Bright or Dusted by Time?

This is the view looking west on Kovarik Road, off over Lake Michigan to the Manitou Islands. Dark clouds make the light look even brighter and more vivid than usual. I may also have set the camera color to "vivid" for this shot.

But then I tried it with sepia tone. And that's a very different mood and feel, isn't it? It's like looking through a window to the past.