An Emerald Eruption

An Emerald Eruption

Photograph by Alexandra Boulat
The rising sun strikes 5,500-foot (1,676-meter) Keli Mutu on the island of Flores. Intensely colored lakes—this one embellished with a yellow swirl of sulfurous foam—fill each of the flat-topped peak’s three volcanic craters. Their hues vary as the mineral content of the water changes.

Photo Fast Facts

Camera: Canon EOS-1N Film

Type: Unrecorded

Lens: Canon 14mm f/2.8 Speed and F-Stop: 1/60 @ f/4.0

Weather Conditions: Clear

Time of Day: Sunrise, 6:00 a.m.

Lighting Techniques: Natural + 81 A filter

Special Equipment or Comments: I had to go to Flores twice to shoot Keli Mutu because of the weather. Most of the year the remote island of Flores is under heavy tropical showers, and clouds cover Keli Mutu. It is one of the most fascinating sites in Indonesia. Every time I went to the top, I saw a totally different scene. The color of its three crater lakes were always changing. The turquoise one turned dark red. The red one became white as milk.