Tony's Takes Photography

Wildlife, landscape and weather photography

Yellowstone’s impressive Lower Falls

by Leave a Comment

Plunging just over 300 feet – nearly twice as high as Niagra Falls – the Lower Falls in Yellowstone National Park is nothing less than amazing. With lots of snowmelt following a very wet winter and recent rains, it was even more so during our visit a couple of weeks ago. Fed by the Yellowstone River, it is the largest volume waterfall in the Rocky Mountains. From this spot, the waters then enter the 20-mile-long Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone which at more than 1,000 feet high is astounding unto itself.

Yellowstone's Lower Falls cascades into the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. (© Tony’s Takes)
Yellowstone’s Lower Falls cascades into the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. (© Tony’s Takes)

First visit to a historic Colorado waterwheel

by Leave a Comment

While on Interstate 70 I have probably driven by and seen this hundreds of times but never stopped. On a whim during our return from leaf peeping, my son and I checked it out.

Located an easy walk from downtown Idaho Springs, Colorado, the Charlie Tayler Waterwheel is at the base of Bridal Veil Falls which feeds into Clear Creek. It is a very cool, very pretty spot with the waterfall and waterwheel provide nice subjects.

The wheel was originally built in 1893 by a local miner. Mr Tayler is said to have claimed his long life was attributed to having never bathed or kissed a woman. I’m not so sure that is a worthwhile trade off.  😉

The Charlie Tayler Waterwheel and Bridal Veil Falls near Idaho Springs, Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)
The Charlie Tayler Waterwheel and Bridal Veil Falls near Idaho Springs, Colorado. (© Tony’s Takes)

Portrait Of Takakkaw Falls

by Leave a Comment

Among the highest in Canada, the waters of this waterfall in Yoho National Park drop 1,260 feet from the top. It was nothing short of impressive and something whose scale is tough to capture in an image.

Fed by waters from the Daly Glacier, its name is taken from the Cree and loosely translated means “it is magnificent.” That certainly seems fitting.

We actually only went here on whim as we had finished our planned sightseeing earlier than planned and were looking for something to fill up the time. Boy are we glad we chose this to see!

Water from Takakkaw Falls in Yoho National Park takes the long drop to the river below. (© Tony’s Takes)
Water from Takakkaw Falls in Yoho National Park takes the long drop to the river below. (© Tony’s Takes)

Rushing waters black and white

by Leave a Comment

Kind of a fun picture I think. By using a slow shutter speed, you can blur fast moving objects, in this case the rushing water of Sunwapta Falls in Jasper National Park, Canada. A conversion to black and white seemed to work well.

This was one of many impressive waterfalls we visited on our trip up north, all of which yielded many pictures. Lots of tourists were around this site though and the lighting on the morning we visited was far from ideal. Rather than battle those elements, I chose to focus on close in views of the falls.

Black and white of rushing water at Sunwapta Falls in Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada. (© Tony’s Takes)
Black and white of rushing water at Sunwapta Falls in Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada. (© Tony’s Takes)

Sunrise at Swiftcurrent Falls

by Leave a Comment

While the family slept in (I have to allow that every now and then to keep the peace – haha), I headed off solo to scout out the Many Glacier area of Glacier National Park, Montana. This area is not visited near as often as some of the other, more popular areas in the park but it can certainly hold its own in terms of beauty. Wildlife was scarce but the sunrise and scenery were amazing.

I had been focused on the west, watching the rising sun illuminate some of the mountains near Swiftcurrent Lake. While that scene was indeed beautiful, turning around found an even better view. The sun was rising and illuminating the creek, waterfall and landscape in its golden light.

I snapped a few pictures, including this one, then put the camera down and just stood there, soaking in the sun’s rays, the sounds of the rushing water and appreciating the stunning scene before me. It was just kind of one of those ‘moments’ in your life that you just can’t help but remember for a very, very long time.

The sun rises on Swiftcurrent Falls in Glacier National Park. (© Tony’s Takes)
The sun rises on Swiftcurrent Falls in Glacier National Park. (© Tony’s Takes)

Refreshing Waterfall in Yellowsone National Park

by Leave a Comment

Denver hit over 90 degrees today, perhaps signs that summer isn’t quite done yet. Back in July it was much cooler in the nation’s first national park. This waterfall is up near Sylvan Pass toward the east entrance to the park.  Taken July 14, 2014.

Water rushes down a waterfall in Yellowstone National Park. (© Tony’s Takes)
Water rushes down a waterfall in Yellowstone National Park. (© Tony’s Takes)

Water on the rocks

by Leave a Comment

Taken at Yellowstone National Park a few weeks ago at a waterfall near Sylvan Pass on the park’s east side. The short hike to the waterfall was well worth it as the soft, morning sun shone through the water helping it to sparkle as it splashed at the bottom.

Water from a waterfall in Yellowstone National Park crashes onto the rocks. (© Tony’s Takes)
Water from a waterfall in Yellowstone National Park crashes onto the rocks. (© Tony’s Takes)