This past Sunday my Grandmother Patricia passed away. I knew that a nice sunrise from Cathedral Spire the following morning would be the perfect way for me to remember her for the wonderful women she was.
I think Ive been up Cathedral Spire 7-8 times, including 4 sunrises and 1 sunset. It's located in the Buffalo Creek area (hwy285)and for my money, its the best thing within an hour (45 min) of Denver. Its summit is festooned with rock spires and provide for a pretty nice wideangle shot with the sun rising from the east. I bring only one lens up there, my wide.
Overall, this little peak is impressive to look at. It's not a huge mountain, but looks huge because it towers about 2,200-ft above the South Platte River. It's eye catching and if you've seen it before, you know about it. For about 1,900-ft, the route is class 2 on a very faint trail. The last 300-ft are class 3, and without solid routefinding, the route easily makes it to class 4 and 5. There's enough room for one person on the true summit, which is where I like to shoot the sunrise. I have the route memorized so I can make the summit in about an hour and a half in the dark. I set the alarm for 2:45 am.
This was by far my best sunrise up there. A weather front was moving in from the west as I made the summit. It was very windy, plus I'm certain the atmasphere was loaded with dust. The east was clear. I knew it was going to be a good one...if the wind would settle down. At 5:45 the wind just stopped, five minutes before the fireworks.
Here's an old photo of Cathedral Spires from the Chair Rocks area.
Condolences to you about your grandmother. Wow, that image is awesome! The sky color and pattern is perfect, as is the rocky ridge. Love the color on those rocks. Only one question, is the bottom left corner slightly out of focus, or just an illusion from resizing for the web?
That does look like a perfect place to reminisce about your grandmother and you got a special gift back with the sunrise. I like the 62069 image the best, it is a little brighter in the foreground and it reveals some nice details
Jeff, thanks for the nice comments. The bottom left issue may be the extreme corner performance of my 14-24 lens. Rated high for corner performance, the lens typically gets these kinds of shots. But this may be a good example of the limitations of even the best wide angles. I think I shot these at f18. Since I have that eye catching RED rock ridge running to the extreme corner of the image, it's excentuating the corner performance. If I want it perfect, I may have to crop out the 1st 3rd of the red portion of the ridge, which wouldn't be too much.
Scott, 62069 was submitted to another site. Although the exact image was submitted to Naturesphotographers they differ a bit. I've noticed this issue before, it's why I typically post to another site and link. Especially when we are talking about the details.
Very sorry to hear about your grandmother.
The shot is a fine tribute to her. Looks like a great spot for a sunrise, and you captured a great one. Wonderful shot.
Sorry about your Grandmother, Kane. What a wonderful way to honor her.
I really like these, 620629 and this one the most, but I'm wondering about opening up the shadows a bit. The clouds look like they were made for this scene. Great comp.
Posted by Rod Chandler on May 12, 2010 at 10:41 AM
Kane, what an awesome tributer to your grandmother. Maybe she had a word with God and asked that the wind calm for a few moments until you got your shot in her honor. Who knows, eh? She would be proud of your skill in any event.
Discussion
11 repliesI think Ive been up Cathedral Spire 7-8 times, including 4 sunrises and 1 sunset. It's located in the Buffalo Creek area (hwy285)and for my money, its the best thing within an hour (45 min) of Denver. Its summit is festooned with rock spires and provide for a pretty nice wideangle shot with the sun rising from the east. I bring only one lens up there, my wide.
Overall, this little peak is impressive to look at. It's not a huge mountain, but looks huge because it towers about 2,200-ft above the South Platte River. It's eye catching and if you've seen it before, you know about it. For about 1,900-ft, the route is class 2 on a very faint trail. The last 300-ft are class 3, and without solid routefinding, the route easily makes it to class 4 and 5. There's enough room for one person on the true summit, which is where I like to shoot the sunrise. I have the route memorized so I can make the summit in about an hour and a half in the dark. I set the alarm for 2:45 am.
This was by far my best sunrise up there. A weather front was moving in from the west as I made the summit. It was very windy, plus I'm certain the atmasphere was loaded with dust. The east was clear. I knew it was going to be a good one...if the wind would settle down. At 5:45 the wind just stopped, five minutes before the fireworks.
Here's an old photo of Cathedral Spires from the Chair Rocks area.
http://c0278592.cdn.cloudfiles.rackspacecloud.com/large/494549.jpg
Nikon D700, 14mm, post process with Cs2, Capture nx2, and Nik Color Efex-Grad ND Filter.
http://c0278592.cdn.cloudfiles.rackspacecloud.com/original/620629.jpg
http://c0278592.cdn.cloudfiles.rackspacecloud.com/original/620631.jpg
http://c0278592.cdn.cloudfiles.rackspacecloud.com/original/620632.jpg
Scott, 62069 was submitted to another site. Although the exact image was submitted to Naturesphotographers they differ a bit. I've noticed this issue before, it's why I typically post to another site and link. Especially when we are talking about the details.
Kane
The shot is a fine tribute to her. Looks like a great spot for a sunrise, and you captured a great one. Wonderful shot.
I really like these, 620629 and this one the most, but I'm wondering about opening up the shadows a bit. The clouds look like they were made for this scene. Great comp.
I'm also sorry to hear about your loss.