Posted by Russ Shugart on August 15, 2011 at 8:58 AM
Last shot from this weekend. I got this shot just before every mosquito in a 3 valley radius tried to lift off with me. The wind was just enough to blow (pun intended) the reflection, but not enough to keep the buggers away. Not quite the sunset colors I was hoping for here but the shot from the other day made up for it.
Posted by Jack Garrett on August 15, 2011 at 9:44 AM
Great capture Russ! OK, where is this place?
Posted by Joshua Hardin on August 15, 2011 at 11:06 AM
Neat composition. I like the fireweed but am wondering why all the tops of the plants are missing, it looks fine nonetheless. I also remember the mosquitoes being especially nasty the last time I visited this lake.
Posted by John Mumaw on August 15, 2011 at 8:15 PM
A wonderful scene masterfully composed! I like everything about it, though I kinda wish you had removed those dead stalks.
Your patience with those insects was well rewarded!
Posted by Kurt Bowman on August 15, 2011 at 8:34 PM
Very cool comp and well seen Russ..another great shot!
Posted by Chris Martin on August 15, 2011 at 9:31 PM
Great light and nice comp!
Posted by Russ Shugart on August 15, 2011 at 10:34 PM
Thanks everyone for the encouraging comments. Joshua, I'm not sure what you mean by missing tops. Do you mean the bushes in the foreground? And John, I assume you mean the pine trees. That was kind of weird. I'm not sure what that was the result of unless it was someone trying to cut firewood off the lower branches, but that doesn't seem likely. Anyone have any ideas? They do seem a little sickly.
Posted by John Mumaw on August 15, 2011 at 11:28 PM
Ooopss...you might have had a tough time removing those!
I'm sure it's more evident what they are on a larger version.
Posted by Russ Shugart on August 16, 2011 at 12:04 AM
It's kind of weird, right? The trees from the other shot have some of this going on too. I don't know that I've seen this before, any idea what the cause is?
Posted by Joshua Hardin on August 16, 2011 at 1:46 AM
Russ, I actually mean the fireweed blooms themselves. Most of the time fireweed has white extensions with small buds that grow above the pink blooms. I only noticed it because I've seen examples of these flowers in places where people, photographers presumably, have obviously used scissors to snip off the tops to make the whole flower appear less distracting. Though it's probable in this case the tops of these blooms just haven't grown completely, possibly sheared by wind or were eaten by some sort of wildlife.
As far as the trees go, not completely sure what would cause them to not have needles on the bottom other than just plain old fashioned harsh conditions. This location is near treeline and I'd bet it gets a fair share of nasty winds. Seen a lot of trees that look like this in RMNP, Elk Range, etc. I don't know why the needles on the top aren't the first to go though!
Posted by Jeff Hackett on August 16, 2011 at 10:09 AM
I like the way the lake comes into the frame, nicely composed image.
Posted by Phillip Noll on August 18, 2011 at 8:31 PM
Beautiful image! I like it just as it is.
Posted by Lynn Scott on August 19, 2011 at 5:15 PM
I really like the composition in this shot! Very nicely done!
Discussion
14 repliesRuss
www.AlpineGalleria.com
Your patience with those insects was well rewarded!
Russ
www.AlpineGalleria.com
Russ
www.AlpineGalleria.com
I'm sure it's more evident what they are on a larger version.
Russ
www.AlpineGalleria.com
As far as the trees go, not completely sure what would cause them to not have needles on the bottom other than just plain old fashioned harsh conditions. This location is near treeline and I'd bet it gets a fair share of nasty winds. Seen a lot of trees that look like this in RMNP, Elk Range, etc. I don't know why the needles on the top aren't the first to go though!