American man who took the 'most viewed photo ever' explains the simple process behind how he did it
Published on Jan 14, 2026 at 5:22 AM (UTC-5)
by Ben Thompson
Last updated on Jan 14, 2026 at 5:22 AM (UTC-5)
Edited by
Mason Jones
The American man who snapped the ‘most viewed photo ever’ has explained the simple process behind how he did it.
Chances are, you’ll have seen this photo at some point in your life – but do you know its name or the name of its photographer?
It was taken by Charles ‘Chuck’ O’Rear back in the 1990s.
It’s been viewed countless of times around the world, but what is the backstory behind this iconic image?
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What is the most viewed photo ever?
Some photographs are just iconic for historical reasons, while others are etched in our memories because of their artistic merits.
But which one is the most viewed?
It’s hard to say for sure, but Charles O’Rear’s Bliss is certainly a good bet.
The bright image of rolling green hills under a blue sky has been seen on laptops and computers around the world – if you’re using a Microsoft product, at least.
Given how vibrant the shot is, you’d be forgiven for thinking this was a computer generated image.
Not many people can say they’ve seen hills so green and skies so blue in recent memory.
But O’Rear took this shot back in 1996 as he was driving from his home in St Helena, California to visit his now-wife in Marin Couny.
Years after the image became the backdrop for the Windows XP operating system, O’Rear retold the story of the photo’s origins to People Magazine.
“I always carry a camera with me, because you just never know. I used to pull over often to take photos. I think the scenery there was so beautiful,” he recalled.
The picture was taken using a Mamiya RZ67 camera with a color Fuji Film and a tripod, but the image wasn’t digitally altered or photoshopped.
“When it’s on film, what you see is what you get,” O’Rear said.
How did this image make its way to Microsoft?
O’Rear had submitted the photo to Westlight stock photo agency in 1998 – which was subsequently bought by Corbis Group, a licensing company owned by none other than Bill Gates.
You can see the chain of events, right?
Microsoft reportedly paid a ‘low six figure sum’ for Bliss, but even to this day, the exact figure has not been reported.
Even getting the photo to Microsoft’s office was a mission in itself.
Because of the insurance costs, Fed Ex wouldn’t deliver it, so O’Rear had to fly out to Seattle to deliver it himself.
Even all of these years later, the legacy of the photo lives on, no less for O’Rear himself.
“I get emails maybe every week or two, something related to the ‘Bliss’ photograph,” O’Rear said.
“When I die, although I won’t be buried, [my wife] has said, on your tombstone, we’re not going to say National Geographic, we’re going to say ‘Photographer of Bliss’.”
This photo is just one part of Microsoft’s remarkable legacy, which has made Bill Gates a very wealthy man – so wealthy in fact, that he’d still be one of the richest men on Earth if he lost 99 percent of his wealth.
Microsoft isn’t slowing down either – in 2024, it teamed up with OpenAI to begin work on a $100 billion AI supercomputer.
Well, if the company needs a photograph for the desktop background of said supercomputer, it knows who to call.
Maybe the photographer of the most viewed photo ever can do it a second time around?
Ben joined Supercar Blondie in February 2025 after being published by international organizations including LADbible, The Sun, the New York Post, and the Daily Mail. He covers supercars, rare and collectible vehicles, aviation, luxury assets, and the fascinating people behind them. His reporting has explored everything from seven-figure supercars and historic Ferrari collections to unusual aircraft adventures and extraordinary automotive discoveries from around the world. Ben has also gained first-hand insight into vehicle craftsmanship and customization, including visiting specialist workshops to see bespoke vehicles up close.
