Yanai Interchange

One winter day, shortly before Sunset, I was making my way home from the north. The skies caught my attention – they were full of hues not seen every day: a clear blue of clean skies, the black of heavy, rain-bearing clouds, the intense red of a Sunset, and the delicate white of clouds floating high above. Something about this image made me stop spontaneously – I got onto a nearby interchange to photograph this amazing sight.

As I ascended and stood there, it became clear to me that the view was even more impressive than I had thought. The sun was on its way down, painting the skies in a rare mix of colors. I took out my camera and began to photograph enthusiastically, picture after picture. As I stood there focusing on the wonderful sights, the streetlights along the road came on, and suddenly their light added another layer of beauty to the picture. I couldn’t resist – I started shooting again, to capture this new sight as well.

Then it started to rain, precisely from the direction of the heavy clouds, those clouds that appear on the left side of the panorama. They slowly covered the magnificent skies after the Sunset, and I knew it was my sign to finish. I ran back to the car to avoid getting completely soaked, and drove home, filled with a sense of satisfaction.

In total, I was there for only 11 minutes, but in that time I managed to take 107 pictures. As soon as I got home, I developed them immediately, but they lay in a drawer for nearly two years. The time and courage to process the images and connect them to a panorama only came after a long period. Out of the 107 photos I took, I finally chose only 24* – the other 83 photos remained outside the panorama. Nevertheless, I do not regret any picture I took that day. Each one was part of that special moment.

* For the website, I recreated the digital handmade panorama, added some pictures and removed some pictures so now it’s 30. Good thing I don’t delete pictures, not even the rejects!

** The panorama, approximately 2.5 meters wide, is proudly displayed at my bookbinder’s – Oded Shadman, David Center, Degania 47 Kiryat HaSharon, Netanya.