Sunrise | Tony's Takes Photography

Silhouetted tree reflections at sunrise

March 11, 2021 by Tony Leave a Comment

I am a sucker for a good reflection and this was one I couldn’t pass up.

I do have to preface my narrative by saying it is a bit of a “copycat image” in that the weekend before this was taken, my friend, Shaun, captured a similar image from the same spot. We were both out at this location on Colorado’s northeastern plains when I saw him crouched down capturing this same scene. After seeing his shot, I decided I needed one of my own. 😉

So, this past Sunday I was there again and took the opportunity to capture it. Certainly, I would have loved to have had some more color in the skies but as is, it was pretty darned nice. The bursting sun provides a focal point and the near-perfect reflection of the silhouetted trees on the dark water shows just how quiet this location on the plains can be.

Sundog sunrise

March 7, 2021 by Tony Leave a Comment

Taken a couple weeks ago after a light snowfall. This isn’t the best example of a sundog I have gotten but it is still pretty cool – notice the two “rainbow” like colorings on each side. These are caused by the refraction and scattering of light by hexagon shaped ice crystals in the air.

Winter’s starburst across a frozen pond

February 25, 2021 by Tony 1 Comment

Denver got nailed by a heck of a snowstorm last night. Unfortunately, I had to work so I couldn’t go out and play with pictures. Instead, here is one from this past Sunday morning after we had just a bit of a dusting. It definitely made for some pretty scenes, including this one.

Rivers in the ice

February 21, 2021 by Tony Leave a Comment

A pretty long photo drive to a spot out on Colorado’s northeastern plains yesterday. While overall it was a bit of a dud trip, at least it started out with a fantastic view.

The lake was entirely frozen over and my truck was showing a “balmy” 12 degrees as I sat and waited for the sun to pop over the horizon. There weren’t many clouds so I wasn’t expecting much of a show but it turned out pretty darned neat, no so much because of the sky, but because of the ice.

Two masses of ice had come together, pushing up against each other and allowing the lake water to flow on top. The snaking path of the re-frozen water and ice that had been pushed above made for a way cool scene.

Sunrise at the old farmstead

January 27, 2021 by Tony Leave a Comment

I have been reminded that while this image appeared in my “top shot” landscapes video at the end of the year, I never shared the image itself. So… Here you go. 😉

Taken at the end of June last year in Logan County, Colorado. My family and I were camping at a state park on the northeastern plains and as usual, I headed out for a morning photo drive while they got their beauty sleep.

I was planning to be in this spot right as the sun popped over the horizon but on the way got distracted by critters (as usual). It all worked out well though as when I did arrive, the sun was just above distant clouds and its golden light bathed everything in gold. Above, popcorn-like clouds with some of that beautiful Colorado blue.

I always say, the plains of Colorado offer up the best sunrises and sunsets in the state – and this is just another example.

Roadside pillar of light at sunrise

January 24, 2021 by Tony Leave a Comment

Oh, how I am kicking myself for not being prepared for this. I wasn’t expecting much in the way of a cool sunrise yesterday so I didn’t plan on being anywhere appropriate.

As I was driving to my photo destination, I quickly saw that was a mistake. To the east was a beautiful show with a sun pillar-like shaft of light shooting vertically.

I did the best I could, stopping just off I-25 north of Denver and quickly finding a place to stop. The foreground wasn’t ideal but my goodness, what a beautiful show in the sky.

Portrait of a beautiful, smoky fall sunrise

January 19, 2021 by Tony Leave a Comment

It’s been a while since I shared a strictly “landscape” shot so here is one from back in the middle of October.

Wildfires were raging in the west and, in the end, were quite disastrous. One benefit to them was the amazing sunrises and sunsets the smoke created. Certainly, here on the Colorado Front Range we are no stranger to beautiful views starting and ending the day but the smoke took it up another notch.

This shot shows globe of our sun soon after it rose above the horizon and the beautiful orange clouds above. On top, the beautiful blue skies of the Centennial State are seen.

Bison at sunrise on a cold morning on the Great Plain

January 10, 2021 by Tony Leave a Comment

Taken at sunrise on New Year’s Eve. The bison herd at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge was to the east with the rising sun behind them. Normally that doesn’t make for good pictures but on this morning, it worked out perfectly.

The cold weather allowed the bison’s steamy breath to be quite visible as their dark frames and the trees were silhouetted against the orange sunrise. Just a really cool scene and I am liking this capture quite a bit.

The last sunrise of 2020

January 1, 2021 by Tony Leave a Comment

Well, the year pretty much sucked but at least it closed out with a beautiful view. Yesterday morning I made sure I was in place to catch the show and was rewarded with this view. The frozen lake, blaze orange clouds and blue sky sure looked nice. Now, let’s just hope 2021 is better!

East or west, a stunning sunrise

December 28, 2020 by Tony Leave a Comment

Saturday found me southwest of Denver, Colorado checking out a bald eagle nest. Unfortunately, the birds did not want to play that day but, not soon after arrival, Mother Nature put on one heck of a show and best of all, it was a stunner no matter which way you looked.

To the east toward the rising sun, the colors were deep orange and reflected nicely on a lake. To the southwest, the colors faded to pastel pinks and oranges lighting up a wave cloud beautifully.

It was hard to focus on one area so I found myself pivoting back and forth, soaking in the view one way before turning back to the other. Just awesome stuff!