The Kicking Horse River
A pair of shots from the Kicking Horse River in Field, British Columbia...such amazing scenery!
Just another beautiful spot in Canada!
I don't know how anyone in western Canada gets anything done. There is so much incredible natural beauty that I would never be able to sit still. I would be out shooting all the time!
This was in Field, BC which we stopped in while headed from Banff to Vancouver. Our destination was Emerald Lake, which is gorgeous, but after that we paused here for a quick snap of this gorgeous river and the natural rock bridge that straddles it.
See what I mean? We didn't even know about this stuff, and just stopped in case there was something to see, and wow was it amazing!
Afternoon at Moraine Lake
Golden afternoon light sparkles on Moraine Lake in the Canadian Rockies...
This place is gorgeous any time of day!
On my trip to Banff, I made it a point to get to Moraine Lake for at least one sunset (I ended up getting there for 2 sunsets, yay!). On one of those visits, I was wandering around quite a bit prior to the actual sunset getting started. This is part of my routine for finding a good composition, plus I like to look around and I always wonder if the view is better somewhere else. Yeah, I'm never done looking, basically. When I came across this view, I had to stop and fire a few - then again, I could say that about every view I had there, it's all just so amazing!
An afternoon at Emerald Lake
Emerald Lake in British Columbia, Canada is just stunning. I caught it one afternoon and the clouds and still water were just perfect for some HDR photography...
This place is well worth a stop!
When we left Banff and headed towards Vancouver, there was one stop in particular that I wanted to make - Emerald Lake. I had heard about it from another photographer that I chatted with while I was at Moraine Lake one evening. It sounded gorgeous, and when I looked at the pics online I knew I wanted to see it.
We arrived about mid-day and the parking lot was a total mess. There were cars everywhere and even tour buses trying to find a place to stop. I was a little anxious because I knew this wasn't a place I could easily return to, and selfishly I wanted to get my shots.
Luckily, most of the tourists were on the trails or in the restaurant, because it was really easy for me to set up and take some shots. This is one of the first places I came across after leaving the parking lot. I think those red canoes just pop against all the greens and blues in the scene, and that's what caught my eye here.
Moraine Lake is gorgeous!
Moraine Lake in Banff National Park is just off-the-charts gorgeous. It's a place I would gladly return to again and again. I was lucky enough while there to get 2 beautiful sunsets...
This just in - Moraine Lake is beautiful! ;-)
Moraine Lake is shot SO often and I have seen millions of amazing photos from there. It's just an incredibly gorgeous place. During our 7 nights in nearby Banff, we spent 2 of them here so I could shoot the sunset. It didn't disappoint. I had great light and obviously amazing scenery. All I had to do was point the camera in the right direction!
The Natural Bridge
An interesting little stop in British Columbia...so much beauty there!
Found this little gem in British Columbia, and I'm so glad that I stopped!
After we left Banff, we headed towards Vancouver with a planned visit to Emerald Lake en route. I had seen some amazing pics of Emerald Lake and since it was just a short detour off the highway it made total sense to check it out.
It was well worth it (and I just realized I haven't edited those pics yet), but upon heading back to the highway we saw a sign for the Natural Bridge and decided to pop in there and see what it was.
Basically, it's where a river has eroded rock to sort of make a bridge across the river with the water running under/through the rock. It's beautiful, and I'm glad we stopped. It was also crowded as hell, but then again this was high summer season. While I didn't dare walk out there as this young lady did, I certainly found a few spots to take it all in (and take some photos, too).
Sunset at Lake Louise
The day ends at Lake Louise in Banff National Park, Canada, and I am out with the camera trying to make some magic.
What an amazing place to watch the day end!
I love Lake Louise, as does probably everyone else that has ever visited. It's a gorgeous alpine lake surrounded by peaks, and the water has that amazing mineral-laden blue color that just screams "take my picture!". So I did. And did. And did.
I took a lot of them.
While I can't claim to have witnessed any amazing light that evening, I sure can't complain about the view. I love the little canoe dock there and that slight pop of red. So awesome!
Sunset at the Grand Canyon
An incredible display of light over the Grand Canyon...
This was a stunner of a sunset!
The thing about traveling is that you can't just easily go back and shoot something if the light isn't great. Sure, when you are home you can revisit and revisit until you get what you want, but when you are on the road you are at the mercy of Mother Nature.
Luckily, she delivered for me BIG TIME on my recent visit to the Grand Canyon!
I was staying in Flagstaff and wanted to go shoot here, but since it is still summer I assumed the standard South Rim areas would be crowded, so I opted instead to come in via the East Entry (which I had never heard of). Luckily, it was really easy to get to (about 1.5 hours from Flagstaff) and the crowds were thin.
I spent several hours visiting multiple lookout points there, and at sunset found myself in this spot with a clear view of the canyon and the setting sun. The clouds were just a bonus!
This is a 3 exposure HDR built in Aurora HDR with multiple layers of edits and corrections then applied in Luminar. Thanks and let me know if you have any questions!
Strolling through sunset
A couple strolls along the beach at sunset...
I captured this on Cannon Beach in Oregon last week.
I love Oregon and along the coastline in Cannon Beach is my favorite part of this beautiful state. I have had so much great light here, such as this sunset last week. I was out shooting long exposures at Haystack Rock when I realized that the light was much better behind me. :-)
I turn around and started walking away from the rock, and this couple was sort of walking along near me at about the same speed. I would speed up a little to get a clear shot and then by the time I got the tripod set up and ready, they were in the shot. So, I quite trying to exclude them an instead made them the subject of the shot. Worked out pretty well in my opinion!
Peyto Lake, finally
A destination that has been on my list for years, and I finally made it!
I've been wanting to visit this lake for years!
This is one of those things that you see online and say to yourself "I have to go there someday". That someday happened recently for me, and I'm glad that it did. Peyto Lake is about an hour and a half north of Banff, Canada which for me was a no-brainer. That's pretty close considering I was coming from Texas!
So I spent a day out on a photo tour with my daughter. What I was surprised to find is that the viewing deck that I took this photo from is only about a 10 minute hike from the parking lot. For some reason I assumed that a view like this required some serious work, but thankfully it didn't. You literally pull off the highway into the parking area and hike for 10 minutes. Then you fire away like mad and celebrate the fact that you made it here after all these years!
By the way, doesn't the lake look like a wolf's head?
Two views of Hallstatt
Two photos from Hallstatt, Austria today...such an inspiring little town, and so beautiful!
As i wrote in this previous post, Hallstatt Austria is a gorgeous little town. Though I was only there for 8 hours or so, I took a TON of photos. It was a bucket-list sort of place for me, which means I was in full-scale military mode, firing shots and moving, firing again and moving again, etc. I did slow down for a few breaks though. You always have to refuel!
This first shot is of the town from a dock at one end. After parking the car, we wandered up to town and literally just ran into this view. The second shot is from the same spot, just facing out towards the lake. It's a monstrous lake, actually, and being surrounded by these amazing mountains just makes it even more beautiful!
Canoeing at Emerald Lake
A family heads out on Emerald Lake in a canoe...and the red canoe really stands out among all the green!
Wow, this lake! Gosh the color is CRAZY.
I love taking photos of places like this. It looks like I totally Photoshopped the thing but honestly I did not. The water really is that color, and it's gorgeous. I am still working through all the photos from this trip (and technically, I am still on the trip and taking plenty more).
Emerald Lake is about an hour from Banff (in the Canadian Rockies) and technically it sits in Yoho National Bank, not Banff National Park. Oh, and it's in British Columbia, not Alberta. Hope that's not confusing! :-)
Just Google it whenever you find yourself in the area and bring the camera. It's incredible.
Sunset at Moraine Lake
The first of many photos I will be sharing of Moraine Lake, this one taken during a lovely sunset...
Although I am still on the road, I am trying to find time to edit some of the many shots I took at Moraine Lake. It's an incredibly beautiful spot!
I may go on record and say Moraine Lake is the most beautiful spot I have ever seen, and I have seen a lot. It's just so breathtaking. During our time in Banff, we spent two evenings here while I was firing away. I have a lot of shots to get to but wanted to start with this one.
Sunset was pretty stellar on that evening and I was atop the large rock pile at the end of the lake. There's an easy trail you can walk on to get to the top, and numerous points where you can set up and start shooting. I wandered all over looking for multiple vantage points and found plenty.
I will be sharing a LOT more photos from this spot, not just because I have them, but because this place really got into my soul in a way. I have been here before but this was the first time I have really photographed Moraine Lake. I hope to return someday and do it all again.
This photo is a 3 exposure HDR built using Aurora HDR by Macphun (learn how right here) and then some adjustments were made in Luminar using some of my presets (you can find those here).
iPhone fun at Moraine Lake
How about a group of iPhone shots from Canada? I was here at Moraine Lake last Friday night, and the sunset was INCREDIBLE!
A stunning sunset at an incredible location!
We are in the midst of a lengthy family roadtrip, and spent last week in Banff, Canada. It's a beautiful little mountain town with an incredible amount of beautiful scenery to photograph nearby. One of the best spots is Moraine Lake, which is less than an hour away by car.
We spent last Friday night there, with me standing on a large pile of rocks firing brackets into the sunset. It was pretty awesome, I will admit it. Most of the visit to Banff was under clear, blue skies and somewhat colorless sunsets, but this one lit up nicely and I was a very happy guy!
These are just a few of the iPhone shots I took, while also firing like crazy with my Sony camera. I haven't had any time to slow down and process my Sony shots, so I thought I would share a few iPhone shots for a change. These were all taken in the ProHDR app (it blends two exposures to make the HDR) and then some minor adjustments were made in Snapseed. Enjoy!
One of my favorite sunsets
An incredible display of light one evening along the Oregon coastline...
This one was a stunner!
I have mentioned here many times my love for Oregon, and in particular the coastline in and around Cannon Beach. There is just so much natural beauty in that area that you almost can't believe it. It seems unfair that one place should get so much. But, they have it and we don't, so do yourself a favor and go visit. I'm getting teary-eyed just thinking about it.
This was our last night there on that trip (well over a year ago now), and like every night there I was hoping for some decent light. Looks like I got it, right? ;-)
A quick stop at the Plansee
A beautiful alpine lake that I came across by accident in Austria!
A beautiful lake in Austria that I lucked into!
When we were in Germany, we spent a week hitting some of the awesome spots near Fussen, including Oberammergau. After there, instead of driving back home the way we came, we decided to head over the border to Austria and circle back around to Fussen that way.
Win!
It ended up being not just a shorter drive but a more beautiful one as well. We came across the Plansee, which is this beautiful alpine lake. Of course, I had to swerve into a little spot as soon as I rounded the bend and saw it. This is not the sort of thing I ever come across, so as you can imagine I was pretty excited about it!