Category: Colorado

Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado, September 26, 2020, AM, Part 3

Looking for small details in a vast forest, sometimes one finds natural abstracts.

Stump Abstract, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 5000.

This weathered tree stump with map like contours caught my eye.  Here is a black and white conversion:

Stump B&W, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 5000.

The Aspen leaf in this photo had not quite completed its color transformation, before it fell to rest upon a mossy bed.

Yellow and Green, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/1250s, f/11, ISO 5000.
Aspen Leaves on Mossy Stump, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 3200.
Forest floor, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/200s, f/11, ISO 3200.

I prefer to photograph these little details as I find them; but sometimes I’m tempted to move things around.  I did not move anything in the photo above; but I can’t help but wonder, if I should have.  Should I have removed the blade of grass pointing at the Aspen leaf in the middle?  Or does that blade of grass serve as a useful pointer in this photograph?  Would this image be better, if I had cleared away some of the debris around the edges or the scattered leaves, leaving just the single leaf in the center?  What about that little twig resting on the stump to the left of the center leaf?

I have no objection to “posing” a natural scene for artistic purpose and I have removed man made items from natural scenes and I’m quite ok with this.  I’ve occasionally removed a twig, a fallen tree limb or a blade of grass, if I thought those were distracting in a scene. But nature is not perfect, so will “cleaning” a scene make it unreal?  Is unreal ok in this sense?  No one would know the scene has been modified, if not so informed by the photographer.  Is it acceptable to “manufacture” a natural scene?

Red and Green, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 800.
Aspen Leaf, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 65mm, 1/200s, f/11, ISO 800.

And I will wrap up this portion of this morning’s photos with one final forest image, which I just noted this morning was chosen for Flickr’s Explore page.

Forest Shadows, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 800.

Stay tuned for the rest of today’s story,

Ken

Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado, September 26, 2020, AM, Part 2

Aspen Leaf on Stump. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 6400.

This post is a continuation of photography in the Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado during the final morning of photography this September.

Aspen Leaf. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 3200.

Many of my photos from today are of more of the small details seen in a forest.

Forest Spotlight. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/640s, f/11, ISO 3200.
Aspen Leaves, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 3200.
Aspen Leaves, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 35mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 250.
Aspen Leaf on Mossy Log, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 26mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 5000.
Aspen Leaf on Mossy Stump, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/200s, f/11, ISO 5000.
Aspen Leaf on Mossy Log, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 5000.

Stay tuned for mid-day and afternoon of our final day in the Rio Grande National Forest,

Ken

Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado, September 26, 2020, AM, Part 1

We went into the forest that surrounded our campsite again this morning.  It is getting more difficult to find scenes that are significantly different than others that have already been photographed.

Forest Starburst, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 6400.

I’m drawn to the geometry created by the old, fallen tree trunks, intersecting at various angles and directions.

Aspen Forest, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 4000.

I’m trying to give more attention to the small, intimate details in the forest.

Aspen Leaf on Forest Floor. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/200s, f/11, ISO 2000.
Aspen Leaf in Evergreen. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 2500.
Aspen Leaf on Stump. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 2500.

Occasionally, I find stumps that indicate a tree has been purposely cut down.  I do not know why, but I suspect they were felled by hunters to make their hunting blinds, which I have seen scattered around the forest.

Hunter’s Blind, Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 3200.
Apsen Leaf. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 2500.
Aspen Leaf. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 2500.

More later,

Ken

Rio Grande National Forest, September 25, 2020, PM, Part 2

I had not explored much of the forest on the west side of the utility right of way, where I was camped.  So today, I decided to continue into that portion of the forest for a while to finish my late day shoot.

Falling Leaf. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/100s, f/11, ISO 1600.

In the above image, I was actually trying to capture the highlights along a barbed wire fence.  The intended images did not come out very well, but in this one I caught a couple of falling leaves, which are blurred due to the shutter speed not being fast enough to freeze their motion.

Stump. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/100s, f/11, ISO 3200.

I found an old stump of a fallen tree with a few yellow Aspen leaves laying on the moss growing in a sheltered portion of the stump.

Stump. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/100s, f/11, ISO 3200.

This old, weathered stump had interesting patterns.

Stump. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/160s, f/11, ISO 3200.

I will confess that I modified the scene above by adding the yellow Aspen leaf on the upper right side.  I wish I had removed the twig on the left side.

Aspen Forest. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/180s, f/11, ISO 800.

The image above is my favorite in this portion of this post.  I really like the late day shadows and highlights on the trunks and the streaks of light on the forest floor.

Forest Graffiti. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 14mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 500.

I found an Aspen tree trunk not too far from another camping area, where hunters were camped, with this message on it.  I promise I did not do this and I do not know Beth!

Stay safe and well,

Ken

Rio Grande National Forest, September 25, 2020, PM, Part 1

I stayed around my campsite in the afternoon, waiting for my son and his wife to arrive from the Denver area.  To occupy some of my time I sat outdoors, enjoying the mild weather, reading on my Kindle.

Rio Grande National Forest Campsite. iPhone photograph.

I kept seeing a curious chipmunk scampering about the campsite.  It even jumped onto the arm of my camp chair, startling me.

A curious chipmunk. iPhone photograph.

At one point, I noticed the chipmunk on the side step below the side door of my vehicle, peering inside.  This immediately alarmed me and I jumped up to shoo it away.  Even though I had the bug screen zipped closed, I had neglected to completely fasten the bottom velcro seal.  It was too late.  The chipmunk entered my vehicle.  I went in to try to find it and encourage it to go back outside.

There are plenty of places inside my vehicle for such a small animal to hide.  While I was searching for the chipmunk, my son and DIL arrived.  I left the vehicle to greet them, after which I continued to search for the chipmunk.  I never found the chipmunk and I feared it pouncing upon me as I lay sleeping at night.  Even if the chipmunk did not do harm itself, the shock of being pounced upon in the middle of the night might have caused a physical reaction resulting in my harming myself.  I was also concerned it might hitch a ride back to my home or die inside the vehicle.  To my relief, it apparently found its way back into the great outdoors of Colorado.

Late in the afternoon, we walked into the forest for an afternoon shoot.

Towering Aspens. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 14mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 200.
Forest Shadows. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 14mm (before crop), 1/160s, f/11, ISO 640.

Our wandering through the forest eventually led us to an open area on a steep slope, above another portion of the forest below.  I saw streaks of light highlighting the grasses, similar to those I had shot, without great success, the previous day.  But today I managed to get a much better image, with the image below, my favorite from this afternoon’s shoot.  I cropped the image to remove the tops of trees and some sky in the wide angle image that distracted from the main subject, a beam of light, cutting diagonally across the image and ending at a small Aspen.

Forest Light. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/200s, f/11, ISO 640.

Leaving this area, we walked back towards the utility roadway.  Until I looked closely at the image below, I had not realized that it included a portion of my DIL near the bottom left.  I was shooting up from a slope and she was just on the other side of a rise.

Aspens and Late Day Starburst. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/200s, f/11, ISO 800.
Aspens and Starburst. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/200s, f/11, ISO 200.

I shot the image above from the utility right of way, looking into the forest to the west of the roadway.

I will cover the last portion of this shoot in the next blog.

Until then,

Ken

Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado, September 25, 2020, AM Part 2

I continued to wander about in a portion of the Rio Grande National Forest in the early morning looking for whatever caught my eye, attempting to get a few decent photographs.

Evergreen surrounded by Aspens. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/400s, f/11, ISO 800.

I made a couple of compositions with this evergreen surrounded by the tall Aspens, but I do not think that the resulting images convey what I was seeing or feeling here.

Aspen Forest. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/400s, f/11, ISO 800.

The same is true of this photograph of the remnant of a burned tree trunk.  I tried multiple compositions here and I just could not capture the scene the way it moved me.  I think the lack of light on the burned out tree trunk made it too difficult to capture the emotions this stirred in me as I viewed it; although, this image does look better when viewed on a large screen.

Aspen Forest. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/200s, f/11, ISO 800.

I do like this single Aspen leaf laying on the forest floor, highlighted by a beam of sunlight with most of its surroundings in shadow.

Forest Floor. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/500s, f/11, ISO 800.

A little later, I came back to the burned out tree trunk and shot it from a different point of view and got what I think is a better image with it surrounded by fallen, weathered Aspen trunks.

Aspen Forest. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 400.

Shooting from about the same spot, but looking up towards the sky, I got this image.

Aspen Forest. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 125.

Then looking down towards the forest floor:

Aspen Forest. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 14mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 400.

Continuing my walkabout, I found this old stump with an Aspen leaf resting on it:

Old tree stump. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 2500.

Then this moss covered, rotting log on the forest floor:

Old log with moss. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 3200.

And one final image looking up towards the sky:

Towering Aspens. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/400s, f/11, ISO 200.

That’s all for this morning’s activity,

Ken

Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado, September 24, 2020, Part 3

After my morning shoot near my campsite, I drove westerly along FSR 380.  There were several possible campsites that I had noted from passing through this route earlier in the week.  I drove past the first couple of sites to a large open unrestricted camping area that seemed to be popular with hunters.  There were maybe a few places in that site that might have worked, but it was hilly, uneven, partially muddy and crowded with hunters.  So I backtracked to the only other suitable site in a utility right of way.

Rio Grande National Forest Campsite. iPhone photograph.

There was plenty of room here for my vehicle and my son and DIL’s vehicle and trailer.  They were planning to meet me here tomorrow.  So I put out a couple of cones to mark an area for them, to discourage any other campers or hunters from moving in.

The view from the Sportsmobile awning window. iPhone photograph.

As I was mounting my solar panels on the top of my vehicle, a cowboy on horseback, herding a couple of cows, approached from a little side road into the forest.  He stopped to ask if I had seen any cattle nearby.  When I said no, he then asked if I was a hunter. When I told him I was here only for photography, he told me about one of his relatives that was a professional photographer who traveled around the world making photographs.

After the cowboy moved on, I noted a few passing vehicles slow to look over my campsite, then move on.  Sometime later a pickup truck pulled up next to me, the driver asking if I was staying or leaving.  He was a hunter looking for a campsite for he and his son, who was to meet him later.  We chatted for awhile, then he went a short distance down the side road and set up his camp there.  He stopped by again sometime later to chat again and his son happened to drive up as he was there.  They soon moved on to their campsite and I did not see them again.

Late in the afternoon, I took my camera into the woods to explore the area.

Forest Shadows. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-24mm @ 14mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 200

I had some difficult getting good images during this outing.  Part of this might have been due to my thinking that my photographs in the forest were becoming too much alike and in trying to do something different, I was just not very successful.  When I got around to reviewing my images from this afternoon, I initially passed over nearly all of them, considering them not worthy of processing.  Later, I decided to revisit those images, taking a closer look at each.  I still rejected most of them, but I salvaged a few mediocre ones.

Forest Light, Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 200.
In the Forest, Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @24mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 200.
In the Forest, Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @14mm (before crop), 1/125s, f/11, ISO 200.
Fallen Aspen leaves on old mossy log.

Until next time,

Ken

 

Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado, September 25, AM Part 1

I walked from my campsite a little after 7AM, going down the utility right of way for a short distance, then ventured into the forest for a morning shoot.  A good thing about shooting in a fall forest is that one does not have to be in the woods before daybreak, unless one has a definite location in mind that requires one to be on location at a specific time.   It seems that the morning light in a forest can be good from early morning until almost noon, or even later if it is overcast.  So just wandering about in the forest looking for photographic opportunities, getting a later than pre-sunrise start is fine.

Aspen Forest Morning. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 3200.
Towering Aspens. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 1600.
Aspen Forest Morning. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 1600.
Aspen Forest Morning. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 500.
Aspen Forest Morning. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/200s, f/11, ISO 1600.

I’m making so many images of the tree trunks and wide angle forest views, that I’m again thinking that these kind of photographs are getting redundant, so I spend more time looking for little details, like the small, colorful plants on the forest floor that are highlighted by morning sunbeams filtering through the forest.

Fall Forest Floor. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/125s, f/11, ISO 1600.

Still I can’t resist getting starbursts (this one is too large and distracting) through the tree trunks

Aspen Forest Starburst. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm, 1/320s, f/11, ISO 640.

and zoomed in images of a mass of Aspen tree trunks

A dense batch of Aspen trunks in Rio Grande National Forest. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/125s, f/11, ISO 400.

or a wide angle image that makes the trees appear to lean towards the center, as if they are huddling to plan their day.

The Huddle. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-14mm @ 24mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 500.

But the forest floor is not to be ignored.

Stump. Nikon D850, Nikon 14-24mm @ 24mm (before crop), 1/80s, f/11, ISO 800.

To be continued,

Ken

 

 

Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado, September 24, 2020, Part 2

September 24, 2020, AM, continuing my wandering around in the Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado:

Fallen. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 640.
Forest Clutter. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 40mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 640.

For landscape images it is best to make simple images with no distracting clutter.  In a forest it is virtually impossible to avoid clutter.  Trees and grasses grow in a mass of seeming disorder.  Limbs and twigs stick out everywhere, the forest floor is covered with all kinds of natural debris, grasses and low growing plants, fallen trees and limbs.  Still, I try to carefully consider what is in my composition.  Sometimes I can exclude something that I consider particularly distracting, many times I just have to accept what is there and try to compose so that a viewer can get the intended message.

Star Burst Aspens. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 26mm, 1/200s, f/11, ISO 200.

Sometimes, isolating details, either via zooming in or cropping in post processing, works to eliminate clutter, but context may be lacking, if that matters.

Aspen Leaves. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/100s, f/11, ISO 250
Cradled. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/80s, f/11, ISO 500.
Forest Floor and Shadows. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/100s, f/11, ISO 250.

The chaotic nature of a forest may be the message.

Geometric Shadows. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 500.

Sometimes there appears to be a natural geometry within the chaos or just a simple highlight that catches the eye.

Aspen Twig. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/2000s, f/11, ISO 400.

I do not claim to be an expert or accomplished photographer, so maybe I need to move on now.

Until next time stay well and safe,

Ken

 

Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado, September 24, 2020, Part 1 – Edited to correct an error in the last paragraph.

I ventured back into the forest on the morning of September 24, 2020, initially taking a similar path to the route I had taken the previous afternoon, wanting to see how the light and forest scenes would differ in the morning light.

Intersecting Aspens. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/6s, f/11, ISO 200.

Sometimes I photographed essentially the same scenes, which looked a little different with the light coming from a different direction.

Aspen Trunks and Shadows. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 34mm, 1/8s, f/11, ISO 200.

There is something magical about being in a forest with sunlight filtering through the leaves and the tree trunks creating bands of shadow and light and

Evergreen with Aspen Leaves. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 46mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 2500.
Forest Light. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 48mm, 1/400s, f/11, ISO 2500.

fallen tree trunks creating an array of geometrical shapes.

Triangle. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 1600.
Aspen Forest. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 38mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 2000.
Fall Starburst. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 48mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 250.
Forest Starburst. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 200.
Star Burst Aspens. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 26mm, 1/200s, f/11, ISO 200.

With all the big trees, back lighted leaves and starburst effects, it is easy to overlook the myriad small details.  There are often interesting little things that make good images.

Aspen Leaf on Log. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/100s, f/11, ISO 2000.
Aspen Leaf on Log. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 2000.

The juxtaposition of color and texture in small items can be as intriguing as a wide angle image of the forest.

Grain and Veins. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/250s, f/11, ISO 200.

Autumn is my favorite time of the year.  I like the colors of fall and the crispness and smell of fall.  Yet it is also a strong reminder of our mortality.  I’m wondering, do we become more colorful in our autumn or just wrinkled and weathered?

To be continued,

Ken