Gothic Valley Sunset
Avery Peak glows in sunset light beyond fields of corn lilies outside of Gothic, Colorado.
6/25/2008 8:22:55 PM – Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, EF16-35mm f/2.8L II USM at 27 mm, 1/2 at f/16

I went all the way back to 2008 to find this image from around Crested Butte, Colorado. It is among many that have never been processed! I was needing a mountain image and thought it would be nice to have one with spring color in it. The valley up from the town of Gothic is especially stunning after the snow melts and the roads open. The greenery seems to glow with corn lilies covering the hillsides.

This was a beautiful sunset with clouds catching the evening color. The red sides of Avery Peak on the right take on even more of a glow with the setting sun shining on them. Dorothy Peak is on the right side with a couple of unnamed peaks over 13,000 feet in the middle. I can’t wait to get over to the Crested Butte area in a couple of weeks to see how the colors are this spring!

The Eggs of Bisti
The setting sun highlights the rock formations at the Egg Factory in the Bisti Wilderness Area in New Mexico.
4/17/2012 7:33:32 PM – Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, EF16-35mm f/2.8L II USM at 19 mm, 1/2 at f/16

The Bisti Wilderness Area in northeastern New Mexico is an amazing place. I spent an evening and morning there earlier this month on my way back from a trip out to California. I had never been there before, but had the GPS coordinates for most of the interesting features in the area. You would spend hours trying to find them on your own! Hoodoos, wings, and strange rocks of all colors are spread around the area. I got there with just a couple of hours remaining before sunset, so I headed straight for this area called the Egg Factory. The clouds had been building up nicely in the afternoon and I was looking forward to an awesome sunset. After hiking a mile and a half, I crested a hill and there the rocks were. I wandered around looking for compositions and got my equipment setup. This is one of the first shots I took. I really liked the warm colors from the setting sun on the “eggs”. I took a couple of other shots and then setup my sunset shot. Unfortunately, the clouds began to dissipate quickly and were gone by last light!

Gentle Flow
Medano Creek flows past the Great Sand Dunes towards the San Luis Valley at sunset in southern Colorado.
4/19/2012 7:34:08 PM – Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM at 24 mm, .8″ at f/16

Medano Creek is a seasonal stream that flows down from the Sangre de Christo Mountains into the San Luis Valley. It flows past the Great Sand Dunes at times up to twenty feet wide. It is generally only a couple of inches deep, but the sand can cause surges that make waves up to twelve inches high. I stopped there last week to shoot sunset on my way back home from out west. As usual, it was windier than heck! I wandered around the dunes looking for a composition, but it was obvious I either needed to be on the top of the dunes or back away from them to get the setting sun at a good spot. There wasn’t enough time to get to the top so I kept working my way to the south. I finally ended up standing in the middle of the stream! I like how the warm sunset colors are reflected in the gently flowing water.

Sitting Pretty
Bonsai Rock sits in the calm waters of Lake Tahoe at sunrise in California.
4/16/2012 6:27:28 AM – Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, EF16-35mm f/2.8L II USM at 18 mm, 1.6″ at f/16

I just returned last week from a whirlwind trip to Death Valley, Lake Tahoe, Bisti, and Shiprock. My good friend Luke Tingley and a friend of his were flying into Las Vegas for a conference and had a few days to shoot, so I offered to pick them up and be the driver. The first stop was Death Valley, but after checking out the salt flats and being disappointed with the polygons, we headed to the Racetrack. Sunset was a bust and it just seemed like our opportunities in the park were limited with as little time as we had. We decided to head out to Lake Tahoe first thing in the morning. I hadn’t been to Lake Tahoe before and was looking forward to something new. The lake is absolutely beautiful! I hadn’t scoped out any shots of the area, but Luke knew where to go. We spent a couple of evenings and mornings shooting Bonsai Rock from the rocky shoreline. Every time was something different whether it was rough waters or cloudy skies. The last morning though we were treated to both calm water and a nice pink sunrise. I grabbed this horizontal shot to process this morning. I am really pleased with how it came out. I actually took more vertical shots, but went with this one to start. More to come!

Middle Creek Falls
Middle Creek Falls flows at full force with water from melting snow pack outside of Crested Butte, Colorado.
7/20/2009 9:09:39 AM – Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, EF16-35mm f/2.8L II USM at 24 mm, 1″ at f/16

I have been out shooting for a couple of weeks and thought it was about time I posted something new! I grabbed this shot from a few years ago that was taken while hiking above Lost Lake in the Gunnison National Forest. Middle Creek flows down the side of East Beckwith Mountain. The water was flowing nicely in late July and made for perfect conditions for shooting the falls. I have been there earlier in the year and it is nearly impossible to get a shot because of the spray and wet rocks. The hike up to these falls starts down at Lost Lake Slough (the larger lake) and climbs past the falls up to Dollar Lake. It is a wonderful hike with gorgeous views out to the north.

Evening Kiss
The last light of the day kisses the peak of Crested Butte outside of Crested Butte, Colorado.
6/8/2010 8:23:50 PM – Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, EF70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM at 175 mm, 1/2 at f/13

I love shooting around Crested Butte. There is a lot of variety to be had with all the roads and valleys to explore. In particular I always find myself drawn to Washington Gulch northwest of town. There is a magnificent view of the valley from at the very top and one of my personal favorite images is from there. This evening things looked like they were coming together for a nice sunset but, as the end of the day drew near, the clouds began to dissipate. Rats! So I decided to put on my 70-200 and capture what clouds remained behind Crested Butte itself. It turns out that I like it. It is something different which is good!

Mulesear Morning
Early morning light shines on the Organ with bright yellow flowers in the foreground at Arches National Park in Utah.
5/18/2010 7:18:24 AM – Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, TS-E17mm f/4L at 17 mm, 1/160 at f/16

Springtime in Arches National Park in Utah is a gorgeous time. Bunches of yellow and red wildflowers provide a stunning contrast to the red rock formations. I was first exposed to this by friend and photographer Rene Pirolt. We took a trip over there in May of 2010. I decided to finally have a look at some of my images this morning. I forgot what a productive trip it was! This was taken shortly after I had picked up my 17mm tilt-shift lens. It was fun getting up close to the flowers and the formations for some different compositions.

Rocky Flow
White Owl Creek flows over a rock ledge in the Flat Tops area of western Colorado.
8/3/2009 5:14:04 PM – Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM at 32 mm, 1″ at f/16

White Owl Creek is a tiny little stream that flows from White Owl Lake high up on a mesa in the Flat Tops area of western Colorado. It tumbles down a series of rock ledges to meet up with Deep Creek down below which ultimately flows into the Colorado River about 3,500 feet lower. Access to the mesa is via Coffee Pot Road which winds its way up 4,000 feet from the valley below. The views from on top are amazing. On a clear day you can see practically from one side of the state to the other, picking out notable mountain peaks in the distance. Every time I have been up there I have not been able to get the right conditions to get a good panoramic shot. The creek itself is a real joy to shoot. It drops over rocky ledges in a myriad of falls and cascades. Hours can be spent capturing multitudes of compositions!

Fury of Fish Creek Falls
Early summer runoff plunges over Fish Creek Falls in Steamboat Springs, Colorado.
6/23/2010 8:15:14 PM – Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, EF24-70mm f/2.8L USM at 43 mm, 1/3 at f/11

Fish Creek Falls is just crazy in spring and early summer. The runoff plunges over the falls and down a narrow canyon. With as much force as it has, it is hard to believe that everything isn’t scoured away! I was in Steamboat Springs with my friend Nat Coalson and we were able to spend time shooting with local photographer and friend Rod Hanna. I had been to the area previously but it was really nice to have Rod show us around for a couple of days. Earlier this day, Rod and I hiked up to Upper Fish Creek Falls to see how they looked. They were flowing like crazy and would have made for some nice shots, but we couldn’t get a break from the clouds. This shot is from one of the viewing areas up above the stream. I hadn’t ever been here and I thought it made for a nice composition of the falls and the mountain in the distance. Of course, some dramatic clouds would have been nice to have as the sun set, but the warm glow still made for a nice image!

Morning Cloud Magic
A towering cloud rises above Augusta and Purple Mountains and is reflected in a beaver pond outside of Crested Butte, Colorado.
6/10/2010 6:18:36 AM – Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, EF24-70mm f/2.8L USM at 62 mm, 1/6 at f/16

As is true with most of the mornings in Colorado, there wasn’t much in the way in clouds when I was out at sunrise this day. I setup at a large beaver pond next to the Slate River outside of Crested Butte and watched what few there were move around in the predawn light. As the sun started to reach over the mountains to the east, this cloud began to build above Augusta Mountain. I switched my position to frame it reflected in the calm waters on the pond. Shortly after I got this shot, the beaver came out and entertained me for an hour and a half. Good thing he didn’t get up any earlier or else a reflection shot would have been out of the question!