“Alpine Lake, Mirrored Reflection” — Cliff wall mirrored on the surface of a rockbound alpine lake in Sequoia National Park.
There’s a story and a lesson associated with this photograph. Explaining may take a bit more than the usual two paragraphs. (It takes five. I urge/invite you to click through and read the whole thing — and I’ll be interested in your comments.) I’ll start with the subject though. Years ago (I’ll reveal how many years below) I was on a trans-Sierra pack trip of over a week’s length with a group of backcountry friends. I had walked this route years before this trip, and there were a few places that I specifically wanted to photograph again, especially this lake. I stopped there long enough to make a few careful photographs, including one of my favorites. (That one also comes with a bit of a story and lesson.)
“Loch Slapin” — Loch Slapin, near the village of Torrin, on the road to Elgol, Scotland.
One surprising thing about the Isle of Skye and other parts of northwest Scotland is that mountainous landscape can be barely above sea level. I think it is a combination of the northern latitude and the rocky geology that gives us alpine summits rising directly from the coast. So I was constantly surprised and sometimes confused when we would drive though hills, past peaks, then come around a bend and see an ocean inlet like Loch Slapin.
“Colorful Buildings, Portree, Scotland” — Colorful Portree waterfront building and reflections, Isle of Skye.
Just a few days after sharing a post in which I mentioned that I photograph a lot of subjects that are not icons… here is a photograph of an icon! This scene in the town of Portree, Isle of Skye is definitely in that category. I’m pretty sure that this scene will show up if you search (or as I hear I should now say, “search up”) “Portree.” It is an attractive row of colorful buildings, and their reflection in the water adds to the effect.
“Desert Reflections, Lake Manly” — Desert mountains and sky reflected in Lake Manly, Death Valley.
Looking at this aquatic scene it is hard to believe the normally here we would be looking at arid salt flats extending toward the horizon, not the reflective surface of a very large lake. But this is Death Valley, a place of astonishing variety, and sometimes that arid landscape is full of water.