My guess it’s a combine, but it might as well be a white whale. This piece of equipment sits just east of north 26th Street at the intersection where the road transitions from pavement to gravel. It’s on private property that’s posted, so any photography has to be done from the fence line. To complicate matters, it sits at such an angle that its side is obscured by its shadow for most of the year.

That’s where the calendar comes into play. In mid-June when the days are longest, the sun sets farther north than during most of the year. At that point it’s just far enough to illuminate part of this machine, as you can see here. It still has a shadow cast along part of the side, but at least the main workings are seeing direct light.

One of the things that has intrigued me the most about photography, at least the type of photography which I pursue, is that timing is everything. I’ve taken photos of this machine during the summer, winter, and all points in between. It wasn’t until I made a point of remembering to visit in late June that I was finally able to get a shot like this one. Maybe next June I’ll try it at sunrise!