With only seconds to get the shot, a photographer provides a ‘portal into the heat’

OROVILLE, California (AP) — Noah Berger has been photographing events in Northern California for The Associated Press for nearly 25 years.

For more than a decade, he has chronicled the wildfires that have devastated the region, winning awards for his unflinching images.

Here’s what he had to say about this extraordinary photo.

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Why this photo?

One of the things we do as photojournalists is show scenes that readers can’t witness themselves. When wildfires start affecting residents, they become more impactful than a fire burning in unpopulated wilderness. Butte County, where this fire was located, has seen devastating blazes in the past six years including the North Complex Fire, which killed 15 people, and the Camp Fire, which killed 85 people, according to Cal Fire, the state’s firefighting agency.

How I made this photo

I began focusing on wildfire in 2013. In years since, I’ve added to my knowledge - and gear - to cover them better. I wear the same full protective gear that woodland firefighters use including fire resistant Nomex clothing, hard hat, woodland fire boots, goggles and a fire shelter. I also use a scanner than lets me hear first responders and pinpoint where the head of the fire is progressing.

A lot of fire coverage also involves following weather — most notably wind and humidity - as well as an area’s topography and fire history. During fire season, there are typically 5-10 new wildfires starts each day but, thankfully, few grow into large-scale events that take homes or lives. Effectively covering fire means being able to predict which blazes will become major incidents and reaching those locations fast.

Once there. I’d ballpark that 90% of the time spent covering a fire is driving and trying to figure out the right spots for dynamic coverage.

When photographing fires, I generally team up with other news photographers. Although technically competitors, we work as a team to stay safe and share information. We often live out of our cars for days at a time and have come to rely on each other at fires and in life.

In terms of camera equipment, I use fewer lenses and accessories than during other types of assignments. I tend to stick with two camera bodies, with a zoom lens on each, rather than using the assortment of prime lenses I favor for other assignments. Minimizing gear lets me adapt to extremely fast-changing conditions and focus on the scene in front of me rather than techniques.

A big challenge is getting photos transmitted to AP’s image desk. Often the areas impacted by fie are remote or cell service has gone down because of damage to infrastructure.

I took this photo on the first day of a prolonged heatwave amid red flag fire warnings across Northern California. Without proximity to fire, the temperature was around 106 degrees. Near fire, my car read 119 degrees. Even with protective gear, it was hard to be near this garage for more than 10 seconds before the heat became too much.

Why this photo works

The way the garage door frames the fire makes it feel like a portal into the heat.

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