Wildlife, landscape and weather photography
Another capture from my photo session with this cool Colorado-adorned hot air balloon this past weekend. I soooo wanted it to get closer to the waning gibbous moon but it never did quite line up as I had hoped. Nevertheless, it is cool to capture the two objects against that gorgeous blue sky.
The best thing I saw in Colorado yesterday was… Colorado itself – above and below.
My morning photo excursion was not going well. I had covered a lot of miles and spent a lot of time to find nothing, it was 8:30am and I had not clicked the shutter once and that is bad. As I made a stop to look for critters, I looked to the south and saw some hot air balloons in the sky.
It had been a few years since I had a quality photo session with the famous Colorado balloon so I raced south to catch it. While I took pics of the other balloons too, this one, of course, stole the show, particularly when it descended and was in front of those gorgeous, snow-capped Rocky Mountains.
We’re lucky to live in a place where scenes like this are pretty routine. I do my best not to take it for granted.
I really would have loved to have had a closer view of this gorgeous balloon flying in the distance this morning but didn’t do too bad as it was. Just another, gorgeous fall day in the Centennial State.
Another one of those beautiful, “This is Colorado” scenes that we oftentimes take for granted here. Sitting at St. Vrain State Park this past Saturday, I could see this balloon rising into the calm, cool morning air far off in the distance. It was initially too far away but eventually it drifted east allowing for a nice capture. Yeah, we live in a pretty cool place.
A couple of quick snaps from this past weekend of hot air balloons I spotted. Balloons are a common sight on calm days and it is easy to see why – who wouldn’t want to fly with the Rocky Mountains serving as a backdrop?
One image, taken Saturday, shows some thunderstorms brewing far off in the distance over the mountains. The second, taken on Sunday, shows a different balloon that seems to mimic the landscape behind.
A beautiful spring morning is the shadows of the mountains photographing wildlife and just enjoying being outdoors.
Sunday found me in my element but I did train my camera on a different flying “creature” than what I normally photograph. This beautiful balloon was among a half dozen taking advantage of the calm weather along the northern Front Range that morning.
Years ago I flew in a hot air balloon at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta and if you ever get the chance, I would highly recommend going for a flight. It was an experience that still resounds with me today. The quiet aloft was just amazing.
From last Saturday’s photo outing. It was a very calm morning with beautiful weather and that meant the hot air balloons that oftentimes take flight from the Longmont area were in the air.
This one was lagging the others which gave me time to get to a good spot that allowed me to capture the colorful balloon as well as the mountains behind. Mount Meeker is the tall mountain to the right and behind it is Longs Peak.
It has been many years since I have flown in a balloon and I keep telling myself I need to do it again. Truly is an amazing experience if you have never done it.
Longtime residents of Colorado know that 303 is the original area code for the Centennial State. We have since added three more but 303 is still the one most folks prefer to have and most-associated with the state.
It is somewhat of a badge of honor to have a phone number with the original area code. Today, March 3rd – 3/03 – is a day set to celebrate all things Colorado.
No doubt some marketing person somewhere along the line put the numbers together and thought it was a cool idea to have #303Day. It is kind of silly but also fun and an opportunity to show the pride we have in our home state.
This capture dates back to October 2018 and is one of a series I took of this way cool hot air balloon as it floated aloft. I’ve shared some of those other images, but this is one I haven’t made public before.
With a fresh snow blanketing the Colorado Front Range and Rocky Mountains this morning, I am remembering back to this series of images taken almost exactly one year ago today.
My photo drive that day had been pretty much a dud and I was getting ready to head for home. I happened across this gorgeous hot air balloon floating along the plains with the snow-covered mountains behind. The design on the balloon was perfect for the scene – art imitating life as it were.
I have one of the images from that morning on my wall in my office now. You should too!
A shot I took a month ago but had neglected to share. I was near Longmont, Colorado when this balloon set up perfectly. In the background, Mount Meeker and Longs Peak. With recent weather and what is arriving today, those peaks will be coated in white and likely remain that way until spring.
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