prints – Denise Bush's Photo Blog

Endless Winter

It’s been snowing on and off since early November and when I wrote the first draft of this post, on March 20th, it was snowing! And, it snowed again last night, and the night before, etc., etc.! While the 20th might have felt like the first day of spring in many places, it didn’t here. We’ve had more than an average snowfall this year and there is a lot out there that will melt. I’ll expect a healthy mud season! Precipitation is always appreciated and needed to fill up our rivers and reservoirs. I can already see that the water level of our local, Ridgway Reservoir is looking higher for this time of year. The last time we had a very snowy winter the summer wildflowers were late, but extraordinary … so there’s that too. Following is an assortment of images shot in the latter half of our (seemingly) ‘endless winter’!

High winds are blowing snow off a mountain in the Sneffels Range, of Colorado's San Juan Mountains. — ‘Windy Point’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view larger or order a print*

Fading light aims high on the winter peaks of the San Juan Mountains in Colorado. — ‘Snowbound Scene’ © Denise Bush

Clouds clear to reveal snow covered peaks in Colorado's San Juans Mountains. — ‘Winter Clearing’ © Denise Bush

Pink clouds cover Hayden Peak in the Sneffels range at sunset. — ‘Hayden Under Cover’ © Denise Bush

Mount Sneffels poses along with some friends, including (right to left) Cirque Mountain, Teakettle Mountain and Ridgway Mountain — Sneffels & Friends © Denise Bush

The last light of day breaks through and strikes a distant cliff face, while alpenglow showers its pink light on the scene. — ‘Cliff Spotlight’ © Denise Bush

A Ponderosa Pine stands out in a wintry forest with its size and orange colored bark. — ‘Ponderosa & Forest Friends’ © Denise Bush

The thinnest sliver of light touches the top of a hill, just beyond a zigzag fence. — ‘Sliver Of Light’ © Denise Bush

The last bit of light strikes in the distance, as alpenglow appears, looking east. — ‘Cloudy Light On Distant Slopes’ © Denise Bush

A wintry mountain dons a bright cloud in this Colorado, San Juan Mountain scene near Ridgway. — ‘Cloud Topped’ © Denise Bush

Last light falls on a wintry peak in the San Juan Mountains, near Ridgway, Colorado. — ‘Peak Beauty’ © Denise Bush

A sparse grouping of aspen trees allows for a view of the not so distant mountains. — ‘Beyond The Aspens’ © Denise Bush
*notecards, unframed, framed, canvas, acrylic & metal prints available*

WordPress Reader/Retina display Viewers: Please click on ‘Visit’, ‘Visit Site’, ‘View Full Site’ or the title of the post for the sharpest viewing experience. Images are optimized in the WordPress Reader, and will not look sharp using a Retina Display screen. denisebushphoto.wordpress.com

Aspen Patterns & Abstracts

I’m drawn to repetition and nature patterns … I suppose it’s the part of me that likes to create order! I enjoy finding patterns, and selectively framing them while out in the landscape. Here are a few recent patterns added to a couple I was saving for this post. The second part includes images created using intentional camera movement (icm). It’s a fun technique that’s freeing and unpredictable. I like to do a bunch and decide what I like when I see them on my computer. All of the images in this post happen to feature aspens … I think they make great nature patterns and icm abstract subjects.

A distant forest of aspens and spruce makes an interesting linear pattern in the snow. — ‘Winter Aspen Forest’ © Denise Bush

A distant aspen forest, with spruce trees makes an interesting wintry subject. — ‘Forest Pattern In Winter’ © Denise Bush

Young aspen trees arrange themselves among the rocks and snow in winter. — ‘Saplings In Winter’ © Denise Bush

A tight group of aspen trees makes a pretty nature pattern. — ‘Tight Family’ © Denise Bush
*notecards, unframed, framed, canvas, acrylic & metal prints availabl*e

A long shot at some distant aspens combines a grouping that creates diagonal layers. — ‘Distant Aspen Pattern’ © Denise Bush

This abstract was created by intentionally moving the camera during exposure. — ‘Aspen Abstract In B&W’ © Denise Bush

Intentional Camera Movement creates an impressionistic image among the aaspen trees in autumn. — ‘Autumn Dream’ © Denise Bush

See my complete ‘Nature Abstracts & Patterns’ collection here!

2022 Favorites

As many of my friends and followers know, I like to close out the year by collecting all my favorite photos in a year-end gallery. It’s a 20 year tradition! Now that it is complete I’m ready to move on with renewed energy, goals and 2023! I collected over 100 images and then edited the group down to 65. Click the thumbnail page or link below to check out all my ‘2022 Favorites’, and find links to other years, and my store too!

Images created by Denise Bush in 2022. — *2022 Favorites • denisebushphoto.com*

Autumn Recap – Part Two

Although it feels like winter, autumn isn’t over until December 21. Here are more images I wanted to document and share. I try to keep up with with what I capture by processing and posting what I like. Now I’ll move on to tackling other images from recent captures … some set aside for particular themes. In October, fall came to an abrupt stop. I wasn’t ready for the sudden onset of especially cold weather and snow. Processing kept me busy and after taking a break from shooting, I’m ready to venture out again … hunting for new subjects and scenes.

A peak with snow peeks out to top aan autumn aspen slope. — ‘Mountain Topping’ © Denise Bush

Fog obscures a distant mountain while fall foliage shines up front. — ‘Foggy Impression’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view larger or order a print*

An unsettled sky gives way to light on the mountain and colorful aspens. — ‘Colorful Aspens Below’ © Denise Bush

A colorful selection of aspens and willow gather at the bottom of a hill to make a pleasing grouping. — ‘Down In The Valley’ © Denise Bush

Storm clouds move in to create dramatic lighting over this Colorado landscape. — ‘Mountain Drama In Autumn’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view my ‘Colorful Colorado’ collection*

Vibrant aspens show off peak foliage below a peak with a light dusitng of snow. — ‘Aspens Below Dusted Peak’ © Denise Bush

Aspens close-up and faraway make a pretty autumn scene in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. — ‘Aspens In A Forest’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view my ‘Tremendous Trees’ collection*

Lakeside aspens in all their autumn glory are enjoyed twice in this reflection scene. — ‘Reflecting Aspens’ © Denise Bush
*notecards, unframed, framed, canvas, acrylic & metal prints available*

Golden aspens glow below a peak in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. — ‘Autumn à la Mode’ © Denise Bush

Aspen trees with bark damage twist every which way in this autumn grove. — ‘Twisted Sisters’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view larger or order a print*

A large dead tree is a fitting subject for a Halloween tale. — ‘Sorcerer’s Tree’ © Denise Bush
*available in many options here*

To scroll through all my autumn posts, click on Denise Bush’s Photo Blog to return home, then scroll down. Thanks for visiting!

Autumn Recap – Part One

I’ve been busy reviewing and processing more fall images that interest me. As I’ve mentioned before, my blog acts as an archive of my work. Just some of what I post here will end up in my yearly favorites gallery and this is a record of those that do and those that don’t. It was a wonderful fall for photographing and perhaps one of my more productive too. Here, in no particular order is part one of the recap, containing more images than my usual posts. The leaves may be gone but it is still fall!

Sunshine Mountain near Telluride Colorado displays a coat of fresh snow above autumn colors below. — ‘Winter Above Autumn’ © Denise Bush

A fence has fallen but remained in place to border some golden, autumn aspens. — ‘Broken-down Border’ © Denise Bush

Snow comes to the mountains to create a dramatic autumn scene. — ‘Wintry Prelude’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view larger or order a print*

Aspen trunks and changing foliage make a pretty nature vignette. — ‘Aspen Vignette’ © Denise Bush
*notecards, unframed, framed, canvas, acrylic & metal prints available*

A cloud lights up shortly after the sun goes down as a last minute surprise. — ‘Sunset Near Telluride’ © Denise Bush

Using a telephoto lens, aspens in the distance are glowing with late day backlighting. — ‘Admiring From Afar’ © Denise Bush

Aspens intersect in a forest that grows every which way! — ‘Aspen Intersections’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view larger or order a print*

A favorite stand of cottonwoods shows their autumn grandeur in this isolated view. — ‘The Cottonwoods’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view more ‘Tremendous Trees*‘

A little light peeks out above Red Mountain to illuminate the autumn colors. — ‘Red Mountain In Autumn’ © Denise Bush

Snow comes to the Colorado mountains in autumn seen here in this contrasting scene. — ‘Season Contrast’ © Denise Bush

A border of golden aspen trees compliments the warm spotlight on the distant mountains. — ‘Spotlight At Sunset’ © Denise Bush

Autumn In The Mountains

I haven’t posted many autumn landscapes featuring mountains yet, but that isn’t because I didn’t shoot them! I’m actually a bit overwhelmed (and pleased) by how much I have to go through! As usual the mountain peaks started out bare, and during the first part of October received some snow … a little dusting at first, and then more a few days later. The snow has managed to hang around on several of the peaks but evaporate on others. The coating depends on how high the peaks are and what face you are looking at. North faces tend to hold onto the snow a little longer. As I write this, snow is in the weather forecast. The mountains will start accumulating more and more, but sadly without the aspen accents. In no particular order, here are some of my favorite autumn, mountain images … with still more to go through. Editing is a time consuming task for me. I have to process selected images to decide if they are something I want to use. Sometimes they go into the ‘not using’ folder and the rest end up here! Hope you enjoy my ‘autumn in the mountains’!

Storm clouds roll in to produce dramatic lighting on thes San Jauan Mountains, Colorado scene. — ‘Autumn Drama’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view larger or order a print*

This San Juan Mountain scene has both the colorful foliage and a snowcapped peak, creating a postcard perfect landscape. — ‘Postcard Perfection’ © Denise Bush

A look down adds perspective to this unique San Jaun Mountains, Colorado scene. — ‘Bottom Of The Hill’ © Denise Bush

It's that time of day ... when the evening shadows start to creep in at lower elevations, while the mountains still shine. — ‘Shadow & Light Landscape’ © Denise Bush

A dusting of snow arrives in time to accompany the colorful autumn foliage. — ‘A Little Autumn Snow’ © Denise Bush

A mix of sun and clouds creates a spotlight effect on an autumn, aspen ridge. — ‘Autumn Light Play’ © Denise Bush

From near to far, the mountains are especially beautiful in autumn. — ‘A Perfect Afternoon’ © Denise Bush

The deep golden color of this aspen tree really stands out against a foggy backdrop! — ‘Highlights In The Fog’ © Denise Bush

Clouds lift in the morning after a snowfall on Wilson Peak, near Telluride. — ‘A Peek At Wilson Peak’ © Denise Bush
*notecards, unframed, framed, canvas, acrylic & metal prints available*

Interesting clouds grace this autumn scene featuring Sunshine Mountain near Telluride! — ‘Sunshine On Sunshine Mountain’ © Denise Bush

Autumn aspens adorn the foreground of this San Juan Mountain, Colorado scene. — ‘Autumn Aspens & Sunset’ © Denise Bush

The peak of Mount Sneffels is above the clouds here to the left of the frame. — ‘Sneffels Under Cover’ © Denise Bush

Some final sunlight filters through the clouds to create a brilliant, last light over autumn aspens. — ‘Last Light Mountain Time’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view larger or order a print*

This is my third 2022 autumn post and there’s more to come. If you missed ‘Finding Fall’ or ‘Finding More Fall’. Click on Denise Bush’s Photo Blog at the top and scroll down through the most recent posts! Thanks very much for visiting!

Finding More Fall

I’m continuing to ‘find more fall’ and this post is another mix of autumn images. Beauty abounds and the area is busy with photographers from parts near and far, working to capture a piece of that beauty. I can relate to all those photographers as I too was once someone who would often travel for more scenic opportunities. Yes … I am very grateful to live where I can enjoy such wonderful scenery. It still takes work and I do consider it my job … one where I can happily put my skills (and determination) to work! Among the expansive landscape I enjoy finding smaller, intimate scenes like some I’ve posted here. I look to find aspen groupings that have an arrangement I can isolate and frame to create a pleasing composition. A walk to a less populated side of a lake provided opportunities to explore interesting reflections, instead of the overall view most come to capture and take home. I am always looking for subjects and compositions within the landscape that call out to me, and autumn is a time when that happens often!

Young aspen foliage sparkles in the late day side-light. — ‘Sparkling Aspens’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view larger or order a print*

Aspen trees illuminate as the sun kisses the ridge goodnight in the distance. — ‘Colorful Aspen Family’ © Denise Bush

Young aspens in gold acompany red and green in this found arrangement. — ‘Cliffside Arrangement’ © Denise Bush

The contrast of twhite and black aspen trunks against autumn gold is a striking combination. — ‘Aspen Trunks In Autumn Forest’ © Denise Bush

Tall aspens are daring so close to the edge of a cliff. — ‘Aspens On Edge’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view larger or order a print*

Walking around the back side of this lake offered solitude among the beauty. — ‘The Back Side’ © Denise Bush

Reflections of beautiful aspen trees reflect in the grassy section of a San Juan Mountain Lake. — ‘Splendor In The Grass’ © Denise Bush
*notecards, unframed, framed, canvas, acrylic & metal prints available*

Colorful aspen trees are reflected in a lake among some marsh grass. — ‘Grassy Reflection’ © Denise Bush

An autumn mountain reflection among marsh grass makes a unique seasonal statement. — ‘Frosty Grass & Reflection’ © Denise Bush

Cimarron Magic

Colorado’s San Juan Mountains are a part of the Rocky Mountains, located in the southwestern portion of the state. Within the San Juan’s there are ranges with their own names such as; the Sneffels Range, the Needle Mountains, the La Garita Mountains, the San Miguel Mountains, and the La Platas, to name a few. The San Juans also include the Cimarron Range, which is the topic of this post. The Cimarrons are distinctly shaped mountains including Chimney Rock, Courthouse Mountain, The Turrets and Coxcomb … all pictured here. In addition to the distinct shapes, the range is unique because it runs from south to north, tapering off along the Cimarron Ridge at the north end. From home its east facing alignment offers brilliant sunrise mornings and evenings filled with alpenglow surprises. Here are a few of those magical moments, captured from our property and other not so distant vantage points.

Rain at sunset creates a splendid sight to the east, over the — ‘Cimarron Sunset Rain’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view larger or order a print*

Sunset's alpenglow lights up Courthouse Mountain peeking above some pinion pines on a hill. — ‘Courthouse Peak Peeking’ © Denise Bush

The Turrets are a part of the Cimarron Range near Ridgway. Colorado. The Cimarrons are part of the San Juan Mountains and Rocky Mountains. — ‘The Turrets At Sunset’ © Denise Bush

Some bright puffy clouds settle along Cimarron Ridge with dark blue clouds drift above. — ‘Ridge Silhouette’ © Denise Bush

Looking east to the Cimarron Range of Colorado's San Juan Mountains is often a beautiful sight at sunset. — ‘Cimarron Cloud Layers’ © Denise Bush

Beautiful late day light hits Chimney Rock offering a beautiful scene in Ridgway, Colorado. — ‘Chimney Lighting’ © Denise Bush

Pretty pink clouds move in above The Turrets of the Cimarron Range in Ridgway, Colorado. — ‘Pink Clouds Above The Turrets’ © Denise Bush
*notecards, unframed, framed, canvas, acrylic & metal prints available*

Colorful foliage is beginning to put on its beautiful autumn show here. That will keep me busy for the next several weeks … shooting, processing and of course, last but not least, posting!

Some Summertime Mountains

No matter what scene or subject I’m out to capture, I’m always open to the many mountain scenes I’m presented with. For this post I’ve grouped some recent compositions where the mountains and peaks play the starring role!

Trees along a road leading to Mount Sneffels shine with morning light and help to set the stage. — ‘A Different Road To Sneffels’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view larger or order a print*

The rising sun lights up a distant peak to greet the new day. — ‘A New Day’ © Denise Bush

The mountains are far away in this layered landscape. — ‘Layered Landscape’ © Denise Bush

Beautiful light filters through clouds to cast interesting light play below. — ‘Gulch Spotlight’ © Denise Bush
*notecards, unframed, framed, canvas, acrylic & metal prints available*

The setting sun lights up clouds to the northeast, in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. — ‘Evening Vista’ © Denise Bush

Red Mountain is aptly named for the high iron and mineral content giving it beautifully colored slopes. — ‘Fading Light On Red Mountain’ © Denise Bush

The sun makes its way over the eastern mountains to illuminate the landscape including a portion of the Sneffels Range. — ‘Morning Highlights’ © Denise Bush

WordPress Reader/Retina Display Viewers: Please click on ‘Visit’, ‘Visit Site’, ‘View Full Site’ or the tile of the post for the sharpest viewing experience. Images are optimized in the WordPress Reader, and will not look sharp using a Retina Display screen. denisebushphoto.wordpress.com

Latest Landscapes

I’ve never adhered to any kind of schedule for blogging. I simply post when I have recent work and themed projects to share and archive. Then today I realized it’s been over a month since my last post, and that’s a little longer than I like. As explained then, our winters are long! It seems I have lost my enthusiasm for the winter landscape (until next year) so I haven’t been out with my camera as often as usual. I’ve been waiting for spring and thankfully each day is bringing a little more green. When the aspen trees leaf out I will feel fully rejuvenated! But with that said, I have been out a handful of times during the last month, and this post displays my latest landscape keepers. In chronological order you’ll see how the snow has melted down below. We’ll have snow on the peaks for quite a while longer, and then it starts all over again!

I was delighted when this pink cloud perfectly positioned itself above some distant mountains, glowing with last light! — ‘Pink Cloud Over Peek-a-boo Peaks’ © Denise Bush
*click here to view larger or order a print*

The San Juan Mountains, in Colorado are known for its rail fences and beautiful mountains as displayed in this scene. — ‘San Juan Classic’ © Denise Bush

Rusting farm equipment provides an introduction to this mountain scene. — ‘Resting Plow Parts’ © Denise Bush

An abstract version of Mount Sneffels is reflected in a spring puddle. — ‘Vertical Reflection’ © Denise Bush

First light strikes a distant snow-capped mountain while the valley below begins to turn green. — ‘May Mountain Morning’ © Denise Bush

WordPress Reader/Retina Display Viewers: Please click on ‘Visit’, ‘Visit Site’, ‘View Full Site’ or the title of the post for the sharpest viewing experience. Images are optimized in the WordPress Reader, and will not look sharp using a Retina Display screen. denisebushphoto.wordpress.com