Mt. Nebo Scenic Loop

Mt. Nebo Scenic Loop, Utah

I took these photos at the end of August and forgot to post them.  This road is now closed due to two horrific fires in the area.  I am sad to think about what these views might look like now!

Alstrom Point, Lake Powell - 4

One more shot taken at Alstrom Point, Lake Powell. It was still very dark when I set up my tripod and chose a slow shutter speed in order to capture enough light to reveal the beautiful palette of magenta, orange and lavender/blue colors I saw at dawn. It's times like this when I wonder why I don't get up early every morning to take pictures!!

Alstrom Point, Lake Powell - 3

Alstrom Point, Lake Powell

This shot was taken at the same place as the last post, but early the next morning before sunrise, showing a totally different color palette. Although it is sad to see the water level so low, it does reveal an interesting landscape not visible when covered by water.

Alstrom Point, Lake Powell - 2

 Alstrom Point, Lake Powell

Even with a plain blue sky as a backdrop, the vistas of Lake Powell around Alstrom Point are still gorgeous. 

In a perfect landscape photographer's world, the sky would always have big, puffy, marshmallow clouds, or black, brooding, stormy clouds, or brilliant rainbows or romantic, magenta sunsets. Well that's wishful hoping. Sometimes the sky is a plain blue sea of nothingness, or a boring overcast gray blanket. On days like this we learn to compose with less sky visible, or look for a way to add more interest in the sky portion of the photo, as I did here by positioning my camera to create a sun flare behind the rock formation just before the sun set.

Alstrom Point, Lake Powell - 1

Alstrom Point, Lake Powell

For landscape photographers who know the Lake Powell area, Alstrom Point is on our bucket list. It is a remote area accessed from a little settlement called Big Water. Late afternoon we drove part way down a dirt road and parked the truck. Then we took the RZRs the rest of the way and stayed at the point overlooking Lake Powell until sunset. (Photo coming soon.) We drove back to the truck, stayed overnight there, then got up really early the next morning and retraced our RZR ride so I could take photos at dawn. (Jeff is such a good sport!) This was our view late at night with the RZR lit by a flashlight. The sky around Lake Powell is dark and beautiful. Seeing shooting stars and other nighttime wonders are common events here.

Mt. Timpanogos Temple

 

 

  

Mt. Timpanogos Temple

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

I live just a few miles away from this temple.  Early one morning a few weeks ago I took these four images all within about 35 minutes.  It's amazing how the sky light and color can change within a short period of time.

Cascade Springs - 2

On the Road to Cascade Springs, Utah

"I was drinking in the surroundings:  air so crisp you could snap it with your fingers and greens in every lush shade imaginable offset by autumnal flashes of red and yellow."
                                                  -- Wendy Delsol (author)

I used to post photography tips on this blog once a week, (Tech Talk Tuesday),  but as the the popularity of blogs primarily about photography seem to be taking a back seat to Instagram, I haven't been doing this.  But on my Instagram page, I do post most all the photos that I post here, along with information about the photo and a photo tip for each photo.   You can find me on Instagram at @karenlarsenphotography.  Here is what I posted about this photo today:

NOTES FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS:

Diagonal lines in a composition add additional interest.  In composing a landscape vista that includes mountains, look for a vantage point where ridges and valleys intersect to create multiple diagonals from the foreground to the background, emphasizing depth of field.  In this shot I can count 5 or 6 major diagonals including the bottom cloud line, then several more subtle diagonals - the foreground green bushes, the band of red color and the ridge of orange color in the mid ground. 

Cascade Springs

On the Road to Cascade Springs, Utah

It was a beautiful day for a drive up the Alpine Loop and over to Cascade Springs.

Happy Anniversary - 48 years!!

Happy Anniversary to Us! 

Forty eight years today, and Jeff surprised me with two dozen roses. Love you Jeff! (Couldn't resist doing a little creative editing on this one....actually a lot of creative editing.)

Utah Lake

Utah Lake

”Never waste any amount of time doing anything important when there is a sunset outside that you should be sitting under!”
                                                         ~ C. JoyBell C.

Landscape photographers want to be out shooting during the time around sunset and sunrise, because this is when the magic happens!