The most viewed photo ever

A fascinating story about preparation meeting opportunity.

A fascinating story about how preparation, opportunity, and luck, conspired to create the world's most viewed photograph. This one made me nostalgic.

In January 1996, Charles O'Rear was making a casual Friday afternoon drive, from his home in Napa Valley to San Francisco, to visit his future wife.

A former National Geographic photographer, O’Rear was looking for promising photo opportunities along the way. After spotting a beautiful green hill bathed in the aftermath of recent rains, he pulled over, setup his camera, and captured a scene that would unknowingly become iconic.

In 2000, Microsoft purchased the full rights to the photograph, gave it the name 'Bliss', and made it the wallpaper for Windows XP, which launched in October 2001. Bliss has now been seen by billions of people, and is arguably the world's most viewed photograph.

Charles O’Rear later attributed his success to the following reasons:

1. He knew the moment presented a good opportunity to take a picture because a storm had just passed and recent rains had created a lush green landscape.

2. His experience led him to choose a camera and film that provided the appropriate color saturation effect (he never digitally altered the photo).

3. He was fortunate that the clouds moved into the picture at the right time, even though "everything was changing so quickly."

Charles O'Rear couldn't control the events that conspired to help him — the weather, the acquisition of the stock photo service he sold his picture to, emerging software and hardware technology, the power of distribution channels, and the team that discovered his photo.

Bliss, the world’s most viewed photograph, is a reminder that sometimes, the most extraordinary results come from everyday moments, captured by a keen eye, and a dash of good fortune.

Bliss is an example of what Seneca said, “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”