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Transportation in the State of Montana

Several years ago, while living in Kalispell, Montana, I received a phone call from the Montana Department of Transportation wondering if I might be able to do some photography for them in my local area. They had a fairly long list of photos they needed all within about twenty-five miles of my home. I told them I would be happy accept the assignment and asked what the time frame was for the job — “would tomorrow be possible?”, I was asked. I was out the door in less than ten minutes having never even discussed the price!

MDT-12-1-08-2262

Click to enlarge…

Fortunately it was a gorgeous afternoon with dark black clouds to the east and spectacular “artist’s light” streaming across the Flathead Valley from the west. Before the sun finally set had had taken every photo on their rather extensive list.

Since that day, I have been the unofficial official photographer for the Montana Department of Transportation. The Department has sent me on several assignments, all over the state, and usually with a little more warning than I received the first time. I have photographed everything from coal mines to coal trains, asphalt laying operations to bridge construction and “everything transportation” in between.

You might think that photographing transportation projects would be boring and difficult from an artistic point of view. If so, you most likely have never visited, or better yet lived in the state of Montana. As these two photos, taken during MDT photo assignments, will show — they don’t call it Big Sky Country for nothing!

Click on each photo to view at full size.

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