Moraine Lake, Wenkchemna Peaks, Clearing Clouds, Banff National Park 2006

My prior post introduced this area. This image was taken 30 minutes after the one in the prior post. It is a close call, but I believe this image better portrays the majesty I felt on seeing this view for the first time.

Moraine Lake, Wenkchemna Peaks, Banff National Park 2006

After leaving the Town of Banff (we actually stayed in Canmore), we drove to Lake Louise where we were to stay for a few days. We stopped briefly at Lake Louise and then took a spur to the Moraine Lake area. I was losing my optimism. It was raining off and off and it s was mid-afternoon, not the optimal photographic conditions. As luck would have it, however, by the time we arrived at Moraine Lake, the ran had stopped and the clouds were clearing, just about the most optimal photographic conditions. Getting my tripod, I walked toward Moraine Lake, to see what there was to see. The short path to the lake is at the end of the parking lot so when I arrived at the lake, I was rewarded with this view, one which any adjective could not possibly describe.

The clearing clouds gave some drama to the view but the afternoon sun made the lighting most difficult. After I took several photographs, including the one above, we walked around the lodge and store, before I returned to the lake to take more photographs (those will be posted later). This is one of those photographs, like the Rainbow Falls photograph, where the mood changes depending on whether it is in black/white or color.

The color photograph shows the deep green color of Moraine Lake, a color caused by glacial silt. Obviously, that color is lost on the black and white image:

My initial inclination was to not try to make a black and white image, after all, if you can't see the green in Moraine Lake, what is the point? But the more I adjusted the settings, the more I grew to like the black and white image. Once I figured out that I shouldn't attempt to replicate the green color in the lake and let the black and white image stand on its own merit, I liked it much better.

The view is understanably famous, having been featured on the back side of the Canadian $20 bill from 1969-1979 and a postage stamp in 1985, among other things.

Cascade Mountain and Clouds from Banff Springs Hotel 2006

Two years ago, we spent about 10 days in Calgary and Banff. Both towns were fantastic places to visit. After a few days in Calgary, we drove to Banff and Canmore where, we stopped at the Banff Springs Hotel for high tea.

Now, I enjoy hot tea (though coffee is my preferred hot drink) but being amongst the mountains, I am sure I was anxious to go somewhere I could take some photographs. (Patience, particularly when it comes to phtographs, is not one virtue I possess.)

As we were waiting for tea, we explored the grounds of the hotel. It was mid-June and while the weather was pleasantly cool, the gardens were full of flowers. After a few photos of the view from the hotel (and of the hotel), we walked around to the north corner of the hotel when this view appeared between the trees. Like many of my favorite photographs, I remember how it looked (and how I felt on seeing it) vividly.

I too often form the prejudice that beautiful photographs of mountains may only be found in the wilderness or far away from civilization. Banff, however, is a small resort town in the middle of a national park. It seems pointless to debate whether or not it should be there (in an aesthetic sense). It is, but the point of this is that no matter where you are, it pays to keep an open mind and try (at least, to enjoy the moment).

In the end, the trip to Banff and Calgary was probably one of the most photographically rewarding vacations I have had in years. The weather was moderate, the humidity low and there were clouds enough to make for a number of dramatic photographs. More on that later.

This digital photograph has superimposed a red filter to decrease the blue sky in between the clouds and bring out the light on the mountain. I also increased the contrast for the drama of the clouds. Of course, the real point is that I and my camera were lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time.

Oh, high tea was quite enjoyable as well.

Mt. Stratus, Mt. Nimbus, Never Summer Range, Rocky Mountains National Park, 2001

While on the subject of the Rockies, I thought I would add a photograph from my 2001 visit. This is aview of Mt. Stratus (left) and Mt. Nimbus (center-right), in the Never Summer Range, as seen from Trail Ridge Road on the western side of the Rockies. The horizontal line along the bottom of the photograph is the Grand Ditch, which diverts water from west of the Continental Divide to the east.

One habit I have is wanting to return to the place where I took some of my favorite photographs. It isn't that I hope to take another "great" photograph, just that I enjoy seeing how the view "actually" looks. I remember the view by the photograph and the mood it inspired. Obviously, I thought the mood at the time quite dramatic. I knew I had been lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time.

I didn't make it to the point where this photograph was taken when I returned last month. I just ran out of time. Given why this happened, I can't say I was too disappointed. By the time I could have driven to this location, the setting sun would have made a quality photograph difficult. It is one (of many) reasons I have to return.

Unlike the 2008 photographs, this was not taken with a digital camera. At the time, I didn't own a digital camera (short of a 320x240 one that relied on my laptop) and this is a scan of the 4x5 black and white negative. I have several black and white negatives from this trip - not as many as I now take with a digital camera, of course. As is true of any digital photograph (or non-digital one, for that matter), the contrast has been adjusted and I have erased some of the minor blemishes that appeal on the negative (or the scan).

Ypsilon and Fairchild Mountains, Clouds, Rocky Mountain National Park 2008

Toward the end of my one full day in the Rocky Mountain National Park, the weight of the day-long drive was getting the best of me. Still, I made my way back down from the top of Trail Ridge Road reluctantly, having just taken what I thought was a fanstastic photograph. I missed taking some interesting photographs because there were no pullouts or because the sun intruded too greatly into the photo. I came to that part of the road above Hanging Valley where the light and the pulloffs converged to permit this photograph.

I have to admit I did not know the names of the peaks at the time, and tonight, spent several hours pouring over topographic maps and photographs of others (relying heavily on the wonderful photographic index of the Rockies prepared by Gordon S. Novak Jr.) before seeing two peaks Ypsilon (left) and Fairchild (right) that looked familiar. I look forward to returning with more time and a detailed map.

In this digital age, we no longer have only one or two images of a subject, the way it was when sheet-film photograph negatives were the only means of capturing images of light. I have many images of this view but none balance the light on the lower left part of the photo without losing the definition in the clouds. Even digital photographs have limits, in some ways, more limits than good black and white negatives. While I think the image would profit from more illumination in the lower left, but on the whole, the image demonstrates the emotion I experienced at the time. I took a few more images as I made my way down the mountain toward Estes Park but the setting sun was low enough to make the shadows photographically prohibitive.

I took a few snapshots of rentals along Fall River (to stay in future trips), stopped for dinner and made my way back to Denver, knowing I should not wait another 7 years before again returning to the Rockies.

Indian Peaks Wilderness, Apache Peak, 2008

The Indian Peaks Wilderness and Arapaho National Forest border, to the south, the Rocky Mountains National Park on the Grand Lake area of the Park. The late afternoon sunlight on the clouds and far-off peaks gave the glow impossible to resist. When I took this image, I had still not reach the National Park and was eager to arrive there. My impatience might have cost me other, equally or more impressive, photographs of these peaks. Having only a day and a half, however, I had decided to stay with the known and leave exploring unknown areas for a later time. These views confirmed the worth of returning to explore the wilderness area south of the National Park at some point in the future.

About all I did to this photograph was increase the contrast to illuminate the clouds as they appeared at the time. Of course, I converted the original color to black and white.

Long's Peak and Clouds from Trail Ridge Road

There are so many opportunities along Trail Ridge Road, the highest paved road in any US National Park, for breathtaking views. This photograph attempted to capture one that literally stopped me in my tracks. When I saw this one, I hurriedly steered the car into the pullout and setup my tripod and then waited for the clouds to move over Longs Peak (the highest peak). Nature won't be rushed for any photograph.

As true in any photograph the intensity of this one is an attempt to match the emotion and thrill of the live experience. I adjusted the contrast and imposed a red filter in the conversion to a black and white image.

Shadow Mountain Lake, Rainbow and Sunset, Rocky Mountains National Park 2008

I spent two days in mid-September 2008 driving through the Rocky Mountains National Park. The Park received its first snow only a few days before, closing Trail Ridge Road. Rather than spend the day on the eastern side (in the Estes Park area), I drove to the southern part near the Grand Lake entrance, hoping the Park would open Trail Ridge Road the next day (more on this in later posts).

I spent the evening attempting to view and hopefully photograph the wildlife in this area of the park. After not having much success, I headed back towards the hotel area for the night when I spotted this rain cloud over Shadow Mountain Lake. As I waited, sitting beside the road, the rainbow formed (between Mount Bryan, in the foreground, and Mount Craig, the snow covered peak in the background) and the golden light, reflected from the setting sun, intensified. The word "vibrant" is meant to capture this mood but words are a poor substitute for the view I experienced.

Achieving the best balance between the clouds and the rainbow was not simple. The raw photograph did not reflect the actual intensity of the actual view but a simple increase in saturation restored the image to the actual view.