Arroyo Seco View with Birds, originally uploaded by Pacific Landscapes.

Sunset hitting El Salto and the mountains around Taos. Seen from El Salto Road, Arroyo Seco, New Mexico, February 2008.

On four occasions I’ve had the opportunity to photograph Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park.¬† The first was canceled due to punishing hail and in the second my images were terrible.¬† The third time wasn’t the charm either.

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On my August 2009 trip, I finally realized that while the name is Rocky Mountain National Park, its scenic power derives in part from the awe-inspiring theater in the sky created by the weather conditions along the Continental Divide.¬† (“Rocky Mountain Skies” park?)¬† As a car-borne photographer, the mountains are difficult to “get close to” and harder still to photograph distinctively.¬† Mountains get lost among the many peaks.¬† I am challenged to answer satisfactorily the “so-what” question of nature photography.¬† Silhouette or side-lit, good photos of mountains as obelisks elude me.

The rapidly changing skies bring noteworthiness within reach.¬† Clouds shaped like jack o’lanterns, heat lightning at nightfall.¬† Cirrus eclipse of the full moon followed by the crack of lightning.¬† A waning moon high in the sky at sunrise.¬† And of course, the daily 4PM thunderstorm that drops rain somewhere – but not always on us.¬† Which brings the rainbow.¬† And on it goes.

This short video (2:24) contains a few handfuls of the best images from my trips.¬† Please let me know how it strikes you, and how it can be improved.¬† I’m very interested in finding compelling ways to present images online and any insights are much appreciated.¬† Any ideas about how to uniquely present images online to an already saturated viewership are much appreciated.

Musical accompaniment is licensed under the Creative Commons from Arnaud Conde’s album Velvorn: The Bladed Druid.

Double Rainbow Over Grand Lake, originally uploaded by Pacific Landscapes.

A recent trip to Rocky Mountain National Park has me thinking of my first successful image in RMNP, which is also my first and probably only compelling image of an after-storm rainbow. This scene is Grand Lake, Colorado as seen from the edge of the Grand Lake Lodge. In August of 2006 we were there for a family reunion, and this was one of the winners from the trip.

I’ve never seen such a clear double rainbow before or since, and the moment was adrenaline-charged for me. The smell of ozone after lightning, running in search of the rainbow and my gasp of surprise at seeing a true double-arch all made this an intense physical experience. I now understand why legends persist about gold at the end of a rainbow. Why not, it’s so beautiful, it doesn’t seem crazy that there would be more good fortune in store for anyone who can get there before it fades.