A bumblebee collects pollen from the brilliant flower of pink peony in Colorado.
Details: Taking photos of bees is an exercise in patience and camera control, and I highly recommend it if you’ve never tried it–it will definitely test and sharpen your skills at quickly focusing and tracking a subject! This bee was drawn to a large pink peony on a beautiful Colorado day in early June.
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The setting sun peeks under ominous clouds to light up “America’s Mountain” in central Colorado.
Details: It was an overcast evening, but I saw this scene forming when a little blue sky started opening up on the horizon which would give the sun just a little space to get under the building storm clouds. Sure enough, a few minutes after I’d set the camera up, the sun poured through for just a few brief moments illuminating Pikes Peak and nearby Blodgett Peak near Colorado Springs.
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Tiny ice crystals intricately decorate a pine branch in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.
Details: These delicate ice crystals were left behind after a winter fog. The trees were covered in a beautiful coating of white, but I had to work quickly before the sun began to melt them. A telephoto lens and wide open aperture captured the needles perfectly while leaving the background soft and surreal.
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A crystal clear pond reflects the first rays of sun on Sheep Mountain on a winter morning in the Colorado Rockies.
Details: a mild winter has left only a dusting of snow on the lower peaks, but it has also kept this pond from freezing and preserved a perfect reflection on this crisp morning. Sheep Mountain is normally the same color gray as the rock on the right side of the photo, but the alpenglow from the just risen sun has lit it up in brilliant orange.
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A trail of stars falls gently over the Rocky Mountain town of Salida in central Colorado.
Details: This image was taken on a winter night and captures about 90 minutes of total exposure time. It’s amazing how far the stars move in that amount of time (yes, I understand they’re not really moving and it’s just the earth rotating. . .). Star trails take a lot of forethought and patience, but the result can be an amazing image that only your camera can truly “see.” This is a composite of more than 150 individual images, and in addition to the movement of the stars, I also love that it captures the movement of cars along the roads and up into the mountains, including a couple heading up to the spot locals call “S Mountain” in the lower right.
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A storm rolls over the Continental Divide at sunset in Colorado.
Details: this winter hasn’t been very cooperative for photography in Colorado (very little snow), but if you look in the right place at the right time, you can still catch some of winters glory at the higher elevations. This is the Sawatch Range near Monarch Pass in central Colorado in January. The clouds were just right to obscure the peaks but still reflect some of the sun’s dwindling light onto the snowy flanks of the Continental Divide. It was sublime!
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The last rays of the setting sun bathe the needles of a twisted ponderosa pine in gold.
Details: this twisted tree is not far from my home in Colorado. I don’t know its history or why it’s twisted and still living, but on the longest days of summer, the sun sets perfectly between its limbs. What I love is how for a few minutes each night the sun catches the underside of the needles and completely changes the look of the scene.
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A peaceful evening in late Spring as reflected in at beaver pond along the South Arkansas River in central Colorado.
Details: I love a good reflection, and the South Arkansas River near Salida, Colorado has several beaver ponds which calm the waters and lead to scenes like this. This shot was taken just before the sun went behind the mountains. This image actually a composite of five vertical shots to get more of the scene and the brilliant blue sky.
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The setting sun lights up the clouds of a passing storm above the western edge of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains.
Details: Sometimes you have to look behind you to find the amazing. While most sunset photos look west, this was the view to the east on a stormy evening near Salida, Colorado when the sun peeked through and lit up the passing storm beautifully.
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The setting sun pierces brilliantly through the clouds over the peaks of central Colorado.
Details: This image was taken from a field near Poncha Springs, Colorado on a May evening when the sun was perched perfectly atop the twin peaks of Mount Aetna and Taylor Mountain in the Sawatch Range of the Rocky Mountains. Three “fourteeners” are present in this view as well, from left to right, Mount Shavano, Mount Antero and Mount Princeton in the distance.
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The last flames of a brilliant sunset light up the sky above Mount Princeton in central Colorado.
Details: Colorado is one of the best places in the country to view sunsets because the air is clear and you can see for miles and miles. This view was taken near Poncha Springs, Colorado looking northwest toward Mount Antero and Mount Princeton, framed between the trees.
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A brilliant blue sky hangs dramatically over the golden rocks of the Santa Monica Mountains.
Details: Some places really surprise you. The Santa Monica Mountains are just minutes away from greater Los Angeles, but their rugged beauty is a world apart from the bustling city. This panorama of the tallest peaks in the range was taken on the way to hike Sandstone Peak. The Pacific Ocean is just visible in the background.
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A tranquil alpine pond mirrors the morning sun as it warms jagged Rocky Mountain peaks in Colorado.
Details: an unseasonably warm winter has thawed this beautiful pond near Mount Princeton earlier than usual to make this photo possible in the minutes just after dawn. This area, called Spring Canyon, is nestled alongside Cottonwood Creek near Buena Vista, Colorado. The curved peak is on the north flank of Mount Princeton and is known as the Hook. The small circle in the top center is the moon, not far from setting in the west.
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The waning moon is perfectly reflected beside Rocky Mountain peaks glowing in the first light of morning.
Details: This pristine little pond lies below Cottonwood Pass just north of Mount Princeton in central Colorado in a place called Spring Canyon. Most years, there would be no reflection because this pond would still be frozen over in mid-March, but an unseasonably warm winter made this beautiful reflection possible. The peak in the background is a part of Mount Princeton called “the Hook,” which has a unique curved peak.
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An ancient, twisted juniper looks on at a glorious sunset over Garden of the Gods, Colorado.
Details: I could spend 100 years in Garden of the Gods, Colorado and still not find every photo worthy spot. The park is known for its massive red rock fins and spires, the biggest of which are seen in the background here, but it’s also home to ancient juniper trees that have been twisted and gnarled by centuries of wind, sun and snow. This is one such example, and this small image doesn’t do justice to the intricate grain of the trunk visible in the full-size image. This is actually a panorama of 7 vertical images carefully stitched together to get this entire gorgeous scene at sunset.
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The setting sun turns the Grand Canyon into shadows and streaks of rocky gold.
Details: The Grand Canyon is absolutely incredible. It’s even more incredible at sunrise and sunset. It’s even more incredible with unique streaking clouds. Patience paid off, and I was fortunate enough to have all the elements for this shot from the south rim just before sunset. The Colorado River is just visible in the shadows.
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The evening sun illuminates golden summer grass under a dramatic storm in central Colorado.
Details: There’s something about storms that captures my imagination as a photographer. I love trying to capture the immensity and drama they bring, especially in Colorado where such storms can be seen from miles away in the open country between the mountains. This image of a storm that passed just north of me was taken adjacent to a ranch in Poncha Springs, Colorado with Mount Princeton visible on the left.
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A desert storm leaves a contrast of colors and climates at sunset over Red Rock Canyon, Nevada
Details: Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area in Nevada is one of my favorite places in the west because it’s a land of contrasts. In this scene, a storm has just covered the tall mountains on the right with a layer of snow, while the desert floor remains warm with color. This is a composite carefully stitched from six individual photos to capture this entire dramatic scene from east to west.
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A large piece of driftwood stands tall against a beautiful sunset over an empty beach along the Florida panhandle.
Details: Normally when I’m at the beach photographing, my focus is on the water, but on this outing, a large piece of driftwood caught my eye. This piece of wood had personality that begged to be a part of the composition. I love the way the setting sun illuminates just the edges of the wood.
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An October morning brings the reflections of blue skies and early autumn colors in the hills of southern Tennessee.
Details: This is one of those unplanned photos that you just fall into sometimes. While visiting my family in Tennessee, my dad took me and my boys out fishing, and on the way to our lake, we passed this gem, and luckily I’d brought my good camera. The guys were patient enough to wait while I ran down to the shore of Bluecat Lake to get this shot. Just 15 minutes later, this scene disappeared as the winds picked up and erased the amazing reflection.
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Golden autumn aspens reflected perfectly in an alpine pond in Colorado.
Details: Mueller State Park is one of my favorite places in central Colorado, especially in September when the aspens begin to change and the blue of the skies deepens. To capture this sublime scene and the full reflection in Lost Pond, I created this panorama from five different vertical shots. To see a vertical version of this scene, try here.
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A quiet Rocky Mountain pond reflects a perfect autumn day in Colorado.
Details: The only thing better than the color of golden aspens and deep blue skies together is a reflection of golden aspens and deep blue skies! The waters of Lost Pond in Mueller State Park served as a perfect reflecting mirror on this pristine September morning in the Rockies.
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The morning sun peeks through brilliant aspen leaves on a beautiful fall day in Colorado.
Details: Fall is a short season in Colorado with the colors coming early and early winter winds typically taking the leaves down two weeks later. Of course, for those few weeks, the aspens are king of the color in the mountains. This image was taken mid-morning in Mueller State Park near Cripple Creek Colorado, a great place to find stands of bright aspens on the Front Range of the Rockies.
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The setting sun bathes 12,000 foot peaks in red above the lazy folds of the East River in Gothic Valley, Colorado.
Details: Gothic Valley, near Crested Butte, Colorado, is known for its wildflowers, but it has much more to offer including majestic mountain peaks and the East River winding its way through the middle. One of the things I wasn’t prepared for was the sound of this scene. The wind was still, and the valley completely calm except for the distinct sound of. . . mooing. The lower end of the valley is prime pastureland, and I could just make out the tiny dots across the river as they made their way back to the ranch.
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Brilliant red indian paintbrush line the shores of aptly named Emerald Lake in central Colorado’s Gothic Valley.
Details: Gothic Valley north of Crested Butte, Colorado, is one of the most beautiful places in the state, especially in the summer when wildflowers are blooming. Emerald lake, with its tranquil green water, sits high in the valley at the base of 12,800 foot Mount Baldy (seen here on the right). It’s just below treeline at 10,450 feet, and while many flowers in the lower valley have faded, the flowers surrounding the lake were in full bloom this first day of August.
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Brilliant fireweed adds color to the beautiful Gothic Valley on a sublime August day in Colorado.
Details: Crested Butte, Colorado, is nestled in the middle of the state and surrounded by several mountain ranges of the Rockies. It’s not only a great place to ski in the winter, but in the summer, it’s the “wildflower capitol of Colorado.” Flowers bloom from June through August, but the peaks vary from year-to-year, and flowers bloom at different times. To find this color in August (courtesy of a plant called “fireweed”), my wife and I had to go far up the beautiful Gothic Valley north of Crested Butte. This image was taken near Emerald Lake at about 10,000 feet above sea level. The shot is framed by Avery Peak on the left and Gothic Mountain on the right, both 12,600 feet peaks.
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Ripples on a pond make for wavy reflections of red rock formations in Red Rock Canyon, Colorado.
Details: Red Rock Canyon lies just south of Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs and shares the same red-rock ridges and formations. A rainy summer has kept this pond full which made for this idyllic and colorful July scene. I love the interplay between the deep blue skies, green trees and orange rocks in the background and foreground.
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A magnificent lightning bolt lights up the night sky above Colorado Springs.
Details: few things are a more irresistible subject for photography for me than an active thunderstorm at night. This particular storm was amazing with flashes going off inside the storm every several seconds. Only a small fraction of the bolts exited the storm, so I was fortunate to be able to grab this shot. If you’re going to try this at home, remember basic lightning safety, especially if the storm is headed in your direction.
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An incredible sunset unfolds over two natural icons of central Colorado, Garden of the Gods and Pikes Peak.
Details: this was one of those amazing evenings when you’re glad you took a chance on the weather. I was driving through rain to get to this spot, and after hiking down into this field, the skies opened up and soon displayed this masterpiece. A wide-angle lens was essential to getting this big sky into a single frame. This image is captured in HDR to preserve the delicate details in the sky and shadows.
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A thunderstorm builds at midnight over blooming yuccas in central Colorado.
Details: I love night photography, and thunderstorms are some of my favorite subjects. This storm was amazing, flashing with lightning about once a second, but very few broke out of the clouds, so I was fortunate to capture this bolt. A full moon behind me lit up the clouds above the storm and the blowing prairie in front of me.
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Fleeting clouds uncover the heart of the Milky Way in the badlands of the Paint Mines in Colorado.
Details: Astrophotography is tricky because so much depends on subtleties in the conditions. On this moonlit night, the Milky Way shone bright, but it remained hidden for most of the night behind a veil of high clouds. This was one of the rare breaks this June evening, but the long exposure, bizarre rock formations and bright center of the Milky Way combine to make this an otherworldly image.
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An incredible sunset over the Rocky Mountains blankets a field of beautiful goldenbanner flowers in central Colorado.
Details: A wet spring means an early season for Colorado wildflowers. This field, near the South Arkansas River in central Colorado, is full of brilliant goldenbanner on a beautiful evening in late May. The sun is setting behind 14,000 foot Mount Antero which flanks Monarch Pass along the continental divide. The challenge with this shot was getting just the right exposure in a single shot to bring the flowers out without blowing out the intricate highlight detail in the sky.
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Sunset glows above the rampart of Spruce Mountain in central Colorado.
Details: On a free evening, I decided to go for a hike on a trail I’d never been on before. Spruce Mountain lies just east of the Front Range of the Rockies near Palmer Lake, Colorado, and after a winding climb up many switchbacks, I was rewarded with a great view of the mountain’s rocky rampart near its peak. In the distance is Pikes Peak with the rolling plains abutting the foothills visible to the right.
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A ray of bright sunlight highlights the central formations at Garden of the Gods on a stormy spring day in Colorado.
Details: Garden of the Gods is one of my favorite places to photograph for obvious reasons, and a photo like this with parts of the rock formations in sun and parts in shadow has eluded me for years. This shot was taken shortly after a passing storm when the clouds were still thick to the west where the sun was just above the horizon. It took about half an hour of sitting with my finger on the shutter trigger in this spot to capture the light as you see here with just the central area lit in bright sunlight.
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Magnificent rock formations near Sedona, Arizona burn red in the last rays of the day.
Details: Sedona, Arizona is one of the most beautiful places in the American West, and the red buttes of Coconino National Forest surround the town. This image of Courthouse Butte (center) and Bell Rock (right) were taken high up on a National Forest trail south of Sedona just as the sun was setting. All but the very tip of Bell Rock is already covered in shadow from the hills to the west. The dot in the sky is the moon, made smaller by the wide-angle lens needed to soak in this magnificent view.
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The last rays of the setting sun set the walls of the Grand Canyon ablaze in orange.
Details: The Grand Canyon is beautiful anytime but mesmerizing at sunset. As the sun sinks to the horizon, it turns the canyon walls from reddish white into brilliant orange and gold. This was taken about two minutes before the sun went below the horizon with the rim painted orange while the deep parts of the canyon fade into hues of blue and purple. A few small patches of snow in the foreground reveal that even though the scene is warm, it is still winter in the high Arizona desert. This is one of my favorite photos I’ve taken because of the great colors in the sky and canyon, the stark contrasts between light and shadow, and the composition of the walls, foreground and the line of the deep canyon far below.
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A pink sky overlooks the Grand Canyon filled with blue and red hues after a winter sunset.
Details: The Grand Canyon is a magical place any time of day in any season–it’s one of the seven natural wonders of the world for good reason! This image was taken on a February evening about 20 minutes after sunset. Just after the last light departed from the low clouds, the canyon turned from oranges to deep shades of purple and blue. At the center of the photo, a tiny reflection can be seen from the Colorado River far below. A tiny bit of snow still clings to the eastern wall of Pima Point to the left.
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The moon shines through a stand of aspen trees on a starry winter night in Colorado.
Details: Winter nights in Colorado can be cold, but they can also lead to some amazing photos. This scene was captured in Sheep Canyon, near Mount Princeton in central Colorado on a January night. A light layer of clouds adds to the glow of the waxing moon while the Pleiades can be seen in the clear sky to the upper left. I was thankful for no wind this night so the aspens were still for the long exposure.
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The morning sun shines through golden aspens in a golden field with a blue Colorado sky as a backdrop.
Details: fall is fleeting in Colorado, and I’ve missed more opportunities to catch the brilliant colors than I care to admit over the years. Late September is the best time to catch the aspens in the mountain passes, but the first week of October proved to be the perfect time to catch this stand in the meadows near Divide, Colorado. This picture was taken just a few minutes after sunrise, and I love the rays around the sun and how the golden grass in this scene matches the color in the trees perfectly.
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A brilliant Milky Way is reflected in the still waters of a high alpine lake in Colorado.
Details: It’s always fun when you get to combine two of your favorite photography themes, in this case, the Milky Way and a reflection. On this dark September night, I hiked around the waters of O’Haver Lake in the Sawatch Range of central Colorado. Lights from two campsites dot the far shore, but the Milky Way shone as bright as I’ve ever seen it. The reflection turned out to be tough to get as any light breeze would destroy it in a 30-second exposure. There weren’t any people on this side of the lake, but I can tell you the rustling noises behind me in the woods sure kept my attention! Bigfoot, is that you? . . .
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A lone pine tree points toward the rising Milky Way over Poncha Pass, Colorado.
Details: September is the last month of the year where you can catch the center of the Milky Way in the northern hemisphere (the center is just at the ridge line in this shot). Poncha Pass, which lies in central Colorado at the north end of the San Luis Valley, is one of the darkest places in the state, and Colorado’s clear skies make the stars even brighter. The moon hadn’t risen yet, so all that was missing was a little light on the foreground, so I used one of the very few passing cars to do a little “light painting” of the foreground during the 30-second exposure. The bright blue star just left of the Milky Way is Altair.
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A twisted wooden fence post stands vigil in the Arkansas River Valley in central Colorado as the sky is bathed in sunset.
Details: I don’t go around taking many photos of fence posts, but this one just struck me, especially the way it was silhouetted against the beautiful sky and just the tip was lit in soft reflected sun. This scene, near the small town of Poncha Springs, Colorado, is typical of the Arkansas River Valley in central Colorado with low pinions, tall grasses and ranch land surrounded by mountain peaks. The sunset had mostly passed, but it left behind a few high pink clouds that bathed the land in a reddish hue.
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Purple flowers line canyon walls striped with bold yellows and reds at the Paint Mines in Colorado.
Details: The Paint Mines Interpretive Park is a little known gem on the eastern plains of Colorado where the forces of erosion and naturally pigmented soil combine for spectacular effect. This is one of my favorite spots for photographing the Milky Way, but it’s an incredible sight in the daylight as well. Heavy rains in early summer brought the addition of wildflowers to the canyons. This hour, when the sun has just left the canyon wall and everything is in mild shadow, is the best time to capture the colors.
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A brilliant blue sky over fields of brilliant yellow flowers on the Colorado plains in July.
Details: First, this scene is fairly rare in eastern Colorado. Usually, summers are dry, and fields like this would normally be brown by July. This year, we got an abundance of rain in late spring and early summer, and entire portions of the state have turned this brilliant shade of gold. The flowers are near their peak here, and in a week, most will be gone. I’m glad I got to capture them on this beautiful July 4th day.
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A parting evening storm leaves a rainbow dividing blue sky from rain over Cheyenne Mountain State Park in Colorado.
Details: a thunderstorm is generally not the best time to be out with the camera and a metal tripod, but right after the storm clears is usually an awesome time to photograph the majesty and power of nature. This storm was intense and left me huddling under the overhang of a park bathroom, but after it moved past, it left some incredible clouds and a rainbow. Being up on Cheyenne Mountain offered the perfect vantage point to capture everything, and the unseasonable green of the landscape testifies to the unusual amount of rain we had in late spring.
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Colorado Rock formations under the brilliant Milky Way.
Details: I absolutely love taking pictures of the Milky Way on a clear night away from city lights. This image, which has been featured by National Geographic, was taken on just such a night at a place called the Paint Mines near Calhan, Colorado. In the daylight, these formations are brilliantly banded in red, yellow and white, but at night, it’s the stars that put on a show. This view of the center of the Milky Way galaxy was captured with a 20 second exposure on a summer evening in June.
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Two brothers walk side by side along the shores of Lake Dillon deep in the Colorado Rockies.
Details: I’m a big fan of color, and I don’t often use black and white, but this scene seemed to beg for it. These are my two boys walking along the western shore of Lake Dillon near Breckenridge, Colorado on a cool but inviting day. I love how no matter where you look, the lines of the rocks, shores, mountains and trees all lead the eye to the two tiny figures in the middle. . . and I also love that it’s a picture of my boys!
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Storm clouds part to reveal an idyllic Colorado cabin reflected in an alpine lake.
Details: I love photographing water, especially the peaceful look of lakes with subtle ripples and great reflections. This scene was captured at Sawmill Reservoir near the town of Breckenridge in the Colorado Rockies. Ten minutes before, there was no sky and sun, but the clouds parted just as the sunset was beginning, and the winds from the evening storm died down to create the calm waters. This image was captured in HDR to preserve the detail in the shadows and highlights in the scene.
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The rising sun lights up a perfectly reflected Peak 8 of the Tenmile Range and the ski slopes of Breckenridge, Colorado.
Details: This is a photo that can only be captured a few weeks out of the year when the mountains are still white with snow but the waters of Sawmill Reservoir are unfrozen. Just three days before this photo, there were still large chunks of ice in the water. The reddish alpenglow on the mountains is only visible for a couple minutes just after the sun clears the horizon. The ski slopes of Breckenridge Resort are clearly seen on Peak 9 to the left.
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A pristine sunrise glows over a small alpine lake in the Colorado Rockies.
Details: I don’t like getting up at 5AM any more than the next guy, but sometimes it’s worth it. This image was taken near Breckenridge, Colorado on a fine May morning. It rained every day I was there, but the mornings provided a nice respite from the rain while still keeping enough clouds around to keep the skies interesting. Just the tiniest breeze was blowing making for a mirror-like reflection. A sublime experience!
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The shallow waters of the Virgin River run cold and clear through Zion National Park, Utah.
Details: Zion National Park is one of the most beautiful places in the entire United States with its deep, narrow canyons and marbled red and white rock walls. Running through the main part of Zion is the Virgin River. The light conditions were perfect for this shot with the creek in shadow and the mountains in the later afternoon sunlight.
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A world of contrasts is captured at sunset in Red Rock Canyon, Nevada.
Details: This is one of my personal favorites because it captures the extremes of the high desert in beautiful Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area in Nevada. The passing storm has left a layer of snow over the peaks of the Red Rock Escarpment, but down below, the desert is still warm and dry. The sky seems to reflect this transition with the peaks covered in deep blues and the desert in the pinks and purples of sunset.
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A still yucca leans toward the moon and a fast-moving night sky at Red Rock Canyon, Nevada.
Details: I love taking long-exposure shots at night, but the conditions have to be just right to get the effect you’re looking for. In this case, something rare happened–the clouds were moving at a fast clip just above, yet there was no wind to move the yucca and make it blurry. The result is a tack-sharp foreground and surreal, swirling sky. The bright dot next to the full moon is Jupiter, and the orange glow is from Las Vegas.
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Brooding storm clouds reflect the setting sun over Red Rock Canyon in Nevada.
Details: Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area is an amazing place, especially when there’s a storm nearby adding an amazing sky to the amazing rocks. This one was moving fast, and the scattered clouds were an incredible mix of light and dark as they shadowed each other and reflected the sun with the red cast of sunset. The colorful rock formation is the area known as “Calico” for obvious reasons.
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The deep red canyons of Zion National Park as seen from miles above.
Details: I’ve been trying to get this shot for years. I fly between Denver and Las Vegas fairly often, and we always pass just south of Zion National Park. I’ve been thinking this would be a great vantage point for a picture because the canyons are so amazing from this height, and a vertical shot has a sort of “edge of space” feel. It’s taken several tries, but the weather, window, sun, contrails and route all worked out nicely for this one.
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Winter trees and Pikes Peak reflected in a pond and framed by a spectacular sunset.
Details: Colorado is a beautiful place, but one thing it’s lacking is bodies of water. This duck pond lies in a park near Colorado Springs and stays frozen most of the winter, but after two days of unseasonable 60 degree temperatures in February, much of the ice had melted. A slight breeze added the perfect amount of ripple, and the clouds just kept turning redder and redder. This image was taken right at the peak of the color and light.
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A Saturn rocket reflected in polished granite on a beautiful autumn day.
Details: The northern Alabama welcome center along the border with Tennessee is home to a series of war memorials and a Saturn 1B rocket to honor the state’s fallen as well as its contributions to the nation’s space program. I didn’t plan this shot, it more or less appeared as I was looking at the names on the granite wall of the Vietnam memorial. I didn’t even notice until I got home that three most visible names are “Moon,” “Young” and “Bright,” which for me tie together these two vastly different symbols of the 1960s and give cause for reflection.
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A massive Saturn V rocket points longingly toward a deep blue sky.
Details: the Saturn V, the rocket that sent the astronauts to the moon, was the largest rocket ever launched, and it stands more than 300 feet tall. This image was taken at the Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama, the only place in the world where you can see an upright Saturn V. I needed a very wide angle lens (11mm) to get the whole rocket in this shot, and I love the way the wide angle makes it seem to tower over everything like it does when you’re standing there.
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The red light of dawn illuminates pikes peak between the massive red rock formations of Garden of the Gods in Colorado
Details: Every clear morning just at sunrise, the sun’s first rays make 14,000 foot Pikes Peak glow brilliant red. This lasts for only a couple minutes before the peak returns to its normal gray, and it’s tough to catch a day where both the peak and clouds light up (normally clouds obscure the rays lighting the peak), but this was just such a morning caught from the eastern side of Garden of the Gods Park in Colorado Springs on a clear September morning.
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Panorama of golden aspens in a Rocky Mountain valley in the fall
Details: Fall is an amazing (and amazingly brief) time of year in Colorado. The aspens turn bright gold and orange, but only for a couple brief weeks before the snows hit. This scene was captured the last week of September in a place known as “the Crags” in the Pike National Forest near Cripple Creek, Colorado. The Rocky Mountains are home to some brilliant blue skies, and these make the gold of the aspens really pop!
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The defiant trunk of an old tree stands tall as the clouds part to reveal the much older Milky Way on a crisp Colorado night.
Details: After enduring rain and lightning at sunset, the clouds finally parted to reveal the Milky Way and a host of stars over Grouse Mountain in Mueller State Park in the Colorado Rockies. This is one of my favorite photo spots, but this was the first time I’d been up here at night. The opportunity was well worth the hike in the dark!
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An old twisted tree on a mountaintop stands boldly in the face of an approaching storm after sunset in the Rocky Mountains.
Details: Just after sunset is an awesome time for photography as you can extend the exposures and open up some awesome possibilities for an image. In this case, an approaching thunderstorm brings fast moving clouds lit purple from the day’s last light, and a lightning bolt adds the glow behind the tree. This scene was captured on top of Grouse Mountain in Mueller State Park, Colorado.
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Brooding sunset clouds are perfectly reflected through bare trees at Red Rock Canyon Open Space, Colorado.
Details: I had been telling my 10-year-old son I’d take him out on Friday night to get some pictures. By the time Friday night rolled around, I was exhausted from a long week, and it was raining. While my son understood when I told him “not tonight,” I could tell he was pretty disappointed. It gave me a second wind, and we went out despite the lingering rain clouds, and I owe this picture all to him! The sun snuck under the clearing clouds for just a few minutes after sunset, and we were lucky enough to have the perfect spot at Red Rock Canyon Open Space to catch it and a great reflection among the red rocks. As evidenced by the trees, this area is not normally covered in water, but a rainier-than-normal summer made this scene possible.
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Lightning bursts over Elephant Rock at night in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada.
Details: Valley of Fire, northeast of Las Vegas, Nevada, is one of the neatest State Parks I’ve ever been to–it’s chock full of red sandstone formations and arches like aptly named Elephant Rock seen here. I came to this spot hoping for some good Milky Way shots, but an unexpected evening storm made an even more amazing backdrop for this cool scene. This image took nearly an hour of patient shooting of long exposures to get the dramatic bolt seen here. Because the night was pitch black in-between strikes, I used a technique called “light painting” to capture the detail of the rock formation–it’s a manual process and tedious when you’re taking dozens of long-exposure shots, but in this case it was well worth it!
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A lightning bolt adds powerful color to the sunset over Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada.
Details: Shooting lightning is an exercise in both speed and patience, but the results can be very rewarding. Because of the low light, I was able to take long exposures and hope for a good strike. There were many failures before this success! Believe it or not, there is very little color manipulation in the image–the lightning was indeed pink which made it a perfect compliment to the sunset! This scene was captured on a July evening at Nevada’s Valley of Fire State Park near Lake Mead.
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Wild asters line a high alpine meadow in the shadow of Colorado’s San Juan Mountains.
Details: Dallas Creek runs down from the San Juans through the Uncompahgre National Forest in southwestern Colorado, and unusually abundant rains have kept the flowers in the meadows surrounding the creek well into August. Evening has left the meadow in shadow while illuminating Mt Sneffels and the rest of the San Juan range. I stumbled across bear prints to get to this spot, and I was glad for the smoke of the nearby campsite which can be seen in the middle of the image. This scene was captured in HDR to preserve the delicate details of the flowers in shadow as well as the intensity of the sunlit mountains.
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A beaver pond perfectly reflects the jagged peaks of Colorado’s San Juan Mountains on a summer evening.
Details: 14,000 foot Mt Sneffels dominates this view taken from the Uncompahgre National Forest in August. A beaver conveniently built this dam on Dallas Creek which turned the otherwise rapid-moving stream into an amazing reflecting pool. I pretty much ruined a brand-new pair of shoes which sank into the mud here, but I believe the shot was worth it!
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A magnificent summer sunset lights up the sky over Ridgway State Park in Colorado.
Details: This vista is high up on a cliff above Ridgway Reservoir in southwestern Colorado. I was hoping for a shot into the direct sun, but it stayed hidden making for some beautiful rays and colors shining out from the fast-moving clouds. To get this view, my camera was perched precariously on a rock jutting out from the cliff, and I spent a lot of time not looking down! This image was captured in HDR to preserve the scene’s delicate details in the highlights and shadows.
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The last light of the setting sun illuminates the San Juan Mountains over Ridgway Reservoir in Colorado.
Details: Ridgway State Park, in southwestern Colorado, is a magnificent place surrounded by Colorado’s most beautiful mountain ranges. In this August sunset view, the Cimarrons to the east (left) are lit up brilliant red as are the the edges of the San Juans to the south as an evening storm delivers a bit of rain behind the peaks. To get this shot, I climbed out onto the edge of a cliff with my tripod just barely hanging on. This red glow on the otherwise gray mountains lasts only a few minutes each day.
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A stormy sunset illuminates the summer sky above the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Details: The United States Air Force Academy is a beautiful place set up against the mountains. This view is from a trail overlooking the 11th fairway of the Eisenhower Golf Course’s Silver Course, and the cadet area and distinctive chapel can be seen on the ridge. A wetter-than-usual summer brought a lot more green than brown to this scene, and the purple and orange sky provides a perfect compliment to the beautiful landscape.
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Dan Bourque is a landscape photographer, father and husband who enjoys finding ways to capture natural beauty in amazing landscapes as well as beautiful moments in everyday scenes. His work has been featured in National Geographic. He believes planning, patience and constant self-critiquing of photos are the keys to getting beautiful images, not expensive gear. Every camera and lens he owns is second-hand, outdated, and scoffed at by those with money to burn. . .