Eclipse Outlaw Chase

(wind howling) (dramatic music) - [Noah] You might only get one chance to view a total solar eclipse in your lifetime.

For a year leading up to the total solar eclipse, I'd been brainstorming what to shoot.

The project began in January, 2024 when the final concept came to mind on a sleepless night.

I envisioned a surreal western chase scene.

- [Lance] There you go.

- [Noah] An ode to a bygone era filled with outlaws, cowboys and the settling of the west.

It's almost coming out of totality.

The goal was to create the most powerful photograph captured in the world, but a dream was quickly turning into a nightmare I couldn't solve.

Searching for horseback riders throughout the west, and a precise location in the path of totality.

I'm tired.

Both excited and scared.

This project would take everything I had in me.

- [Speaker 1] Kind of suddenly getting darker and darker.

- [Noah] Nothing was guaranteed.

- Whoah.

- [Dane] Goosebumps.

- Look at it!

- But with each passing day, there was still hope.

On July 29th, 1878, nightfall struck Texas during the middle of the day.

This came during a period when the west was alive.

Filled with dreams and despair, this particular total solar eclipse struck a portion of the west that was previously impenetrable, a kingdom ruled by the Comanche.

Further south, in the heart of Comancheria, endless rolling hills are graced with limestone bluffs, cactus, wild flowers, and live oak.

This is Hill Country, Texas, a place where brutal battles were fought between the Comanche, Apache, Spanish, European, and American settlers.

These hills were also replete with outlaws, such as Bonnie and Clyde.

146 years later, on April 8th, 2024, darkness would pass over Texas once again.

The different photos from totality earlier today and basically looking at the ISO setting.

After the previous total solar eclipse in America, I was motivated to pursue a powerful and surreal image in 2024.

(audience cheer and applaud) (bright mellow music) April 8th would be my last opportunity in America until 2044.

(dramatic music) With the concept in mind, I immediately began searching for leads.

I would have to drop everything and the clock was ticking.

- [Speaker 2] The King Ranch is one of the biggest ranches.

- [Speaker 3] In Oklahoma.

- [Speaker 2] Large animal.

- [Noah] That have ranches in Oklahoma or?

(people chatting) - [Noah] That sounds like a resource.

Educate myself on that area.

- [Speaker 4] It's called (indistinct).

- [Noah] No, don't.

(people chatting) - [Noah] Influx of information.

The guys are actually in town.

Yeah, that's amazing.

Yeah, just really good contacts to pick your brain.

(people chatting) - I'll tell you what, I don't have any doubts that you could pull this off.

- [Noah] I mean, they were like, "Oh no, you need to talk to Lance Morris, and he's part of this, you know, cowboy club and they go ride."

It's not that far away, and I need to get moving on this.

- My name is Lance Morris.

So our first connection to Noah was a phone call.

We live in Austin, Texas and we have a cattle operation, horse operation in Llano, Texas.

- [Noah] Okay.

- Yeah, I'm just saying we have a place for you to stay.

We've got Polaris's to traverse the property.

to could kinda look at different areas.

If we need to kind of do a runway for the horses to run, we can plow an area to make it easy for them to run where it looks good.

But I think we've got you covered in anything you're looking for.

You know, they had published the path of the eclipse, Llano County, and specifically our ranch was right in the middle of totality for the solar eclipse.

You know, my initial thoughts were after seeing some of Noah's previous work, especially those pertaining to the eclipse and one specifically with a mountain biker, I was pretty sure that between my wife and my two kids, we could pull this off for him.

- One of the most exciting aspects about the initial planning stages was talking to Lance and Stephanie Morris during that first phone call.

- [Lance] I've got two 17-year-old daughters.

They compete, and I compete, my wife can ride.

We have the riders, fully tacked up horses.

that live on this ranch, and... - [Noah] I love it.

- [Lance] So that is the interest of us in having this is that we are the riders.

- [Noah] Yes, you actually wanna be in the photo.

- [Lance] Yes.

- [Noah] I mean, for good reason.

It was during that first phone call with Lance and Stephanie that I thought to myself, "I actually might have a chance at this."

Draw a little diagram and then any sort of photos that you have would help.

- [Stephanie] Okay, so you're thinking like across versus coming at you?

- [Noah] Exactly, yep.

- [Stephanie] Like following behind each other, like in a line.

- [Noah] Exactly.

- Noah was really good about his communication with us.

My husband and I, Lance went and we looked at different places on our property.

Without a doubt, there was one six acre clearing that we had done previously that was a good area for us to do this.

- Once I saw those images, I was completely taken back because it was straight outta my imagination.

Having a couple riders with long hair, cowboy hats, and the hair flowing and back lit.

- [Lance] I've pretty much lost all my hair, but my daughters have great hair.

(Noah laughs) - So in March, I had a small window of time open and I decided, "You know what, I can actually confirm their commitment to this project if I book a ticket and fly down there."

- [Lance] All right amigo, well, this has been good.

It's gonna be a fun, fun adventure and project.

- It begins, 3:45 AM heading to DIA.

Next thing I know, I'm flying down to Texas.

Here, I'll be meeting with two separate ranch owners, two groups of horseback riders I somehow found that are committed to my idea.

Just landed in Texas, hitting the ground running and running on fumes.

Should be just a couple hours up to Llano, Texas, and then back down to Austin tonight.

It's all coming together, pretty stoked.

Kinda funny when you're in the early stages of planning this and it seems impossible.

Pretty, there's wildflowers on the ground.

Every once in a while, I'll get these rushes of nervousness.

Just knowing how much I'm demanding from the group of riders and how committed they have to be to my idea.

Hopefully, everything looks kinda like it did to justify all this work.

I have a feeling these people are gonna be really cool.

- So we wanted to meet Noah first and we wanted him to visit the ranch.

We needed full buy-in from the entire family because it was gonna be a massive effort.

- [Stephanie] Our first meeting in person was great.

- I'm Lance Morris.

- Lance, pleasure to meet you.

- My pleasure.

- [Stephanie] Noah met us out at our ranch.

Noah was so enthusiastic and had so much energy for the project.

- We can have this manicured if you want.

We can just have it all mowed if that helps.

- We took him out to the site that we were considering.

He was- - [Noah] At the location.

- [Stephanie] Immediately in love with it.

- You can see how high the sun is in the sky.

I think I solved the problem.

I've been out here for about two hours now.

I know exactly how many flashes I need.

Kind of riding on this line.

Essentially the ballpark power that is going to be required.

And at full speed.

Also probably gonna need a 10 millimeter wide angle.

Coming in pretty hot right here.

That sun is gonna be pretty high and I don't wanna position the sun right on the top of the frame.

This tree right here to balance out the right third.

So essentially, you have right third, left third.

That's about the edge there 'cause I don't wanna include the barn.

With the eclipse and then the riders between that.

- About two hours later, we were wondering where Noah was, but he had spent all that time looking around.

I see you have a friend.

- We liked him right off the bat.

His enthusiasm for the project was contagious.

A once in a lifetime chance to do something like this.

So after he left, we had a vote of the family and it was unanimous.

We all committed to do this.

- [Noah] Ooh, that couldn't have gone any better.

- [Navigator] Turn left onto state highway 71.

- Basically, all eggs are in this basket, so still scout the secondary property just in case.

I'm tired.

16 hour day, started at 3:30 in Denver, ending in Austin at 8:30 PM.

(gentle music) (door slams) It'll all be over soon.

I just gotta remind myself my crazy idea.

Will all be over soon.

Well, this blows, I'm losing minutes by the minute.

Time to rip.

(mellow music) Gotta make up some time.

15 minutes away from linking up with Marie Powell, going to be scouting her property this morning as a secondary location.

Yeah, basically just going through the motions to check all the boxes if in case something stands out better.

I'm absolutely exhausted.

Two hours to get back to the airport.

And here we go.

- Oh boy.

- [Noah] You got your own little golf cart.

- [Marie] Yeah, that's fine.

Yeah, that's great.

Now, think of what it's seen, you know?

How old have they estimated it to be?

- Between 500-600 years old - [Marie] Oh my God.

- Oh my God.

That's insane.

Headed back to Austin now, gonna hop on a plane.

26 hours in Texas, scouting trip accomplished.

Well, that's the flight I'm supposed to be on.

I'll be all right.

Faster returns like maybe returning to the same rental car in three hours that you just returned.

This crowd's getting a little intimidating around here.

Out here in the park, testing flashes.

Flashes are kind of acting up and not firing sometimes.

And it's really frustrating and scary.

That night, I was able to pinpoint an issue and then troubleshoot with the best gear experts in the world.

- [Technician] I hope I imagine this correctly.

We have the camera behind the hill with the wireless remote.

We have a receiver connected at a higher position, right?

- [Noah] The cord going from the flash that's hidden to the receiver that's in line of sight.

- [Technician] Yeah, yeah, yeah, I think that could work out.

- It was coming down to the wire.

After 30 hours of testing and ordering gear, I was finally on the road to Llano.

Perfect timing, rush hour, wonderful.

Let's make the first hour of a 24 hour drive the slowest.

Lock the door to keep the heebie-jeebies away.

550 miles in, made a huge push.

(vehicles whooshing) Good way to start the day.

Now, let's fricking get to Austin.

We got another 14 hours of driving.

(gentle music) This is worse than driving to Wisconsin.

Feeling the pressure.

26 hours later, 22 hours of driving, almost 1300 miles, we're back.

I am worked, my back hurts as well.

(uplifting music) It's only fitting.

Game time, heading to the ranch for the first night of testing.

Won't be any horses tonight, but it's a really important night to test the gear and see if everything is syncing properly and I can light it up how I want.

I never would've thought I'd be in this position.

I thought it was a far cry to even start this project based on how many variables needed to line up and... (uplifting music continues) We've arrived, the moment is here.

I get it.

Kind of racing time here, first night.

I have the flashes set up where they think they need to be.

That's the new transmitter, right?

ABCDE, A, B, C, D, E. And then there's gonna be another flash over here.

The first test shot in this location, I'm stoked, I'm nervous, but there's a lot more work to be done, so I gotta get going.

About 20 minutes after sunset, flashes are working, they're a little bit too close and I can see where the light's coming from, so I'm gonna bump them back a little bit, see if the flashes still communicate and hopefully you still have enough time to kind of test out a few exposures.

Feel the dreams out here.

It's coming together.

Utilizing wireless flashes to backlight the scene would allow me to mimic light from the eclipse and create a vivid mood within the image.

Nearing 11: 00 PM, oh, this is the last attempt and then I'm just gonna sleep on whatever I've shot.

I've readjusted these flashes so many times.

It's been harder to disguise where the light's coming from.

Tomorrow, there's gonna be a very short window.

Oh, both excited and scared.

I need to eat.

(coyotes howling) Coyotes out on the night.

Dude, they're coming close.

Well, I think there's only one thing to do, and that's to go see how close I can get (chuckles).

I ain't no scared of coyotes.

I'll be all right.

(tractor engine roars) I'm possessed, I have demons I have to deal with.

(gentle music) Oh, here comes Lance, and Noah's got another request.

(tractor engine roars) Maybe like one more on this side.

Pick up some rocks and stuff to make sure the footing is clean.

The first night of test shooting with the horses was meant to acclimate them to darkness, the six powerful wireless flashes, but also it was an attempt at a consolation image if in case it was cloudy on April 8th.

Okay, I came up with a concept that might help save or rectify the shoot and that's by shooting a double exposure of the moon, a full moon to make sure that essentially the scene is back lit and we can still get something incredible.

- These are all show horses, cutting horses, so they've been dragged all over, listened to bells and whistles, and cheers and lights.

They're well behaved.

I say that and you'll probably have a problem with them.

- Stressed.

45 minutes until I wanna be kind of out there setting up flashes.

But going through previous photos that I've taken of the waning crescent and the full moon, and compiling a list.

So these will be the first frames of the in-camera double exposure.

It's getting light down here that won't necessarily transfer as well.

So I'm selecting the best image based on their ISO setting and then writing down the different ISO settings on this sheet of paper with the corresponding file name.

I will then take these files, transfer them to a card so that I can then select these files based on the changing light as the first image of the in camera double exposure.

I think these are going to be my selects.

- Oh, sorry Dane.

- [Dane] Oh, you're fine.

Gotta do what- - The man of the hour.

- [Dane] Yeah, Lance, you're good.

- All I need y'all to do is help me have my girls do exactly what I tell them to do, nothing different.

Do not need any discussion.

- (laughing) Perfect.

(horse neighs) Horses are getting excited.

I can hear 'em out there.

All right, back to focusing.

Let's not get distracted.

- I've only been in one film outside Austin called "The Stars Fell on Henrietta".

Yeah, yeah.

Eastwood was the producer, and his wife at the time was in it and Robert Duvall.

Oil doom time.

- It's time to rally, gotta get all this gear loaded up and then troubleshoot some flash stuff, sync issues, so.

- [Lance] It was a bar scene where Duvall was coming in to meet with someone about an oil deal, and there was a big boxing match going on.

All okay?

In this bar, everybody was betting on the boxing match.

So, everybody see, there is no bullets in here and nothing will go in.

- [Noah] Yeah.

- [Lance] Got it.

- Love it.

- So in 45 minutes, so we're just gonna start doing our trek time.

I mean, we may do it 30, 40 times, 'cause that way, there won't be a problem if we do that.

- Yeah.

Well, hopefully this isn't a big mistake.

We're heading up to the spot.

Have the light stands already in position where I left them last night.

A lot of work to be done.

(dramatic music) They're already coming.

(engine roars) (dramatic music continues) I think probably down there.

(dramatic music continues) Breathe, dog, breathe, - [Dane] Which is the troublesome flash?

This one or the other?

- They're all troublesome.

So here, I have a receiver.

Receivers are built into this unit, but if this is down low, the transmitter won't properly communicate with it.

So essentially, what we're gonna do is vault this thing up, so that my transmitter can see it.

This is one of the troubleshooting things I did, and you won't be able to see this receiver in the shot.

And then I'll hard wire it to the flash.

- Go away, you're not to supposed to be here right now.

- Hey, we gotta be right behind each other.

- I can tell her she's not going fast enough.

(horses trotting) I feel like if I'm not holding a gun, I could do it.

- Hey, you're holding a gun, that's the whole point of it.

- Yeah.

(celestial music) - Okay, stop.

- We're getting there, so I'm gonna turn on all these flashes.

- We're just gonna keep doing it until you tell us not to.

- Yeah.

- And do you want me to have my gun pointed at them?

- That would be really cool.

- That's gonna be cool, Baker.

- Even if you're looking forward and you're aimed backwards.

- Do you rather?

I can do either, doesn't matter to me.

- I think- - You want to look forward or back?

- She's done mounted shooting before.

- I think backwards would be sweet.

- Okay.

- Yeah.

- So like looking with it?

- Yeah.

- Okay.

- Like once you kind of hit that tree, that's when you could like look back.

I have no clue if this system's gonna work, but it should.

God, we got one more flash position that's gonna flash a... Have my EOS R5, then we have this Canon EF 11-24mm with an adapter on there.

Out there on the horizon line, can you clip that down?

Leave the flowers.

- [Lance] Do you want us to go again or what?

- I mean, it's pretty bright out right now.

I don't think the horses would react, but I think from a spacing standpoint, let's give it a shot.

Maybe like 20, 30 more feet, Stephanie, or I'll just give you a visual here.

Ideally, you'll be in this sort of area.

- Okay.

- 'Cause it's kind of this gap between this tree and this tree.

The zone is probably 10 feet behind you and 10 feet in front of you.

During that night, kept on waiting, kept on waiting for it to get dark enough for the flashes.

Meanwhile, there's flash airs.

There's fucking flash.

We weren't even close to capturing something good.

I kept on sprinting back and forth between the camera to the flashes.

It was an out-of-body experience, but I was still stuck in mine, fighting off the tunnel vision.

Here I am and I've created this nightmare, and I have to solve it, and I don't know if I can solve it.

And that's when the hyper focus kicks in.

There's still a chance.

Let's try to sneak in a couple more attempts tonight and see what I can figure out.

- We were riding basically in total blackness at the end of it, going at a full speed gallop up a hill.

- And literally one of the last attempts of the night, (gun bangs) we are able to capture something incredible.

(thunder roars) The goal was to create a powerful visual, a surreal western outlaw chase scene, allowing the viewer to be transported back in time.

Casting females as outlaws would be a juxtaposition of culture during the 1800's, but also a metaphor for rebellious youth and parents chasing their kids, releasing the reigns and letting them ride off into the sunset.

(gun bangs) If I make it out of this experience, I'm gonna just start being a bird photographer.

Okay, let's just get this done.

I need to decompress.

That was so much fun, I forgot to laugh.

(engine idling) Like throwing in too many variables.

- We kind of got over the stressful part last night, just making sure those ponies were fine with the light, the darkness, the flashing, going in line and running and so we're not gonna be any stressed on our part.

- Yeah.

- I think that's so cool.

- [Baker] That's super fun.

Oh my gosh, wow.

- So there's the in camera double exposure technique, so that takes the pressure off.

Then hopefully, we can just streamline the process a little bit, ensure that the flashes are firing a little bit better.

And then hopefully, silhouette the chase riders a little bit better.

We're stoked, we got something in the bag.

- I couldn't be more pleased.

- 1:20 PM and get out here and we'll actually be able to see where the sun is on the sky for totality of 1:34 PM tomorrow.

That sun is so high (laughs).

That's about as high as I thought it was gonna be.

Out here dialing in the final setup for the composition, the frame composition.

I might tell Lance one pass on this side, maybe more.

(mellow music) (tractor engine roars) Finish things off, going to clip all the little bushes, and weeds, and flowers that are on the sides of the trees and also kind of in high spots to eliminate hot spots.

We have one more night of test shooting.

Hopefully, the clouds will cooperate tonight and we'll be able to do the same double exposure attempts because tomorrow, the weather isn't looking promising.

There's no reason to get excited or discouraged about it.

Already got something in the bag last night.

Takes the pressure off.

Hopefully, we'll be able to improve on that tonight.

- You know, we asked several people, and I had one young lady who's been riding horses for me and a couple other guys here at the ranch that turned out to be perfect.

Megan Schoonmaker, she's an accomplished Barrel Racer, and Horse Trainer, and actually raises bucking bulls.

Thanks for coming out.

- [Megan] Yeah, no problem.

- Really appreciate it.

- [Megan] This is exciting.

- Yeah, I was just gonna show her the route.

- [Noah] Yeah, perfect.

- Cool.

And you need to figure out what sequence you want Megan in, or is she a posse or?

- [Noah] She'll be in that tail.

- But nevertheless, she fit right into the program.

She got along with my daughters great, and she had the horse that could accomplish what we needed.

(water spraying) - A thought that just came to mind is if I can stick this flash just outside of the edge of the frame here, that way, we won't have to hide it, and it can be within the receiving range of the transmitter, and then have that light hitting these horses, 'cause the horses there actually aren't that far away.

- This is Bakers horse, his name is Pit Boss.

(lively music) (vehicle engine roars) - Game time.

(lively music continues) It's going to essentially light up both groups of riders.

Okay, this one is B, so now let's see if it changes.

Basically, like the center, but I think just like the center or that left edge.

Just think more left edge when you're riding.

Yeah, I'm good when you guys are.

Yep.

(horses galloping) I would say the chase group, you guys can close up the gap maybe like 10, 10, 15 feet.

Flashes are working so much better tonight, Oh my god, it's a life saver.

Ok, I'm ready - Everybody ready?

- Yes.

(horse galloping) (lively music continues) (guns bang) (lively music continues) - Well, it was a lot better not sprinting around in panic mode tonight.

(engine idling) I'm glad to get tonight over with Because this has been very stressful and exhausting.

You know I've prepared as much as I possibly can and all there is tomorrow, there's no twilight.

It's like totality is all we have, and I won't be able to use any flashes until totality.

So that's it.

Preparing for four minutes and then (sighs).

Eclipse day tomorrow.

(engine idling) (door creaks) April 8th here in Llano, Texas.

Questionable forecast for today.

This could be the story of the day right here.

85% humidity to start off the day, dropping down to around 60% humidity and cloud cover during totality.

The rain forecast has slightly improved, but to say the least, it's questionable.

The sun did poke out a little bit earlier.

Best case scenario is obviously a gap in the clouds.

When I finally conceptualized the idea for the shot, I thought there was a slim chance that I'd be able to actually pull it off and find horseback riders in Texas.

I mean, it was an absolute long shot.

So to be down here and to be creating imagery is really special.

Hopefully during totality, the sun is shining, and the horses are riding and I don't blow it (chuckles).

If you're in the path of totality, the moon blocks 100% of the sun.

The difference between 99% eclipsed and 100% is literally the difference between day and night.

So it's all the little things, just swapping out all the AA batteries right now.

I'm not going to trust anything besides full power.

Everything 100% charged.

(bright music) (bright music continues) This is gonna be a static cam, and we're gonna have it more zoomed in 100 to 500 millimeter lens on the EOS R3 shooting video, so thanks to Canon for sending that over.

It's already happening.

- It's already happening.

(bright music) - This is so exciting.

- [Dane] I know, it's happening.

- [Lance] We're in the midst of it, aren't we?

- [Dane] Yeah, it's happening.

- Should I put my glasses on yet?

- It's not a great idea.

It was like Burnett County Police or something.

Not a good idea to wear your eclipse glasses while driving.

- Honestly, the fact that they have to say that is really kind of sad.

- I was under the impression you could see through them.

(riders chatting) (horses trotting) - Okay, so same plan.

As far as how fast you're coming back here, there's no pressure.

I want you guys to literally have no stress, be able to enjoy the experience.

- Looks like that cloud might move.

- And we'll see even if the flashes aren't bright enough, we'll be able to get some silhouettes.

The pattern does seem to be going this way.

There's nothing but those big ones.

I feel like we got just enough time.

When I'm saying I'm ready.

- We don't gotta full send when you say you're ready.

- [Noah] I'm ready.

We gotta go right now.

- This is it, we're gonna get it.

- [Lance] Yes, we're gonna get it.

- We're gonna get it.

- [Lance] Yeah.

(birds chirping) - 10 minutes before totality, the clouds miraculously cleared.

- [Dane] Calm down.

- Literally a hole directly above us, and then the pressure was even more so on.

- [Megan] It's getting close.

- [Noah] All the preparation.

- Wow.

Okay, now it's time for me to... [Lance] Pretty groovy.

180 hours in at this point all came down to four minutes and 23 seconds.

[Megan] A really weird gray.

- Wow.

- Like right there.

- Woah, it's like someone turned the light switch down.

[Dane] Like a dimmer.

It's like a dimmer.

- It's like a dimmer.

- Yeah.

- Three minutes!

- This is so weird, and it's in the middle of the day.

- Wow.

- We're here.

- Wow.

- Oh, I hope this goes.

- [Adam] It's gonna go bro, it's gonna go.

- Oh, goosebumps.

- Weird!

- [Noah] Moments away from the first go here.

- The weather is perfect.

- Oh my god.

- Okay we dialed this one in.

It's going to be 8:40pm dark.

[Adele] This so crazy.

- I wasn't even sure if my flash settings, or my exposure settings would be appropriate for the scenario.

And then two minutes before totality, literally watched the dimmer just get turned down.

Wow.

[Megan] Oh, you can look at it now without it hurting your eyes (riders chatting) - [Speaker 6] It's so pretty.

- [Speaker 7] You ready?

- [Noah] Ready.

- Ready everyone?

- Yep.

- Ready.

(horses galloping) (gun bangs) [Lance] All right, that was it.

- [Noah] Good good.

- Let's go, turn around.

- [Noah] Good work guys, good work!

(riders chatting) - This is so weird.

[Stephanie] It looks like a sunset all the way around.

- [Noah] Adele.

- Yes.

- [Noah] Can you hold the kind of gun just a little bit like- - More forward?

- [Noah] Lean forward how you have it right now?

- [Adele] Yes.

- Okay, I'm ready whenever you guys are.

Just make sure you're ready.

(horse galloping) (gun bangs) - There we go.

- That's so weird to look at.

Like the sunset over there, but it's also set over here.

- Yeah what?

Why isn't something?

- Because it goes all the way around.

Look at it.

It's so cool.

You can see the stars.

- Wow, you can see the stars.

- I love the stars in the sky.

- If I was able to get two first attempts in, I was gonna go for the double exposure, allowing me to increase the size of the eclipse within the frame without editing.

- I'm gonna do an a camera double exposure.

- Yep, go for it.

- What time we got?

– We got 1: 36pm.

1:36pm we probably have about two more minutes left.

- Noah, do you want me to change this?

- Maybe.

- What are you thinking?

- Whatever you think, dude.

- Okay.

- Got (indistinct) here.

- We gotta take?

- Yeah.

- Don't forget to take the filter off.

- Is our spacing good?

- Yep, that's good.

I'm gonna take an in camera double exposure here.

Gimme one second.

You guys can just hang out and enjoy it for a second.

My settings would have to be absolutely perfect, and I would have to swap out two lenses, accessing complex camera settings.

Hyper-focused, I raced to set up the shot with precious seconds ticking away.

- Does anybody else see that little red ball in the sky?

It kind of looks like this flare coming out.

Yeah, I feel like it's starting to get light.

- He needs to do it.

(dramatic music) - Okay, I'll be ready in 20 seconds here.

(birds chirping) Just watching the horses go through.

- [Dane] Yeah.

- [Noah] Okay, one sec.

- Isn't it?

This is pretty sick, hey?

(dramatic music continues) (birds chirping) (dramatic music continues) (dramatic music continues) - Okay, I'm ready whenever you guys are.

- Let's go, go.

(horse galloping) (dramatic music continues) (gun bangs) (gun bangs) - Okay, sweet.

We'll do that again.

It's almost coming out of totality, so we'll do that again.

(horses galloping) (birds chirping) (dramatic music continues) - Yeah, it's coming out.

(dramatic music continues) - [Noah] Ready when you guys are.

- [Riders] Ready.

(horses galloping) (dramatic music continues) - (chuckling) Yeah, baby!

(crew laughing) Oh my god!

(rooster crows) (horse brays) - [Stephanie] That was so cool!

- Well, that's all that there can, can't do anymore.

- [Adam] Dude, the sky opened up for this photo Noah.

- Oh my god.

- [Adam] It opened up for the photo man.

- Flashes were dope, dude.

Flashes, I was worried that they were gonna be too not powerful enough and like man, in literally a matter of like two minutes, the light changed so dramatically that you guys could see it.

It was just all of a sudden you're like, yep, flashes are working, and that's perfect, absolute perfect exposure based on the last four nights of shooting.

Dude, thank you for the light.

That was like, like.

(Dane chuckling) - That was so cool.

The first time we went up there, she doubled barrel kicked when we got up to the top like.

I was like, Bonnie, watcha doing?

- I wanna say this one.

- There is some champagne that I have here if you guys wanna do that.

I'm definitely gonna drink some, but one bottle for y'all and one bottle for me.

Well, yeah, watch the end of it, do whatever you wanna do, and maybe we'll meet you down there.

- Okay.

- Yeah.

- Thank you.

- Congrats.

- [Noah] Just a few miles away, it was raining, and 20 minutes after totality, our weather window would close.

(gentle music) - (chuckling) That's the shot.

That's the shot.

(thunder roars) (gun bangs) (horses galloping) (gun bangs) (horses galloping) (wind howls) - For me, creativity is everything.

I need it to survive.

Creativity and inspiration are just as much a necessity for life as anything else.

Expression is freedom, expression is opportunity.

Just park right here?

Probably similar to bringing a child into the world.

- I was much more relaxed.

It's not bad.

- Expression can foster inspiration that can change the world.

For me, what started off as a concept, a far off idea, became a reality and became the greatest adventure of my life.

(people chatting) [Megan] That's the quickest four minutes - I've ever experienced - I wanna say a toast to Noah.

- And the eclipse.

- And the eclipse.

Couldn't have done any better.

- [All] Cheers!

- Adam, thanks for all your good work.

- Oh yeah, sure.

- My hands are still shaking.

- And thank you Megan.

- Yeah, no, thanks for having me.

- That's a lot of hot champagne.

(all laugh) (uplifting music) (wind howls) (uplifting music) (uplifting music continues) (uplifting music continues) (uplifting music continues) (wind howling) (gentle bright music) (gentle bright music continues) (gentle bright music continues) (gentle bright music continues) (gentle bright music continues) (gentle bright music continues) (gentle bright music continues) (gentle bright music continues) (gentle bright music continues) - Packing up so much gear.

Eight, seven strobes, three camera bodies, like 14 light stands.

Guess who's the only one left?

That's a wrap.

I did my best.

Time for a famous Lance Morris margarita (chuckles).

(owl hooting) (wind howling) (thunder roars) (wind howling) (wind continues howling) (bright music) (no audio)