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BOUNTIFUL — A man who's in love with Utah has made a hobby out of sharing the love with others.
But now it's becoming more than a hobby. His unique photographs of Utah have become a passion and, increasingly, a business.
"We're swimming in beauty," said Bret Webster of Bountiful. Although he didn't get serious about photography until just a couple of years ago, his photographs of Utah scenery are suddenly getting noticed. Especially striking are his spectacular images of the night-time sky framed by Utah scenery.
Webster's work is beginning to appear on calendars. He's earning tens of thousands of dollars a year by selling his photos on-line at www.bretwebsterimages.com.
NASA has distributed his photos on the Astronomy Picture of the Day website. The State Department is buying Webster's photos for the U.S. embassy in Kuwait.
His work is getting its most prominent display at the new Natural History Museum of Utah. A photo he took of Utah rock art at night is now blown up and displayed two stories high in the museum's astronomy gallery.
"One thing's for sure," Webster said, "I'm lucky to be in Utah."
Webster's lovingly photographed landscapes suggest an inborn talent. Not so long ago, he wasn't particularly interested in photography. Like most people, he just took family snapshots and the like. His career for many years has been in the rocket industry. "I've been a solid-rocket-propellant, rocket-motor guy my whole life," Webster said.
It all changed when he saw what his wife's new digital camera could do. "I assumed ownership," Webster chuckled. "I declared my wife's camera to be mine now."
When rocket science meets art, perhaps it's no surprise that Webster's specialty is to combine the scenic grandeur of Utah and the majesty of Utah's night sky. Many of his images show the Milky Way in all its glory spreading over a natural arch or a red rock cliff.
They are not double exposures or photo-shop tricks. Webster leaves the camera shutter wide open to capture the night sky, while he paints the rocks with spotlights, campfires or candles to illuminate the scenery in the same exposure.
"It's very satisfying to open my own eyes and share that," Webster said. "And I hope we continue to value it."
(Utah is) precious. It's precious beyond counting. And I hope it's saved for all generations. It would be a terrible crime if it's not.
–Bret Webster
As a chemical engineer who does photography, Webster sees no division between the scientific side of his nature and the artistic side. "To not have that background, I couldn't get the depth of understanding," Webster said. "I like to try and put (Utah) in a planetary perspective. It's just so exciting. The place lends itself to that."
Utah scenery seems to be an inexhaustible subject.
"It's precious," Webster said. "It's precious beyond counting. And I hope it's saved for all generations. It would be a terrible crime if it's not."
One of his worries is that light pollution will someday blot out the Milky Way. If that happens, Utah kids like kids in other places will grow up and never see their own galaxy.
Email:hollenhorst@ksl.com
