Latest News & Images | Tony's Takes Photography

A-10 Thunderbolt II over the skies of Colorado

November 7, 2023 by Tony

Jumping back to the Grand Junction Airshow last month and this way cool airplane so let’s call it #ThunderboltTuesday. More affectionately called the Warthog, the A-10 is the United States’ primary Close Air Support (CAS) plane. Its exploits (and its 30mm autocannon) are legendary and they hold a special place in the heart of troops on the ground, oftentimes called in to support soldiers and Marines under attack.

You will notice two different paint schemes in these pics. The Air Force A-10C Thunderbolt II Demonstration Team brought two jets with the traditional gray paint being flown in practice and the heritage camo scheme flying during the official airshow.

The patch you see me holding is part of a fun story. At the airshow my wife and I were sitting right next to the A-10 demo team’s publicity tent. Before the show started, I had mounted up my solar filter on my camera to take pictures of the solar eclipse that was going on. The team’s photographer kept looking at me, taking a keen interest in what I was seeing. That prompted a conversation and I then let him borrow my solar filter to take pictures of the celestial event, something which they shared on their social media page.

He and I had a great time chatting about the eclipse, photography, aviation and, of course, a bit of Navy versus Air Force banter. 😉 In the end, he gave me a team patch which now sits proudly among other pieces of military memorabilia from when I served.

An Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II performs at the Grand Junction Airshow. (© Tony's Takes) — An Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II performs at the Grand Junction Airshow. (© Tony’s Takes)

Stunner of a sunset kicks off the weekend

November 6, 2023 by Tony

Friday evening I was keeping close watch on the skies to the west. The clouds were lingering and with winds aloft, I suspected sunset could be a good one. Sure enough, before long, the colors started to change and those reds and oranges were making a show of it.

Being the end of the workweek though, I had zero motivation to drive somewhere and photograph it so resorted to my aerial equipment – my drone. You get a great view of the show above as well as the silhouette of the Rocky Mountains and lights on the streets of the suburbs near Denver, Colorado.

Fall and winter bring some of the most amazing sunrises and sunsets to the Front Range, as this image shows.

The golden eyes of a bighorn sheep ram

November 5, 2023 by Tony

Yesterday I had my first seasonal visit with these rugged, majestic creatures so let’s call today #SheepSunday. 😉

There wasn’t a lot of action to speak of during my visit but, as always, they proved to be very photogenic and entertaining. This handsome fellow was certainly one of the big boys of the area and he knew it. Viewers could tell he had seen his share of action by the scar on his snout and those clearly battle-tested horns.

At one point he came down to the road, offering some nice closeup images with this one being my favorite. I loved how the light hit one of his eyes and the side of his face.

You get a good look at that horizontal pupil, something that allows bighorn to have a 300-degree field of view, an important adaptation to help them stay aware of potential predators.

Rome’s famed Colosseum

November 4, 2023 by Tony

I shared one image of this architectural wonder when we returned from our Italian vacation. Here are a few more captures.

I found myself looking for ‘different’ compositions for my pictures of these popular sights, knowing they had been photographed so many times before. Important to me as well was trying to minimize the presence of people in the images, something that is not easy with the crowds. That means some closer compositions, isolating various parts of the structure.

At the same time, I was battling with Air Canada over the fact they lost our luggage (don’t get me started about them!), making phone calls and conducting chats with their agents. Unfortunately, their failures kind of put a damper on our time in Rome but we enjoyed the balance of the trip much more once that was resolved with virtually no help from them.

Red fox looks toward the morning sun

November 3, 2023 by Tony

It has been a while since I have done #FoxFriday so here you go. ? It has, unfortunately, been quite a while since I have had a good encounter with these sly creatures so this image harkens back to mid-April. It was an absolutely fantastic spring morning watching this fox and its mate as they lounged around, did some prowling and gave me a ton of nice captures. The pair is featured multiple times in my Foxes 2024 calendar and rightly so!

Wood duck reflections

November 2, 2023 by Tony

October turns these cool ducks into celebrities. Certainly, seeing them in their crazy beautiful plumage is cool but timing a visit with them when the fall colors have taken hold on the trees is prime time. The water will be ablaze with oranges and yellows and when you put that wood duck drake on it, well, you can’t hardly go wrong. Beautiful birds with a beautiful, overall scene.

A wood duck swims across a pond's waters with reflections of the fall foliage. (© Tony's Takes) — A wood duck swims across a pond’s waters with reflections of the fall foliage. (© Tony’s Takes)

A pair of wood ducks swim across a pond's waters with reflections of the fall foliage. (© Tony's Takes) — A pair of wood ducks swim across a pond’s waters with reflections of the fall foliage. (© Tony’s Takes)

Bald eagle races through the snowstorm

November 1, 2023 by Tony

A pair of bald eagles weathers a Colorado snowstorm. (© Tony's Takes) — A pair of bald eagles weathers a Colorado snowstorm. (© Tony’s Takes)

The Colorado Front Range saw its first storm of the season this past weekend and while I was tempted to stay warm and cozy indoors, I ventured out to a couple local spots. Not far from home, I found a beautiful pair of bald eagles sitting proudly, unphased by what Mother Nature was throwing at them.

After a while, the female decided it was time to move on. Her flight path wasn’t good for me to get pics but the male, was quite kind, passing relatively close. My camera’s autofocus struggled to lock on and while there were a number pics in the series totally blurry, some came out pretty nice considering the conditions.

Bald eagle races through the snowstorm — A bald eagle flies through a snowstorm in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)

A bald eagle flies through a snowstorm in Colorado. (© Tony's Takes) — A bald eagle flies through a snowstorm in Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)

You never know what is behind those glowing eyes in the dark!

October 31, 2023 by Tony

As you venture out tonight, beware. Happy Halloween, everyone.

Coyote chills out on the snow

October 30, 2023 by Tony

It has been a while since I have seen any of these beautiful canids so here is one going back to January. This one and its mate were out and about on a chilly winter day and, thankfully, didn’t mind me watching them. They gave me a ton of cool shots, including this one when the male laid down and relaxed. He was pretty lazy that morning, even briefly catching a cat nap (pun intended). My favorite shot from this encounter is actually the cover photo on my 2024 Mammal’s calendar.

Bison bull sports a fresh coat of snow