Aspens and reflections, Uncompahgre NF, Colorado. This small, remote pond had a beautiful stand of aspens growing next to it. The trunks remind me of a baleen whale’s teeth.
As I said in this recent post, I had many opportunities to photograph aspens as part of a larger landscape this fall. But of course I photographed more intimate scenes as well, and I’ve included a selection of smaller-scale aspen photographs from Colorado here. Some of these images actually encompass a large geographic area, but I made the somewhat arbitrary distinction of defining an intimate landscape as anything that didn’t include sky.
On our first autumn visit to Colorado last year we split our time between the Kebler Pass/McClure Pass area and the San Juan Mountains. This year we spent the whole time in the San Juans, which allowed us to get to know this area better. There’s always something to be said for that. As you become more familiar with a place, you discover some of the lesser-known locations. You also start to learn the weather patterns, and know where to go at sunrise or sunset when there might be interesting clouds.
One of the things I looked for this year was aspens next to water. This can be surprisingly hard to find in Colorado, because there are few natural lakes at the elevations where aspens grow. But we did find some small, pretty, manmade lakes surrounded by aspens, and I’ve included a few images from those spots here.
This was, by all accounts, a mediocre autumn in Colorado. It certainly wasn’t as good as last year, but there are so many aspens in the state that there’s bound to be good color somewhere. We had no complaints.
— Michael Frye
Aspen-covered hillsides, Uncompahgre NF, Colorado. Clouds created beautiful dappled light on these hillsides, but required patience to wait for the sun to hit the right spots.
Aspen-covered hillside, Uncompahgre NF, Colorado. Some great patterns on a hillside near Silver Jack reservoir.
Backlit aspens and reflections, Uncompahgre NF, Colorado. As the sun rose over a ridge, it created some beautiful backlight on these aspens.
Aspens and maple, San Juan Mountains, Uncompahgre NF, Colorado. I loved the soft backlight on this maple underneath an aspen canopy near Ouray.
Aspens and pond, San Juan Mountains, Colorado. A sky full of puffy clouds caused the sun to go in and out, so I waited for a moment when the background trees would be in the shade, with the foreground aspens lit by the sun.
Aspen trunks near Telluride, Colorado. We found this striking group of trunks near Telluride, with perfect, soft sidelight emphasizing the rounded forms.
Sunlight on aspens, Umcompahgre NF, Colorado. I made this image just before capturing the rainbow photograph from that previous post. Sun breaking underneath the thundercloud created dramatic contrast.
Aspens and a snow-covered mountainside, Uncompahgre NF, Colorado. I liked the juxtaposition of the aspens in front of the snow-covered slopes.
Aspens, firs, and reflections, Uncompahgre NF, Colorado. Just more Colorado aspens next to a beautiful lake.
Related Posts: Autumn Landscapes; Processing Autumn Landscapes; Colorado Color; From Eclipse to Aspens
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Michael Frye is a professional photographer specializing in landscapes and nature. He is the author or principal photographer of The Photographer’s Guide to Yosemite, Yosemite Meditations, Yosemite Meditations for Women, Yosemite Meditations for Adventurers, and Digital Landscape Photography: In the Footsteps of Ansel Adams and the Great Masters. He has also written three eBooks: Light & Land: Landscapes in the Digital Darkroom, Exposure for Outdoor Photography, and Landscapes in Lightroom: The Essential Step-by-Step Guide. Michael has written numerous magazine articles on the art and technique of photography, and his images have been published in over thirty countries around the world. Michael has lived either in or near Yosemite National Park since 1983, currently residing just outside the park in Mariposa, California.
Such beautiful photographs – all of them. I especially love the back lit aspens reflected in the water.
Thanks very much Chloe!
Many thanks for sharing these, Michael, a beautiful set.
Thanks very much Lenya!
Michael,
Beautiful aspen photography with well composed images. You are correct in that there is always somewhere in a Colorado autumn to find good aspen groves to photograph. Last year was good but this year was quite good in the northern part of the state but somewhat weak in the Pikes Peak area. Your pictures demonstrate some very good changes in the southwest. The aspens there change later than in the north where they often peak around the third week in September. Of course this is all weather dependent.
Anyway, aspen changing season in Colorado follows the “seek and you will find” philosophy.
Jim
Thanks Jim! “Seek and you will find” definitely applies to Colorado aspens, because there are so damn many of them.
That there are! And in about 50 years there will probably be many more of them since the wildfires of the past few years and the Mountain Pine Beetle have destroyed so many forests of pine trees which will be replaced by aspen strands, at least for a number of decades, until the climax pines return.
One can only imagine what technology will be available to future photographers to capture the aspen autumn splendor at that time!
Jim
Mind blown – I hadn’t thought about the technology that would be available. But the eye will still matter.
The eyes will always have it! (Sorry, Michael, I just couldn’t avoid that one!)
Top class as usual from you.For me the trunks which shows compression works best.
Thank you Sunil!
Definitely a mediocre year for us, but one that proved the old adage that it is always good “somewhere” in Colorado. If we amateurs are paying attention, there is a clear message to be learned. Pros with a keen eye for composition, perseverance, and an open, creative imagination almost always come back with excellent images no matter how mundane to conditions.
As an aside, when I owned the gallery in Estes Park, we framed several of your posters from people who had visited Yosemite and the other national parks in the area.
Thanks Jerry, and it’s nice to know that my posters have traveled so far!
Love the symmetry in this one, Michael.
Thanks Brenda!
I’m not sure which image I like the best Michael. Simply stunning images, all of them. I love the yellow of the aspen, birch, poplar and finally the tamarack on the Bruce Peninsula in Ontario, Canada where I regularly shoot.
I’ll second “defining an intimate landscape as anything that didn’t include sky” if you don’t mind and begin using it in my own photography.
Doug
Thanks very much DJ, and no, I don’t mind. 🙂
Hi Michael, these are great pictures! I am planning a weekend trip this year to the telluride area. Do you have some recommended locations where I can go? I am particularly interested in your images where aspens are reflected in the water ponds:)
Thanks Chen! The photographs of lakes included here are in places that were revealed to me by locals on the condition that I not tell anybody, so sorry, I’m not going to violate that trust and reveal those spots here. With a good map and some exploring you can figure it out.