Mount LeConte, Winter Afternoon Clouds, 2007

I had given a talk about bears to a lodging group in Gatlinburg when I headed home, as I almost always do, via the bypass. I always want to see the view from the two overlooks just in case. I've taken many photographs from each. The clouds were moving quickly. Had I arrived 15 minutes earlier or later this image would not have been taken and I doubt the view would have been anywhere near as dramatic. I remember thinking, at the time, how lucky I was to have been at the right spot at the right time.

While mid-afternoon sunlight is often not the best for landscape photography, the angle of the winter sun on the clouds looking towards LeConte from the overlook just happens to be an exception. Other photographs looking to the left and right from this perspective are washed out due to the angle of the sun.

I'm not shy about modifying images so that they portray the mood experienced at the time but this image required very little modification. Other than to convert to black and white, I only modestly increased the contrast.

Mount Rundle, Vermillion Lakes, Sunset 2006, Banff National Park

Vermillion Lakes are less than a mile north of the town of Banff (which lies within Banff National Park) on the TransCanada Highway. A well paved road runs north of the three lakes making access easy.

This image was taken the evening of the day we hiked Johnston Canyon (I think I took over 200 images that day). We had visit this area earlier in the day but while the views were beautiful, the photograph results were less than satisfactory because of the angle (more the lack of angle) of the sun combined with thick clouds scattering the light. I can't complain as the same light made for good photography conditions at Johnston Canyon. I looked forward to returning later in the day.

No photograph or series of photographs can adequately portray the scale and motive of Mount Rundle. It is an imposing geological feature visible from all over Banff (the town). According to mountainnature.com:"Few peaks show the dramatic impact of thrust faulting like Mount Rundle. The Mount Rundle Thrust Fault, found at the base of Rundle’s steep eastern slope, allowed massive layers to be pushed eastward several kilometres. Cascade Mountain and the Three Sisters are part of the same thrust sheet." If you look at the town of Banff map I linked to above you'll see that the town lies between Vermillion Lakes and Mount Rundle. Fortunately, the elevation of the lakes permit Rundle to be photographed without either the town or the Banff Springs Hotel in the image.