Tony's Takes Photography

Wildlife, landscape and weather photography

Colorado National Guard gears up for wildfire season

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A Colorado National Guard UH-60 Blackhawk picks up water in a firefighting bucket with the snow-capped mountains in the background. (© Tony’s Takes)
A Colorado National Guard UH-60 Blackhawk picks up water in a firefighting bucket with the snow-capped mountains in the background. (© Tony’s Takes)

Not the usual type of “bird” you see me photograph, eh?  

Wildfires are an unfortunate fact of life in the west during the summer and the brave men and women that battle the blazes have to hone their skills before they join the fight. In recent days, the military has been practicing at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge. The UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters were picking up water from one lake and then dropping it near another.

Having served many years in the Navy on an aircraft carrier, aviation and military photography doesn’t normally appeal to me but as those years move further into the past, I have to admit once again getting a bit excited seeing them in action.

I flew on a number of different military planes and helicopters, including once on an SH-60, the Navy’s variant of the Blackhawk, dubbed the Seahawk. Truly an impressive aircraft.

A UH-60 Blackhawk from the Colorado National Guard practices firefighting. (© Tony’s Takes)
A UH-60 Blackhawk from the Colorado National Guard practices firefighting. (© Tony’s Takes)
A UH-60 Blackhawk from the Colorado National Guard practices firefighting. (© Tony’s Takes)
A UH-60 Blackhawk from the Colorado National Guard practices firefighting. (© Tony’s Takes)
A UH-60 Blackhawk from the Colorado National Guard practices firefighting. (© Tony’s Takes)
A UH-60 Blackhawk from the Colorado National Guard practices firefighting. (© Tony’s Takes)
A UH-60 Blackhawk from the Colorado National Guard practices firefighting. (© Tony’s Takes)
A UH-60 Blackhawk from the Colorado National Guard practices firefighting. (© Tony’s Takes)
A UH-60 Blackhawk from the Colorado National Guard practices firefighting. (© Tony’s Takes)
A UH-60 Blackhawk from the Colorado National Guard practices firefighting. (© Tony’s Takes)

Icicles pop against the blue sky

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Icicles shine against a deep blue sky in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Icicles shine against a deep blue sky in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)

Coming home from work the other day I noticed we had a bunch of icicles hanging from the gutters on our front porch.

Most were the ‘run of the mill’ type – long and skinny. However, there were a few hanging from a downspout that had some crazy cool shapes to them for some reason. Best of all, the corner where they were at was bathed in the late afternoon light which made them really pop against those gorgeous Colorado skies.

Closing down the lens to f/16 helped to create a starburst effect on some of them. Kind of a fun, easy photo opportunity and a reminder that sometimes the coolest pics can be had right in your backyard.

Icicles shine against a deep blue sky in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Icicles shine against a deep blue sky in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Icicles shine against a deep blue sky in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Icicles shine against a deep blue sky in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)

For all those empty place settings at the table this holiday season

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Wreaths adorn the graves of veterans at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Wreaths adorn the graves of veterans at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)

I stopped by Fort Logan National Cemetery this past weekend to visit my dad and a few other of our nation’s heroes. He – and all of them – are sorely missed and the holidays aren’t quite the same without them.

Wreaths Across America and hundreds of volunteers place wreaths at thousands of graves at Fort Logan and other national cemeteries across the nation before Christmas each year. This very special program’s mission is to, “Remember our fallen U.S. veterans. Honor those who serve. Teach your children the value of freedom.”

The hallowed ground of these cemeteries are transformed into a beautiful and respectful scene, fitting for the holidays. For families like mine, who have loved ones interred there, it is a meaningful and emotional thing to see.

We sponsor the wreath for my dad’s site and some random others and next year, I would encourage you to do the same. Please, honor those who served and are no longer with us and say a prayer for them and their families during this blessed season.

Wreaths adorn the graves of veterans at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Wreaths adorn the graves of veterans at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Wreaths adorn the graves of veterans at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Wreaths adorn the graves of veterans at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Wreaths adorn the graves of veterans at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Wreaths adorn the graves of veterans at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)

Jet contrails light up the morning sky

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A jet's contrail is lit up bright orange by the rising sun. (© Tony’s Takes)
A jet’s contrail is lit up bright orange by the rising sun. (© Tony’s Takes)

Kind of a different image than what you normally see from me. While watching sunrise recently I saw this airliner cruising along over eastern Colorado. The rising sun lit up its contrail, making for kind of a neat capture.

My week’s long ‘photo funk’ continues…

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A frustrating photo morning. I went to Waterton Canyon southwest of Denver for the bighorn and yeah, I saw them – as tiny little dots on the side of the canyon. Sigh. Apparently they came down hours later but I wasn’t willing to wait that long.

I am in a bit of a ‘photo funk’ having gone weeks without a truly quality photo outing. I’ve had periods like this where I struggle to find quality subjects and fail to have a good outing but this one, goodness, seems to be going on forever. The drought continues…

Bighorn Sheep hang out high on the side of a mountain, well out of reach. (© Tony’s Takes)
Bighorn Sheep hang out high on the side of a mountain, well out of reach. (© Tony’s Takes)

Having some photo fun with the local media

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The historical Tabor Opera House in Leadville, Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
The historical Tabor Opera House in Leadville, Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)

I meant to share this sooner but totally forgot. A local news station did a story about a very historic place, the Tabor Opera House in Leadville, securing much-needed funding for preservation work. Whoever published the story, sought out a picture of the Tabor Opera House to accompany it.

Apparently, whoever this is, couldn’t tell the difference between a three foot high replica and the real thing. The photo they used was of the one at Tiny Town, a tourist attraction that has many such diminutive replicas of famous buildings here in Colorado. I of course was pretty shocked that this kind of mistake was made – well, maybe not given that it was probably some intern.

Anyway, it was pretty funny so I sent out a tweet to them with one of my pictures of the real thing. Kyle Clark, one of their news anchors responded immediately saying, “I. Have. No. Words. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We’ll fix it immediately.” And indeed they did. :-D<

A replica of the Tabor Opera House, an image of which was used in a news story about the real thing. (© Tony’s Takes)
A replica of the Tabor Opera House, an image of which was used in a news story about the real thing. (© Tony’s Takes)

National Geographic photographer seeks to document every animal he can

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Last night, 60 Minutes profiled professional photographer Joel Sartore and a highly ambitious project he has undertaken.  Quite simply, Sartore wants to photograph every animal he can ensuring there is a permanent record of all species.

Thus far, the photographer has cataloged 8,255 species of animal from insects to birds to monster mammals.  While it seems unlikely he would ever get them all, Sartore is okay with that saying, “At least my life’ll be spent doing something that’s hopefully mattered to the world.”

Using only black or white backgrounds, the images he captures are just stunning. Check out the amazing story and some of the images in the video below.

Rainy day flowers

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Some captures from this afternoon after a period of intense rain here in the Denver area. I don’t have a true macro lens so made do with my wide angle and getting within a few inches of the flowers.

Somehow my camera was taking JPGs instead of RAW files so that really limited my ability to process the images and get the quality I was hoping for. Nevertheless, it was fun to take some pics of something different.

Columbine flowers following a rain in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Columbine flowers following a rain in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Columbine flowers following a rain in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Columbine flowers following a rain in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Flowers following a rain in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Flowers following a rain in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Flowers following a rain in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
Flowers following a rain in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)

Fantastic fireworks on Independence Day Eve

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I do like fireworks but I have gotten to where I simply cannot stand the crowds that come with 4th of July celebrations. As a result, we normally just skip the shows.

The county in which we live, Adams County, Colorado, did their show last night. I thought perhaps it might be less crowded since it was a day earlier than normal and it is one of the younger, less known shows in the area. So, the family and I went to check it out and we were not disappointed – just beautiful.

I haven’t shot pics of fireworks in many, many years so it was like learning anew. The images came out pretty good I think but I already have lots of notes in my head about how to improve next time. Here are some samples from the show.

Fireworks light up the skies over Adams County, Colorado on Independence Day Eve 2018. (© Tony’s Takes)
Fireworks light up the skies over Adams County, Colorado on Independence Day Eve 2018. (© Tony’s Takes)
Fireworks light up the skies over Adams County, Colorado on Independence Day Eve 2018. (© Tony’s Takes)
Fireworks light up the skies over Adams County, Colorado on Independence Day Eve 2018. (© Tony’s Takes)