The Ice Looks Nice

Ok, I’ll admit it’s been somewhat slow around here. A perfect storm of sorts has come together, which has slowed me down a tad. The combination of the holidays, the Fern Lake Fire, and the lack of any real snow in the park has been a challenge.

It’s difficult enough to successfully photograph Rocky Mountain National Park in the best of conditions, but throw in a fire that has closed off access to one of the most beautiful parts of Rocky Mountain National Park, a lack of any new snow pack to cover the transitional browns, and the holidays adding their typical chaos and it’s been an interesting end to the year here in Colorado.

None of this has stopped me from getting out and photographing. It’s just kind of reshaped the areas and subjects I’ve been photographing. This has indeed been a positive development for me. I’ve been forced to think outside the box a little more, and look for images I might normally hike or drive right past.

The Fern Lake fire has closed off access to Bear Lake Road, and Old Man Winter has shut down Trail Ridge Road and now suddenly, Rocky Mountain National Park has gotten a lot smaller. Smaller is a relative term of course as there are still humungous areas open for photography, but even still I’ve had to be a little more creative in searching out opportunities.

But as stated in a previous blog entry, it’s been a good experience for sure. I’ve been able to spend time photographing areas that are usually lower on my priority list or overlooked completely. I’ve been concentrating on smaller subjects and details which has been a great exercise and changeup. Here’s to hoping things get back to normal in the park in 2013, until then I’ll just keep enjoying photographing areas and subjects I’ve neglected in the past.