Mountains – Page 2 – Dan Bourque Photography

Archive by category "Mountains" (Page 2)

Evening Storm Approaching

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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Vibrant Reflections

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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Asters in Mountain Shadows

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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San Juan Reflections

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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Ranges over Ridgway

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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Sunset over the Air Force Academy

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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Purple Mountains Amber Waves

Rays from the evening sun illuminate waves of grain in Colorado as Pikes Peak looks on in the distance.

Details: I imagine a scene like this is what inspired Katharine Lee Bates to pen the words to “America the Beautiful” here in Colorado. I’ve been wanting to catch this photo for over a year, but it’s tough to get the right conditions in Colorado. This year had more rain than most through June allowing the fields of hay to grow unusually thick, and the afternoon storms of this July day cleared off just enough to catch the sun’s rays backlighting this field near Falcon, Colorado. Sublime!

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Surreal Skies over Death Valley

Brilliant pink and purple clouds illuminate the skies at sunset over Death Valley National Park, California.

Details: Sometimes I have a hard time believing the beauty of what I’m seeing, and this June evening in Death Valley National Park was one of them. Looking at the skies an hour before, I didn’t think it was going to be a good sunset, but once the sun got under the clouds, it just kept illuminating more of them in brilliant pinks and oranges all around (this is looking south). My jaw was dropped for nearly 20 minutes before the color finally departed. The “rocks” in the foreground are actually salt formations in the area known as the Devils Golf Course which lies below sea level.

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Colorful Death Valley

The setting sun momentarily transforms mountain peaks and skies with splashes of bold color in Death Valley National Park, California.

Details: Just an hour before, the clouds completely obscured the sun (which was nice on such a hot day in June), but just before setting, rays of the sun lit the Death Valley’s eastern mountains in red and painted the clouds. The unique salt formations in the foreground belong to the so-called Devils Golf Course near Badwater, the lowest point in North America. This image was captured in HDR to preserve the delicate highlight and shadow detail in this scene.

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Milky Way over Death Valley

The Milky Way rises like a rocket plume over the salt flats of Death Valley National Park, California.

Details: I’m not much of an underwater photographer, but this is one of my first efforts below sea level ;-). Besides its low elevation, Death Valley is also known for its dark skies which make for excellent viewing of the Milky Way on moonless nights like this one in June–the glow on the horizon is from Las Vegas more than 90 miles away. In the foreground are the salt formations of the so-called Devils Golf Course near Badwater, the lowest point in North America. The formations are lit using a technique called “light painting” using a light source swept over the scene during the 30-second exposure. This shot was taken around 3 AM, and despite the time, it was still 99 degrees out!

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Heavens Rolled Back

Rolling clouds burst over the setting sun and Garden of the Gods.

Details: In Colorado, there’s a saying “if you don’t like the weather, just wait 10 minutes.” Only an hour before this shot was taken on a June evening in Colorado Springs, the sky was completely overcast, and I was hunkered down in my car in a parking lot in Garden of the Gods to escape the rain and lightning. I was just beginning to think this evening was a lost cause, but as so often happens in Colorado, in a matter of minutes the sun came out, the clouds began to clear, and after a little hiking, I was able to catch this amazing sunset! This image was captured in HDR to preserve the delicate highlight and shadow detail in this scene.

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Sunset over Coal Creek

Orange and pink rays light up the Colorado sky over Coal Creek at sunset

Details: This scene was captured near Crested Butte, Colorado in April when runoff from the snow-covered peaks made the small creek swell. Only two minutes before, there was no sunset to speak of, but then the sun cleared the underside of the clouds to create this heavenly scene. A longish (1/2 sec) exposure softened the falls and ripples of the creek adding to the serenity of the scene.

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Hard Rocks Covered in Soft Sunset

Brilliant pink clouds cast their glow on red and white formations at Garden of the Gods in Colorado

Details: This image was captured at the peak of this sunset on a March day in Garden of the Gods Park in Colorado Springs. This hard-to-reach ridge offers a great vista of the central garden area including the famous Kissing Camels formation on the right edge. This image is captured in HDR to preserve the detail of the shadowy foreground and the bright sky highlights.

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The Next Ridge Over

Garden of the Gods framed by white granite and a whimsical blue sky.

Details: This image was taken from an out-of-the-way outcropping north of the central garden area of the Garden of the Gods on a nice March day in Colorado. Even though it’s winter, I love the color brought in by the pine trees, red rocks and brilliant blue sky, and I love the fanciful shapes the clouds take just before sunset.

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Star Flurries over Poncha

Star trails swirl above the lights of Poncha Springs, Colorado like snow flurries in the night.

Details: this image is the result of more than 75 minutes of exposure time and shows just how much the stars move in an hour. The camera is on a ridge overlooking the small (but bright) town of Poncha Springs and is pointed northwest toward the 14,000 foot Mount Antero and the continental divide on this cold and clear November night.

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Glory Behind the Rocks

A heavenly swirl of storm clouds and golden linings shines from behind the brilliant red formations of Garden of the Gods in Colorado.

Details: This photo was taken from a seldom-traveled trail on the east side of Garden of the Gods Park near Colorado Springs. I was just hiking by on my way up to a ridge but was struck by the dramatic scene with the storm clouds and sun hiding just behind the Kissing Camels formation. To capture the shadow detail in this heavily back-lit scene, I shot three exposures and blended them using a technique called HDR to preserve the detail and color.

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Golden Clouds Above Kissing Camels

The twisted branches of an ancient juniper frame Pikes Peak and the Kissing Camels of Garden of the Gods as the sun sets leaving traces of gold in the clouds.

Details: This photo was taken at the same spot as this image but at sunset instead of sunrise. The remnants of an afternoon thunderstorm make a nice canvas for the sun, which has just set, to paint. I love the colors in this image, from the gold and silver in the clouds, to the brilliant orange rocks, to the green of the junipers and the deep purple of Pikes Peak. I also like the sense of motion provided by the clouds and how it contrasts with the stillness of the rocks and the old branches. To capture all the color and detail in the highlights and shadows in this shot, I captured it using three exposures and HDR processing.

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Sunflowers in the Garden

Brilliant yellow flowers lie between the red-rock monoliths of Garden of the Gods Park in Colorado.

Details: Sunflowers aren’t very prolific in Garden of the Gods, but an unusually rainy summer has left a stand of them in the middle of the enormous red rocks of the central gardens. An afternoon storm is just clearing allowing the sun to cast the red rocks in a bright orange which contrasts with the dark storm clouds behind. This HDR image uses three exposures to capture the delicate highlight and shadow detail of this scene.

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A Stroll into the Sun

For just a few moments, the setting sun dips beneath the clouds to illuminate a path in the Garden of the Gods while Pikes Peak looks on.

Details: As I’ve said with other photos, I love to point the camera directly at the sun. In this instance, I only had a couple of minutes to work with as a clearing storm revealed the sun just before it dipped below the mountains. I love the way the rays from the sun and the shadow of the fence play in this composition which was taken from the central gardens area of the Garden of the Gods near Colorado Springs, Colorado. Capturing this image in HDR ensured both the highlight and shadow detail could be maintained.

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Sunset on the Old Ent

The setting sun shines beneath the twisted arms of an ancient tree atop Grouse Mountain in Colorado.

Details: while I shot many images from this rock outcropping on Grouse Mountain in Mueller State Park in Colorado during this hike, this old tree was the target for the outing. I just love how it stands defiant, rooted in granite, and from this vantage, its arms take on a haunting human-like quality, like an old Ent from the Lord of the Rings. The golden sun rays and wispy clouds were a wonderful gift to the composition which was captured in HDR to preserve the highlight and shadow detail.

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Silver Linings over Endless Views

The evening sun shines through wispy clouds and casts long shadows on the rocky outcrops of Grouse Mountain in Colorado.

Details: this image, taken from the end of the Grouse Mountain Trail in Mueller State Park, Colorado, captures the last few moments of sunlight before the sun disappeared behind clouds on the horizon. The high clouds are the remnants of an afternoon thunderstorm that left the trail wet but well worth the hike. This HDR image uses three exposures to preserve the delicate highlights in the clouds and the detail in the shadows of the granite.

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Lightning Strike on the Peak at Sunset

A bolt of lightning strikes the shoulder of Pikes Peak from purple clouds trying to extinguish the orange glow of sunset over Garden of the Gods.

Details: lightning bolts are difficult to capture, but this one near Colorado Springs cooperated nicely against the sunset just peeking in under the storm. Pikes Peak in its purple glory is clearly seen from the Garden of the Gods where this was taken. I got soaked on the hike back to my car, but it was worth it! This HDR image combines three different exposures of the same scene to capture and preserve shadow and highlight detail.

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Evening Clouds over the Garden

Dramatic evening clouds reflect the sunset over the Garden of the Gods in Colorado.

Details: a rock outcropping deep within the Garden of the Gods park in Colorado Springs offers a splendid view of the central gardens and the beautiful clouds on this July evening. This is an HDR image which uses three exposures to best capture the shadow and highlight detail of this scene.

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Sun Rays on Red Rock Spires

Red rock spires watch the last rays of the sun as it sets over Garden of the Gods, Colorado.

Details: this image was captured from the central gardens area of the Garden of the Gods Park near Colorado Springs. It’s an HDR image which merges three exposures to preserve shadow and highlight detail in high-contrast lighting conditions such as this.

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Storm Clouds over the Garden Wall

Dark clouds cast a tapestry of light and shadows over the Garden Wall at Logan Pass in Glacier National Park.

Details: a brief ray of light breaks through the clouds of a summer storm gathering over Logan Pass, Montana along Going to the Sun Road bringing out the color and detail of this stunning landscape.

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Brooding St Mary

Sun streams through stormy clouds over Upper St Mary’s Lake in Glacier National Park

Details: I visited St Mary’s Lake several times over the course of a week, and every time the lake displayed a distinctively different mood. On this summer day, the sun fights with storm clouds to illuminate the turquoise waters and majestic peaks.

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Beauty Between Twisted Arms

The twisted arms of an ancient juniper frame the red rocks of Garden of the Gods as Pikes Peak glows purple with the first light of daybreak.

Details: on clear mornings, the red-shifted light of the sun’s first rays turns the top of Pikes Peak pink and purple for a few minutes which adds to the colorful display of red rock and green trees in the Garden of the Gods. the famous “Kissing Camels” can be seen clearly atop the formation on the right. This photo is a single exposure taken by a wide-angle lens on a late-May morning.

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All images and graphics are the property of the photographer and should not be used without permission. All Images copyright Dan Bourque