream, Big Creek" in person at the Kennedy-Douglass Center for the Arts starting this Saturday, May 16th. The show runs through June 26th, and the piece will be available for purchase unless sold during the exhibition. 

If you can't make it to the Gallery you can always find it and the other prints from my Montana trip in my Glacier National Park Collection