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.