I have photographed whales for many years, but had never been fortunate to see one throw its huge body out of the water, let alone photograph such an event. But on the night of June 7, 2013, I was able to do both. Not only was I able to capture this humpback at the apex of its leap, but also the backdrop and the late Alaskan evening light offered a memorable context for the scene. This whale had been following our boat for a mile or so, swimming in wide circles around it. The sun was due to set within the hour, due to the very long Alaskan summer night. The angle of the sun plunged the rounded island in the background into shadow, and muted the light on the mountains and sky behind it. Yet the water itself appeared as a golden sheet of shimmering ripples. The whale has been releasing golden puffs of water, known as spouts, for more than ten minutes. I photographed many of those spouts, and was very pleased with the results. More importantly, my “spout shooting” forced me to remain focused on the ripples the whale was making from just below the surface, so that when it decided to vault into the air, I able catch the decisive moment. The angle of the light turns the splash around the whale, and the water pouring off of its massive body, to gold as well. I had prepared for such a moment as this as best I could, but in the end, it is the whale that made the picture by deciding to breach right in front my camera. In my post processing, I kept this golden leap true to life. My most significant processing addition was to slightly darken the tree, mountain, and sky backdrop, leaving center stage to the breaching whale shedding its curtain of golden water.