Category Archives: nature photography

A Sight for Sore Eyes

Fresh Snow on the Sangre de Cristo

The big storm is over and the high country is covered in a new mantle of pure white. I poked my head out the door at sunrise to see what kind of of morning it was going to be and I was elated to be able to see down the valley all the way to the majestic Sangre de Cristo Range for this first time in months. Dust, haze and smoke from the Decker fire have all but made the mountains invisible until the big snowstorm cleaned it all up.

Hope you enjoy the view as much as I do, via pixels on the computer screen! As always, these pictures and more are available on my website for purchase as wall art on glossy acrylic or metal sheets, stretched canvas and traditional framing and matting.

Fresh Snow on the Sangre de Cristo

Fresh Snow on the Sangre de Cristo

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An Amazing Scene in the Rockies

I consider it a privilege to have been part of this amazing scene high in the Colorado Rockies as a big bull elk managed his herd in view of my camera. Pictures don’t quite do the scene justice as there was so much more for the five senses to capture. The elk were

Elk Herd on a Beautiful Rocky Mountain Evening

talking among each other and moving around as the big bull bellowed out his commands. Occasionally the cows would temporarily escape the attention of the alpha and try to separate from the herd. But it was never long before the supreme leader would discover the escape attempt and run to head off the insurrection.

At one point we heard the call of another bull over the ridge and out of our sight. The big bull also heard and went off to investigate, not about to let another male lure his harem away. He went out of sight for a while before returning. Later on we meandered over the ridge ourselves to see if another herd might be worth photographing but it was just one bull, resting in the meadow while

Elk Herd on a Beautiful Rocky Mountain Evening

making sure to bugle out his availability to any stray cows. He seemed in no mood for a fight with the alpha, not even bothering to stand and make a challenge. Perhaps an epic battle had already been decided earlier in the elk rut season.

I did shoot this short video  for my Youtube Channel with the hope that I could capture the essence of this evening with a little sound to go with it.  In the video the bull is circling around from the south to keep his harem from scattering. I was fortunate to capture the bugling of the bull as he went about his business! Development of my channel is still in it’s infancy as I get more practice with a medium that I have neglected up until recently, but please, feel free to subscribe if you would like to be notified as more footage is added.

Also these images and more are available on my website for purchase as wall art on glossy metal or acrylic sheets, stretched canvas and traditional framing and matting. Tons of other cool gifts and gadgets are also available with my Rocky Mountain art so feel free to click and explore!

First Major Snow

Today definitely feels like winter! The wind is howling, snow is blowing around and Pikes Peak is turning white! There is this brief period of time for good photography of this angle of the peak where the snow has begun

Winter Storm on Pikes Peak

to decorate the massive mountain and there is still some light on the north face. After the solstice the peak will not see the light of sun until spring and pictures of the peak are pretty uninspiring.

For now though, it looked like a pretty wild day on the peak! I’ve been up there in that weather and the forces of nature are stunning at 14,000 feet!  I was up on the top of the ridge a few winters ago attempting a winter summit on the west face with climbing buddy Ralph when we suddenly found ourselves in a life threatening situation in that howling wind! Fortunately we found the strength to literally run down the trail to a safer elevation and lived to climb another day 🙂

This image is now available on my website for purchase as wall art on glossy metal or acrylic sheets, stretched canvas and traditional framing and matting.

Where I’m Most at Home

Autumn on Trail Ridge Road

The alpine tundra, high above the treeline… that’s my favorite place to be. Never have been a big fan of hiking in valleys or dense forest. I like to be up high, above the treeline where I can see stunning peaks and valleys! It’s not always the most hospitable place to be, the winds and weather can be ferocious here and this day was one of the worst! It was a nice toasty warm day down in Moraine Park in Rocky Mountain National Park, but up here, at the summit of Trail Ridge Road, the winds must have been blowing at least 50 mph. And it was cold too, can’t imagine what the wind chill was!

These were also difficult conditions for photography, the wind was blowing so hard I could barely open my eyes which were watering profusely from the horrendous draft. It was difficult to steady the camera and it was too uncomfortable to be messing with the tripod which would have probably blown over anyway. I tried to steady the camera on boulders where possible, guard rails when present, anything I could find. From the

Autumn on Trail Ridge Road

look of some of my images I was not always successful, even though I was using my 18-55 wide angle lens with image stabilization turned on.

But it was so beautiful up here, rugged peaks, aspen and tundra turning to gold before the onslaught of the harsh Rocky Mountain winter. There was no question about it, weather notwithstanding, I was going to get the pictures of this magnificent place!

As always, these pictures and more are available on my website as wall art on glossy acrylic or metal sheets, stretched canvas and traditional matting and framing. Cool gift, household and tech items are also available with one of these images, including t-shirts, coffee mugs, battery chargers, stationary, greeting cards, blankets and pillows and much more!

Autumn on Trail Ridge Road

You Can Go There in Your Mind

Elk Herd on a Beautiful Rocky Mountain Evening

I’m still basking in the glow of a mind blowing Rocky Mountain National Park sunset, even though it’s been a couple of weeks since that photo adventure! I’ve been watching the short video on my YouTube channel that I shot a couple of weeks ago on the camping trip, In my mind I can still hear the bulls bugling and the cows talking to each other in that beautiful sun drenched meadow.

Plus I still have hundreds of images to process, which is what I’m all about today. I try to get about three a day done and posted on my website for purchase as wall art, any more than that and I start to lose concentration and make mistakes.

Anyway I really like the image above of the herd in the glow of the late afternoon Elk Herd on a Beautiful Rocky Mountain Eveningsunshine, the bull running around keeping the herd tight while warding off challengers, and the cows and calves grazing on the mountain grass and resting.

Later this week the plan is another ride in Waterton Canyon with the hope of seeing the big rams and possibly even the bears. If you enjoy the video clips feel free to subscribe to my Youtube channel which I plan to begin expanding in earnest. And if you like the pictures, prints are available on my website along with tons of cool gift items. Just click to explore! Also be sure to click the subscribe button on my blog to be notified of future posts!

Window to Pikes Peak

Siamese Twins at Garden of the Gods

I’ve been wanting to do this short hike for a long time, for the sole purpose of photographing Pikes Peak through the little window in the Siamese Twins Rock Formation in Garden of the Gods Park. My family from the midwest was in Colorado for a visit, so going on so a hike with my brother Jim was the perfect reason to take the trek!

You could make the climb to the famous formation by parking close by and making a short climb just to see the red spires but we decided to make a longer journey and see the rest of the park by beginning our hike at the visitor center. GPS later informed us that it is about a four mile round trip journey from that starting point.

And it was a perfect clear sunny Colorado autumn day to photograph the Great Peak through the Siamese Twins window through the sandstone rock.

Siamese Twins at Garden of the Gods

Changing aspen leaves are visible on the foothills and the sky was that famous Colorado signature blazing blue color!

As always these images and more are available for purchase on my website as wall art on glossy acrylic or metal sheets, stretched canvas and traditional framing and matting materials. Many cool gift, household and tech items are also available, just click to explore!

 

Trail Closed

Autumn on the South Face of Pikes Peak

After a couple of days rest from my Rocky Mountain National Park Adventure I was finally ready to resume my regular regimen of hiking and wildlife photography. However a rude surprise was awaiting me at my trailhead in the form of an earth mover the size of a house. My trail is closed and they are building a super highway to the summit of my mountain. I’ll probably never see wildlife there again 😦 I don’t know why they can’t just leave some things alone.

As long as I was that far down the road I decided to go check on the leaves on the south

Autumn on the South Face of Pikes Peak

face of Pikes Peak. They are still a bit green but in the early light of a Rocky Mountain sunrise it was still a beautiful scene… Worth a few pictures anyway!

As always, these pictures and more are available for purchase on my website as wall art on glossy metal or acrylic sheets, stretched canvas and traditional framing and matting. Tons of cool gift, tech and household items are also available with a beautiful Rocky Mountain Image from S.W.Krull Imaging! Click to explore!