Supercell Mania

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Night Approaches : Prints Available

Tornadic supercell at sunset in western Kansas, May 11, 2014.

Every May, I set aside a week or so for an annual trip to Tornado Alley in search of monster storms and tornadoes. As has been my (lack of) luck the past couple years, tornadoes have been in bit of a drought this year, and despite being near tornado-warned storms 6 of the seven days that I have chased so far this May, I came up short in catching any photogenic tornadoes. For the last segment of my trip, I drove nearly seven hundred miles southward into Texas, only to see the one photogenic tornado of the day hit way up in North Dakota. Such are the trials and tribulations of storm-chasing…it aint Twister!

I warmed up my season with a one day solo trip into western Kansas, where I caught this beautiful storm at sunset. Then, for my official week of leave, I teamed up with a coworker from the Pueblo National Weather Service, and we headed up into the Nebraska Panhandle, then into the Denver area of our home state. The highlight of that trip was intercepting this monstrous storm just outside the Denver metro area.

Closing the Airport : Prints Available

Tornadic supercell near Denver International Airport, May 21

After a day off back in Pueblo, I hit the road solo once again, and played the upslope in southeastern New Mexico, then the Midland, Texas area. The first couple days were a bit of a dissapointment, but my final day took me down to San Angelo for this amazing storm that developed near Andrews, tracking southeast towards the Texas hill country. Despite the massive numbers of storm chasers and local gawkers on the road, the storm put on quite a show, with terrific structure and a rain-wrapped tornado (which I could not photograph!). Highlights of that intercept below. Hopefully Ill get another chance or two on days off this June to get out for another shot at the elusive twister!

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Death Awaits : Prints Available

Tornadic storm beyond a cemetary in Westbrook, Texas


Stormy Birds : Prints Available

Birds ride the rising air currents surrounding this monster storm.


Lead Cell : Prints Available

Massive storm charges through Texas farmland.


Convergence : Prints Available

Chasers line the road as the monster supercell marches eastward.


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Deer Supercell : Prints Available

Massive tornadic storm marches down highway 87 in central Texas, May 26, 2014. Deer carcas in foreground, thousands of storm chasers on the road.

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Medano’s Return

sunset, Medano, Great Sand Dunes, Colorado

Medao Epiphany : Prints Available

Beautiful sunset in April at Medano Creek.

Every spring, usually in early to mid April, I make a pilgrimage to my favorite National Park to catch the return of Medano Creek. The creek is a shallow (usually only inches) stream that flows down the east side of the Great Sand Dunes each spring, fed by the melting snows of the Sangre De Cristo Range. The creek usually only flows for a few months; often it dries out by late summer unless there are some heavy monsoonal rains. The past few years it has been choked by black ash and tar from a big forest fire a few years back–but this year it is looking relatively clean. I spent a few hours in the afternoon just watching the complex wave and flow patterns in the creek, and taking some abstract photos.

Creek Lights : Prints Available

Medano Creek, Great Sand Dunes, Colorado

Marbled Medano : Prints Available

Abstract patterns in Medano Creek.

Then, a couple hours before sunset, I hiked to the creek’s end, where it disappears into the sand. I scouted for a good sunset composition, and took shots of the creek and snow-capped Mount Herard in the distance. A lenticular cloud above Herard was particularly attractive.

April Flows : Prints Available

Sunset was brief, with only local flashes of color, so I used a telephoto lens to focus on the small section of brilliant color in the sky and creek reflections. Another spectacular return of beloved Medano Creek! May it flow swift and deep this year.

Last Chance : Prints Available

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Why I Love Fog

Barr Trail, Manitou Springs, Colorado

Sunday on the Barr : Prints Available

Hiking up through dense fog on the Barr Trail, after a light overnight snowfall in March.

I was working a night shift, forecasting the weather for our area in southeast Colorado. A quick moving snow storm was moving through the state, and typical of the storms this winter, the storm was a bit of an underachiever. But, it occurred to me that a light overnight snowfall followed by rapidly clearing conditions aloft was a classic recipe for fog in this part of the country. In addition, the winds looked like they would stay from the southeast much of the following morning. Southeast winds are up-slope along the Rampart Range west of Colorado Springs, and tend to really reinforce foggy conditions along the lower slopes of the range. So, I went home and charged my camera batteries, then set the alarm clock for an early rise. After a bit more than four hours of sleep, I woke and made the trio north towards Colorado Springs. My Initial plan was to photograph Garden of the Gods in the clearing conditions that I expected.

Barr Trail, Manitou Springs, Colorado

Pikes Peak Atmosphere : Prints Available

Barr Trail, Manitou Springs, Colorado

Fog, Moon, Snow : Prints Available

I got to the Garden of Gods exit and turned towards the park. I got close to the visitor center and encountered police lights ahead of me on the icy, snow-covered road. I hit the breaks and slid down the road, narrowly avoiding one of the patrol cars that was stopped for a previous accident. I was not anxious at this point to climb the steep road to an overlook of the park in my 2WD vehicle with worn tires, so I continued along the main road towards the inner area of the park. Sunrise was only 15-20 minutes away, and there was now enough light that it became obvious that the fog was not going to clear by sunrise–it was just too dense. I decided to continue west towards Manitou Springs, with ‘Plan B’ in mind–head up highway 24 towards Woodland Park, with the idea of getting above the clouds to photograph the slopes of Pikes Peak. In the past, this would have been much easier–simply head up the steep narrow Rampart Range Road. Unfortunately, this road has been closed since the catastrophic Waldo Canyon Fire, so I needed to simply get high enough to clear the clouds. Highway 24 climbs from around 6500 feet to over 8000 feet as it heads north, and I knew this would do the trick.

Barr Trail, Manitou Springs, Colorado

March Visions : Prints Available

Snow covered trees and fog on the Barr Trail, March, 2014.

It was now close to sunrise; still foggy! I got just before the exit off Highway 24 to the Pikes Peak town of Manitou Springs, and the sign ahead said “lane closure ahead–expect delays.”
I had to make another split-second decision, continue on and risk being stuck in traffic, or go for ‘Plan C’. I realized that it had been a while since I had been on the Barr Trail–the long trail that climbs 7000 feet up the southeast slopes of Pikes Peak. Its the trail used by runners in the annual Pikes Peak Marathon and Ascent. I quickly made the exit into town, and headed up Ruxton Avenue to get to the trail head. This road was icy too, and I didn’t want to risk the last steep section to the trail, so I parked farther down the road and hiked up the road past the Cog Railway station to begin my ascent up the trail. It was still foggy, but it didn’t take long before I started seeing some clearing conditions ahead–maybe a mile up the trail.

Barr Trail, Manitou Springs, Colorado

Transitions on Barr : Prints Available

Barr Trail, Manitou Springs, Colorado

Let There Be Light : Prints Available

It was a Sunday morning, and some early risers were already doing their daily training on the Barr Trail. A couple trail runners descended the trail ahead of me, and as they jogged past they exhorted me to climb a bit higher for even better views of the terrific atmosphere.

Barr Trail, Manitou Springs, Colorado

Above the Clouds : Prints Available

View from above the fog on Pikes Peak’s Barr Trail.

Barr Trail, Manitou Springs, Colorado

Barr Trail Dream : Prints Available

Quarter moon appears in the distance through fog clearing from the Barr Trail on Pikes Peak.

As I finally got above the clouds, about two miles up the trail, the grand scene unfolded below me as the fog layer swirled through the canyon and gradually lifted. I stopped to take some time lapse of the scene–this video clip can be seen in my recent time lapse project, “Winter All Around Us”, which I wrote about in my most recent blog post.

Barr Trail, Manitou Springs, Colorado

Pikes Peak Epiphany : Prints Available

Sun trying to burn off the fog on the Barr Trail in Manitou Springs.

Barr Trail, Manitou Springs, Colorado

Barr None : Prints Available

Magnificent foggy atmosphere on Pikes Peak’s Barr Trail after a light snowfall. March, 2014.

As I descended, it seemed like scores of trail runners were now ascending the trail for their Sunday morning workout. On woman stopped briefly as she noticed my tripod and camera gear set up along side the trail, and remarked, “smart man!” Another remarked, “we’ll see your photos in the paper!” No, not smart–just a benefit of knowing a bit about the weather of this area. And you wont see the photos i the paper–just here in my blog 😉 I shared their enthusiasm though–it was a terrific Sunday morning to spend on Pikes Peak!

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Winter All Around Us

Garden of the Gods,Colorado

The Gods Deliver : Prints Available

Sunrise overlooking the Garden of the Gods, December 2013.

Last year, I wrote a song about winter–winter as a metaphor for overcoming adversity. I recorded the song in the fall, with Gina Rose as lead singer, at Mace’s Hole recording studio in Beulah, Colorado.
Then, I spent the next four months filming video and time lapse throughout my home state of Colorado, primarily using my 5Dmkii for the stills. It was a terrific experience, and I got to see a lot of great Colorado winter including snow storms, bitter cold, and high winds. The video and song can be seen at my Vimeo site, here:

Here is a list and brief description of the scenes in the video, in order of appearance. Time lapses generally ran from a few minutes to an hour–the toughest part was trying to stay warm during the lapses!

1) Maroon Bells, Aspen, Colorado. I wrote about this trip in my blog post in November.
2) Crater Lake, Maroon Bells, Aspen. While I was shooting this sequence, an older couple walked by on snowshoes, and we had a discussion about time lapse–Robert Fricke and his films.
3) West Maroon Creek, and the Bells (Aspen). As a meteorologist, I love the way time lapse really shows you wind motion and the fluid nature of air. This was taken he same afternoon as the first sequences–thanks to the low dynamic range of afternoon light–the tough shots were yet to come!
4) Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs. I was the only one in this popular park this morning–the temperature was well below zero and it was after a fresh snowfall that made the windy narrow roads in the park quite a challenging drive with my 2WD Focus!
5) Monarch Pass. A surprise snow squall hit as I headed east over the pass–and I barely made it over!
I pulled over near the summit to shoot this video of the snow.
6) Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs. The classic overlook shot at sunrise. I was joined by a couple other photographers, including my good friend Todd Caudle. If I recall, the temperature was ten below zero Fahrenheit–so it was a chilly wait!
7) Lake Pueblo. Every winter, if it falls below zero overnight, I know to head to the local reservoir
to experience the steam fog that rises over the relatively warm lake. All of my Lake Pueblo shots were taken on one very cold (subzero) morning, on the north shore of the lake.
8) Paint Mines Interpretive Park, Calhan. I found this frozen pond on a short hike in the park, and shot the rising full moon.
9) Siamese Twins, Garden of the Gods. The toughest technical sequence of the video. I used no exposure software, so had to manually adjust each still for a smooth sequence–quite a challenge! As I was shooting this scene of Pikes Peak (The summit house light can be seen at the top of the 14,000+ foot peak) a group of teenagers gathered nearby and indulged in some of Colorado’s newest cash crop–but they were respectfully quiet! 🙂
10) Arkansas River, Swallows. About a one mile hike to the river. Large chunks of ice flowed downstream, and at one point, a couple beavers (otters?) floated by in the current–unfortunately they must have blurred out in the long exposures here.
11) Arkansas River, Five Points. Part of the recreation area upstream of Canon City. Another bitter cod morning.
12) Barr Trail, Pikes Peak. I hiked a couple miles up trail this foggy March morning after a fresh light snowfall. As I descended I dodged trail runners headed uphill. The toughest part was walking back down Ruxton Ave on the icy streets back to my car.
13) Rocky Mountain National Park, Lily Lake. Bear Lake road was blocked by five foot snow drifts, so I headed to Lily Lake and hid behind a tree to shelter myself from the 70 mph winds. It was fascinating watching snow blow across the frozen lake.
14) Green Mountain Falls. A couple short videos of the frozen cascades coming down the east side of Pikes Peak. I cut my hand after slipping on the icy trail to the falls–fortunately there was plenty of icy water to clean the wound!
15) Green Mountain Falls, Crystal Falls in early winter.
16) Rocky Mountain National Park. I shot this the evening before #13, when the Bear Lake road was still clear of drifts–but the wind was still howling! I trudged through a couple feet of snow to set up my tripod to catch this windy sunset from Moraine Park.
17) Lake Pueblo, steam fog.
18) Siamese Twins, Garden of the Gods. Same spot as #9, this time at sunrise.
19) Maysville. Coming down from Monarch Pass, I pulled over to shoot some video of the clearing snow storm.
20) Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. View at sunset from Rock Point, a couple miles up the (closed in winter) south rim road.
21) Black Canyon, a few minutes later–the moonrise. Nothing but coyotes keeping me company.
22) Two sequences of the rising moon shot from my house in Pueblo West.
23) Second (waning) moon sequence (with token planet)
24) Barr Trail, Pikes Peak fog.
25) Red Rock Park, Canon City. The growing night from this hidden gem in Fremont County.
26) Tomichi Point, Black Canyon of the Gunnison. The sunrise after scene #20.
27) Sun dog, Fountain, Colorado. If you have super clear and fast vision, you can spot a formation of geese flying across the sun dog at the very start of this time lapse on this icy morning.
28) Lake Pueblo steam fog.
29) Lily Lake sunrise, Rocky Mountain NP.
30) McMillan Peak, Red Mountain Pass. I shot this sequence coming down from a steep climb up the 12,800 foot peak on the side of the famed highway that connects Montrose to Durango. This is a popular back-country ski spot, with a remote ski lodge in the heart of the San Juan Mountains.
31) Dallas Divide. Classic overlook of the Sneffels Range on a gray afternoon. Stopped at True Grit Café in Ridgway afterwards for some great beer & grub! 🙂
32) Ice cave, Rifle. Details in my previous blog article.
33) Snowstorm, Gateway Rock, Garden of the Gods.
34) Blue Mesa Lake, Sapinero, in the process of freezing.
35) Garden of the Gods. It was snowing one inch per hour this day.
36) Final video of the Three Graces, Garden of the Gods.
I hope you enjoyed the song and video! Next up–Storm Chase season!!

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The Ice Caves

Frozen Tomb : Prints Available

View from inside an ice cave, Rifle Mountain Park.

Every winter, I try to make one or two trips to the ice caves in Rifle Mountain Park, a unique area in northwest Colorado. The park is best known for its world class ice and rock climbing, but I like it for the great photo opportunities. Every year the flow of ice is a bit different due to weather and the pattern of thaw and freeze cycles. There’s always something new to photograph.

Icy Tooth : Prints Available

Chillin' Out : Prints Available

Ice Warp : Prints Available

Strange Ice formation in an ice cave.

This year, my trip in mid-March was marked by very little snow, but lots of ice thanks to all the warm days and cold nights. I found some real interesting ice formations. I also shot some timelapse for a music video that I’ve been working on all winter. That will be next post! 😉

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Ice Capades

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Entombed : Prints Available

Frozen aspen leaf.

Every winter, I make a couple of pilgrimages to my favorite place to photograph ice, Green Mountain Falls. There, on the east side of Pikes Peak, a couple of creeks spill down the mountainside, and in winter they form miraculous settings of flowing ice and water. Every year the pattern of ice is somewhat predictable; the character of the flows is the same in certain parts of the creeks. Yet, every year the weather pattern and water flow is different, and that helps to ensure that the ice formations are never the same. Like snowflakes, the icicles and frozen sculptures are always unique.

: Prints Available

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Crystal Puzzle : Prints Available

Getting to the falls themselves is always a bit of an adventure. You start in the center of town, then hike up a steep dirt road lined by hideaway homes. About halfway up the road, you pass a sign for “Bigfoot Crossing,” the spot of an alleged Bigfoot sighting a couple decades ago. Not far beyond that, another sign warns you of mountain lion activity in the area. I have seen mountain lion tracks on the trail, but no Bigfoot tracks–yet! Finally, at the end of the road, another sign warns you that “foot traffic is not advised” due to “dangerous ice flows ahead.” I can vouch for that, I once slipped off the closed road/trail and nearly slid off the adjacent cliff! Foot traction is highly advised in winter!

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Tortured Soul : Prints Available

Rocks and bubbles under a frozen cascade.

I always hike the loop in a counterclockwise route; the second waterfall (Crystal) is better suited for later in the day due to the low-angle sunlight, and it’s a little easier to navigate, so it’s like a dessert after the main course. Catamount Falls, the first of the two cascades, is a bit steeper and there are a couple sections in winter that are a bit tricky to climb up. It’s always a bit of an adventure sliding around on the forzen creek surface looking for the best ice to photograph.

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Behind the Curtain : Prints Available

A cascade forms a frozen curtain of ice in December.

: Prints Available

After a three mile loop, You end up back in the center of town, where there is a nice frozen pond with a resident population of ducks and geese, and a couple shops and restaurants. It’s a great way to spend a winter afternoon! I’m already looking forward to my next trip–probably late winter or early spring.

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November Bells

Bells of November : Prints Available

Looking up West Maroon Valley.

I just can’t get enough of this iconic location. I was here almost exactly six years ago, in November 2006. There was a bit more snow then, and I had to make trail through it to get to Crater Lake, a small body of water at about 10,350 feet in the wilderness just outside Aspen. Like the last time, I was the only car in the parking lot when I get there an hour and a half before sunrise. It was a bit breezy, and though it was probably not more than 20 degrees I felt quite comfortable with just a couple layers. I had a long four day weekend to chose a morning for my hike; since Friday and Saturday looked totally clear and Monday looked cloudy and possibly snowing–Sunday morning looked like my best bet. I expected some higher clouds moving in ahead of the storm, just enough for a nice sunrise.

I donned my headlamp and made my way along side Maroon Lake to make it to for me the start of the trail up to Crater. It was a wonderfully clear morning, and the Big Dipper really stood out amongst the thousands of stars above. Enough people had hiked there the day before that the trail was now a narrow river of very slick ice, and I regretted leaving traction for my boots behind. But I needed to be at Crater for sunrise, so I gingerly paced up the trail, trying to stay in the snow as much as possible. About half way up I spotted a headlamp high on the slopes of Pyramid Peak–one of the toughest 14,000 foot peaks in Colorado to climb. Whoever was up there evidently had parked somewhere else–and given the 50+ mph winds that were surely buffeting the slopes of Pyramid–they were also seriously hard core climbers!

About an hour or so from my departure, I reached Crater Lake. I had anticipated from the temperatures in Aspen the past few days that the lake would be partially frozen; and my hunch proved correct, there was still some water flowing in the middle of the lake. Unfortunately the thawed out part was a bit too far in for me to safely photograph the edge of the ice, but there were plenty of other compositions to be found along the lake shore. As sunrise approached, clouds started moving in and the scene was irresistible.

Frozen Over : Prints Available

Crater Lake, November 3, 2013

Cracked Bells : Prints Available

Icy Crater Lake


I hiked a bit along the creek that runs into Crater Lake, to take some shots of the creek and 14,000 foot Maroon Bells–the most photographed mountains in North America!

November Road : Prints Available

West Maroon Creek


The light was hitting the jagged peaks of Sievers Mountain to the northeast, so I grabbed some shots of the wonderful show!

To Sievers : Prints Available

November sunrise from Crater Lake.

Sievers Reflections : Prints Available

Sievers Mountain from West Maroon


I spent the next hour or so taking timelapse shots of the mountains and lake. I plan on incorporating this footage in a music video that I am working on this winter. Here’s a still from the sequence:

Maroon Memories : Prints Available

The Maroon Bells on a beautiful November morning.


By the time I got back to the trailhead, it had clouded up and even a few snow flakes were falling. So, my timing could not have been better. But regardless of the weather, I can’t think of a better place to be in early November than Maroon Bells.

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Government Shutdown

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San Luis Symphony : Prints Available

Sunrise over the Sangre De Cristo Range on an icy October morning.

I was watching the weather maps the other day, and noticed that high clouds would be moving in fro the north as a cold front was moving towards northern Colorado yesterday. I figured the sunrise would be special, so I got up at 4 am and headed for my favorite spot, the Great Sand Dunes National Park. Despite the re-opening of the government, they had yet to remove the barricades that prevented you from entering the park; so I went to ‘Plan B’–a short drive west to the San Luis Lakes State Park. No barricaes there. No people either, except a few hunters who were disturbing my peaceful morning. I’m not sure why, but the lakes themselves have either been drained or lost all their water, so right now they’re just mud puddles, but thanks to the cold nights they were nicely frozen puddles, and reflected my forecast sunrise quite nicely. As the sun finally rose over the Sangre De Cristo Range, I grabbed this shot of the range and sandy lakeshore, along with distant snow-capped dunes.

San Luis Lakes,Sand Dunes

October : Prints Available

Sand Dunes and dry lake bed after a mid-October snow.


On the way out, I took this shot from snowy La Veta Pass, with the Spanish Peaks in the distance. It was a beautiful fall morning!
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La Veta Pass : Prints Available

Spanish Peaks from La Veta Pass

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Fall 2013, Part II: Tetons and Perpetual Snow

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Grand September : Prints Available

A September storm clears at sunset over the Tetons.

I left Aspen and headed north to Jackson Hole, to wait out a three-day snowstorm that I hoped would bring some moody conditions to Grand Teton National Park. While waiting for the storm to clear (it never really did) I hiked around in the new snow that was falling; it kept most people off the trails and the park was nice and peaceful without the crowds. It wasn’t very cold in the valley, so most of the snow was melting on the ground, but it coated the vegetation in a slushy blanket.

Schwabacher,Grand Teton,snow

First Snow at Schwabacher : Prints Available

September snowfall at Schwacher’s Landing.

Grand Teton,autumn

Bending Autumn : Prints Available

September snowfall in the Tetons.

The storm briefly took a break at sunset, enabling me to take a few shots of the range as clouds swirled around the peak. The following morning I headed up Signal Mountain in hopes of getting above the light snow that was still falling in the valley. It was cold and raw, and never did clear out, but the light occasionally lead to some striking scenes of the valley and distant peaks.

Signal Overlook : Prints Available

A Fall Signal : Prints Available

With little hope of the snow and rain ever quitting, I roamed around the park and looked for opportunities to take some shots of the wildlife and ever-changing scenery. It wasn’t the stuff of postcards, but there’s only one first real snowfall of the season, and it was nice to be a part of it in one of our nicest National Parks.

Grand Teton,moose

Meese-Wilson : Prints Available

A couple moose during an early snowfall in the Tetons.

Part III–After the snow!

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Fall 2013, Part I: The Non-Moronic Bells

Dark Bells : Prints Available

Maroon Lake and Bells, 45 minutes before sunrise.


Just got back from an eight day trip through Colorado and Wyoming to photograph this year’s fall colors. It has been a terrible year overall for fall foliage in the Rockies; too much rain followed by early wet snows have done a number on the leaves, which were late changing to begin with. But, I still had a good trip overall–drank lots of microbrews and ate lots of good food–certainly can’t complain too much. My next 3 or 4 blog entries will be dedicated to this trip; I don’t usually get out for a week’s time, so I’ve got a bunch of new photos to share.

First, stop, the infamous Maroon Bells in Aspen, Colorado. I met up with a couple of fellow Colorado photographer friends up there, including Todd Caudle and Art Escobado. We were hoping for some good clearing-storm conditions at the lake, site of the most photographed mountain in America. I later mentioned my time in Aspen to a photographer I ran into up in Wyoming, and he replied, “you mean the Moron Bells?” This was an inference that the hundreds of photographers who line up along the lakeside shoulder-to-shoulder every fall are moronic. I partly agree–with few exceptions it is moronic to join that crowd. The essence of landscape photography is to be artful–and art is synonymous with self-expression. One cannot express oneself in an individual way when one is lined up with hundreds of other photographers, all shooting the identical scene. It’s repetitive, and it gets boring. But, icons are icons for a reason, and I enjoy shooting the Bells. I just go out of my way to avoid the lakeside crowd, and forge my own way using any number of tricks I’ve learned over the last decade of my annual trips to Aspen. The shot above is an example. I never shoot from the near side of the lake, where the crowd forms. Sure, that has a ‘better’ view and enables one to shoot a ‘cleaner’ composition that abides by the ‘rules’ that get you more $ for your effort. But, I prefer a unique or more original view to a standard one that graces more postcards and calendars. So, for this shot that I took on the 24th, after the storm had completely cleared out, I used an approach that emphasized the contrast of the totally blue sky and fresh snow on the peaks. It’s a long exposure (10 seconds) and I left the dark areas intentionally dark to emphasize the contrast. I took the shot 45 minutes before sunrise, just as light was beginning to reveal the peaks.

Now, lets go back to the day before, the first day of fall as an early snowstorm was winding down in the mountains. I had hoped the storm might clear for sunrise, but it strengthened a bit at the last minute, and slowed down, so it was still snowing when I got to the lake. There was a good 4-5 inches of wet snow at the lake; more than I expected. Even a bit of slush on the road. Since the storm wasn’t clearing around the peaks, I concentrated on the Foggy conditions and contrast of aspen and snow.

Clashing Seasons : Prints Available

Maroon Bells area.


The clouds were really swirling around Sievers Mountain, to the northeast of the lake, so I took some shots of the crazy fog climbing the rugged peak.

Revealing Sievers : Prints Available

Sievers Mountain and fog during an early snowfall.


Finally, the clouds cleared a bit and I got my first glimpse of the famous 14,000+ foot peaks.

Clearing Bells : Prints Available

First day of Fall, 2013, Maroon Lake.

Art and I decided to hang around and extra day in hopes of some fog forming around the lake the next morning. With clearing skies and lots of moisture on the ground, it was certainly a possibility. But the winds ended up being too strong, and no fog formed. I decided to avoid the even huger crowds at the near side of the lake, and explore some more original compositions.
Here’s the peak at the point just after sunrise, when the best light and color was illuminating the Bells:

Morning Bells : Prints Available

Maroon Lake at sunrise, late September.


There was only one other photographer near me when I took that shot (200+ just up the lakeshore). But I knew the best light was done at the lake, so I escaped the crowds completely and drove up the road. I found a nice wide open filed completely blanketed in frost. It was a beautiful field, So I grabbed my gear and hiked out to the middle to get some shots of the Bells in early morning light.

Frosty Bells : Prints Available

Maroon Creek area, on a frosty morning in late September.

Not another photographer in sight. And I didn’t feel the least bit moronic. 🙂 Next up, in Part II: off to the Tetons and even more snow!!

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