Mono Lake Sunset

Nestled at the edge of the arid Great Basin and the snowy Sierra Nevada mountains in California, Mono Lake is an ancient saline lake that covers over 70 square miles and supports a unique and productive ecosystem. The lake has no fish; instead it is home to trillions of brine shrimp and alkali flies.

Crystal Lake

At 9,000' you'll find a pristine alpine lake, pride of the Mammoth Lakes Basin. Distinguished mostly by granite rock, with fir trees, pines, hemlocks, and manzanita when you reach the lake, you’ll be struck by the dominant rock feature known as Crystal Crag, a hard granite protrusion that, unlike the surrounding rock, wasn’t eroded by glaciers and rivers. The 13 acres of beautiful Crystal Lake will keep you enchanted for hours.

Mono Lake Tufa

Tufa is essentially common limestone. What is uncommon about this limestone is the way it forms. Typically, underwater springs rich in calcium (the stuff in your bones) mix with lakewater rich in carbonates (the stuff in baking soda). As the calcium comes in contact with carbonates in the lake, a chemical reaction occurs resulting in calcium carbonate--limestone. The calcium carbonate precipitates (settles out of solution as a solid) around the spring, and over the course of decades to centuries, a tufa tower will grow. Tufa towers grow exclusively underwater, and some grow to heights of over 30 feet. The reason visitors see so much tufa around Mono Lake today is because the lake level fell dramatically after water diversions began in 1941.

Teton Water Color

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MonoTones

Mono Lake, Eastern Sierra

Silver Lake Stillness

Eastern Sierra, Near June Lake is the most pristine alpine views in all of the 395 Corridor. This photo was taken on a crisp pre-dawn morning with my tripod setup in the lake itself.

Tahoe Bliss

Western shore of Lake Tahoe, Emerald Bay State Park. CA

Snake River Overlook - Grand Teton

This iconic perspective made famous by Ansel Adams is like a homage and visit to mecca for any would-be landscape photographer. The most amazing thing about shooting wild places like this is the fact that even though it's been captured a million times, not one photo is just like this, as I was the only person present during this particular shoot. Opportunity always exists.

American River In Autumn

Taken near South Lake Tahoe 11/12/2013. This time of year, before the rain and snow choke this canyon with rapids, the river looks more like a quiet creek and the autumn colors really show. The sun was setting and the tree grove on the right created a beautiful natural filter.

Snake River At Dawn - Grand Teton National Park, WY

Snake River at Dawn is a 180 degree reverse shot taken momentarily after the "Teton Reflections" shot taken in the other direction. As I write about in the caption, due to park closures I was the only here this particular day - making these images true one-of-a-kind.

Tipping Point

For whatever reason I was having a hard time giving this photograph a title. It was taken in the Rockies a few minutes before a storm unleashed its fury on us. The clouds looked dark both because they actually were plus I had a 3 stop graduated ND filter across the top third of the shot, which accentuated the contrast. No HDR, bracketing or overlay - one snap of the shutter. Winner received a signed 10" x 15" print. THE WINNER WAS RICHARD GREENBERG from New Jersey who came up with "Tipping Point" - the perfect name for this moment. Congratulations!

Jenner Reflections

The coastal town of Jenner is located near the coast of Sonoma County. This morning the conditions were very calm and the Russian River was not flowing. This vantage point captures the tranquility and serenity of the town.

Hells Canyon Sky

In May 2015 I had the opportunity to lead a group of teens down the Snake River in Idaho's Hells Canyon, the Seven Devil's Range of the Rocky Mountains. The weather ranged from 85 degrees, hot and dry - to nautical grade rainy with lightning and thunderstorms. This photo was taken during the clam early hours as the storms gathered steam. It looks almost surreal but this is not an HDR image, it's a single exposure, handheld shot taken at f/10 from a raft floating in the middle of the river.

Rainbow Colors of the Tuolumne River Bed

This shot is not color enhanced and looked almost exactly like this depiction in real life. It took 2 days to backpack to this location deep in the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne, a grueling hike honestly, but with scenery like this I was easily distracted from my cramping legs and pangs of thirst. The colorful and erosive rock formations left by the river, this year running at 30% lower than normal, were a spectacle to see. Yosemite National Park.

Mountain View

There are only a few places in the US that I know of where you can see this level of alpine beauty without 'earning it' with a long and arduous hike. Yosemite comes to mind, so does the Great Smoky Mountains, Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park and of course everywhere you look in Alaska but this place, The Grand Teton National Park is a whole other thing. For all of you with a desire to see big mountains set in front of pristine rivers and lakes, but have an inability or lack of desire to trek long distances on rugged terrain to get there - go to Wyoming. Trust me on that. :).

Hells Canyon

In May 2015 I had the opportunity to lead a group of teens down the Snake River in Idaho's Hells Canyon, the Seven Devil's Range of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. The weather ranged from 85 degrees, hot and dry - to nautical grade rainy with lightning and thunderstorms. This photo was taken after a long night of rains as the blue skies were pushing through the recently broken up storm clouds. It looks almost surreal but this is not an HDR image, it's a single exposure, handheld shot taken at f/13 from a raft floating in the middle of the river.

Oneonta Grorge Creekbed

The Columbia River Gorge is about 40 minutes outside of Portland, Oregon. A vast and lush region, mostly accessible by just a short walk and the nature is pure spectacular rainforest, even by Hawaiian standards.

Hells Canyon Vista

In May 2015 I had the opportunity to lead a group of teens down the Snake River in Idaho's Hells Canyon, the Seven Devil's Range of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. The weather ranged from 85 degrees, hot and dry - to nautical grade rainy with lightning and thunderstorms. This photo was taken after a long night of rains as the blue skies were pushing through the recently broken up storm clouds.

Fall Meets Winter In The Teton Range

Shot on September 30, 2013 in Grand Teton National Park during a huge storm that mixed hail, 60 mph winds and rain squalls, this moment was a brief break in the storm and one of the first views I actually go to have of the distant mountains.

Valley View Moonrise - Yosemite National Park

This perspective is the definitive view of Yosemite Valley, looking towards the east from the valley floor. During this multi-layered moment the upper half of El Capitan, Bridalveil Falls and the south rim were illuminated by the sunset which cast that orange glow. The full moon was rising over the Cathedral Spires and the long exposure balanced the lack of foliage by allowing all that color and soft flow of the Merced River. Late winter dusk in Yosemite National Park.