Winter Sets In!

Chris,

The large version really shows the snow falling, and the shutter speed has blurred it perfectly, and yes the oak seems to sheltering under the pine tree. This is unusual as conifer duff usually suppress oak seedlings so to see these two types of tree so close together is rare, maybe as rare as a good "lifetime" best friend. Nice image from your series your putting together from YNP.

Paul

I love the almost B&W character of this Chris. Must be your tree! Beautiful capture.

Perfect. What a strong image IMO.

Excellent!!!

What can I say, my english vocabulary is limited and I am running out of word to comment on your consisently good work. Suggestion - post some less good images so I can write some thing new...

Beautiful work Chris!

This really holds my attention for a long time....perhaps the leaning tree? In any case, very lovely tones and composition!

Chris, this is really good, The Canyon wall in the background works so well . Classic Yosemite Image

Nice composition. Tthe snow is falling at a different angle than the tree is leaning really adds to the comp IMO. The larger version looks just a touch oversharpened on my monitor ( some artifacting near the bottom) but that could just be the jpeg conversion.

I love the subtle color against the gray/white background.

- Dan.

Love this, especially the larger version! Really gives one that winter feeling!

I agree, Chris, it looks like the oak is getting sheltered from the storm. Just the right amount of snow to see details in the trees - this is one of my favorite types of snow events. The rock wall completes the story. Even if this wasn't taken in Yosemite, I might have guessed it could have been with that huge rock wall. On the larger view, I think I can see the streaking snow, and by the looks of your shutter speed, probably is. That would be the finishing touch for this one. Processing looks great.

very elegant - the BG really sets this off. superb!

Beautiful! Well done Chris. Love the falling snow to top off this wonderful scene.

Nick Bristol
Lone Rock, WI

Awesome! Moody and beautiful. Great capture of a perfect winter scene, Chris!

I know this area well! What a great take from here. Your recent winter outing there has been ultra productive.

Chris, I Love it! Man... your work is consistently very good! Keep up the energy and great images coming!

The leaning tree with the winter snow evokes a feeling of a windy mountain storm. The huge walls behind the tree give this a beautiful sense of scale often missing in winter forest scenes.

I'm loving all these Yosemite tree shots you've been posting Chris, and this one is no different. The leaning Ponderosa is great and I like how it towers above the rest, but still feels so small compared to the gigantic wall of granite looming in the distance. The fallling snow is a nice touch in the large version.

This is a beauty Chris. Excellent composition and exposure. Are there strong winds there - just wonderfing because of the tilt to several of the large ponderosas. I really like the somewhat faded look to the BG wall too.

Very nice! Your recent trip(s) to Yosemite looks to have been a very productive in terms of keepers. No nits here, I like everything about the image.

I'm glad you decided to show it Chris, I really like the trees and the conditions come through beautifully. Fantastic background.

Gary.

Chris,

I thought you had already posted this, but then realized that I got to see a sneak peek of this. I love it just as much now. You've taken a tree like this ponderosa, a subject that would appear very difficult to photograph - tall, leaning awkwardly and just plain difficult to incorporate into a cohesive image. You've done more than that. The story being told that others have mentioned, the "sheltering" of the little oak or the growth of an oak so close to such a giant ponderosa. Others have also mentioned the scale. I would say "steps of scale." I mean just going from the oak tree, which by itself if quite large and most folks get a sense of scale here. Then compare that scale to the ponderosa and then, finally the scale of the massive granite walls. This really captures one of the many uniquely fascinating features of Yosemite Valley. Congrats. Another winner for your growing portfolio. dang it.

Lon

Another beauty, Chris. Excellent comp and scene, with great processing.

Between Lon and you, Yosemite is sure getting a good dose of attention! This is really outstanding, Chris--i love everything about it!

Absolutely stunning image, Chris. The tension / interaction that you convey between the ponderosa and the oak is fantastic. Love the wintery textures and the falling snow. Exquisite work.

Wow - I love the slightly uncomfortable feeling from the slant in the trees and the play of that slant with the oppositely leaning slant in the background rock face - it makes for a very dynamic yet balanced comp. The subtle color and placing of all the other elements really top this image off as fantastic. Congrats

the saturation here is excellent, even the background is ideal

That's a great shot, Chris.

Like so many of your images Chris, peaceful and powerful at the same time. Good for my soul, thanks!

This is definitely a keeper, Chris! Thanks for sharing.

Lovely shot!

Man, does this ever translate the scale of that rock face behind. The snow and diffused light makes this real nice!