It is highly unlikely that you haven’t seen the iconic hilly landscape picture which came as the default wallpaper on Windows XP. It is one of those things that are etched on our memory and evoke nostalgia every time we see them. The desktop wallpaper, known as Bliss, is also said to be the most viewed photo in the world. But, do you know who took the photo? And how much its photographer was paid by Microsoft?
The Bliss was clicked by photographer Chuck O’Rear back in January 1996 when he was headed to meet his future wife in California. Chuck O’Rear, who worked for National Geographic, told the People magazine that he always carries a camera and would often stop while driving to take photos.
Recalling the day he captured the scenic green hills, Chuck O’Rear said, in a conversation with CNET, that it was mid-winter when the grass was getting greener and the sky had beautiful white clouds. As he drove through the picturesque location, Chuck O’Rear decided to stop and “make a couple of frames”.
He took out his Mamiya RZ67 film camera and captured the hills without realizing that one day the photo would be bought by Microsoft and become the default desktop image on almost every computer around the globe.
Chuck O’Rear submitted his photo to Corbis, a stock photo agency. Later, Microsoft somehow stumbled upon the picture and bought it before naming it Bliss. The amount Microsoft paid for the click was not revealed due to a non-disclosure agreement. But it was the largest sum ever paid for a single photo.
According to Ladbible, Chuck O’Rear received over $100,000 for the Bliss photo by Microsoft. The tech giant had also bought the ‘Autumn wallpaper’ which too was used for Microsoft XP. It was clicked by Peter Burian who too gave uploaded it on Corbis just like Chuck O’Rear. But, Microsoft paid a significantly lesser amount of $45 to Peter Burian for his photo.
Keeping aside the money, photos of both Chuck O’Rear and Peter Burian are still associated with Windows XP.
“I think it’s going to be around forever. When you are 90 years old, somewhere a photograph like Bliss will appear and you will say ‘I remember that,” said Chuck O’Rear.
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