Photo locations in the San Juan Mountains – Ouray County Road 7

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As you can see Ouray County Road 7 is Breathtaking. It also leads to a campground and public land access to the Blue Lakes Trail-head. The land surrounding the road is private until you reach the cattle guard and National Forest sign. The photo above was taken from the road before we reached public land.

To reach Ouray County Road 7 from Montrose head South on 550. At the Ridgway Stop light turn right onto Sherman Street or Highway 62 (which leads you to Telluride). Head up the hill and go past the cemetery. You will see a brown National Forest Access sign right before the start of a bridge. Take a left before the Bridge. This is County Road 7.

Ouray County Road 7 Sign

From here it is a well maintained dirt road.

This Pond is on Private Land. Mount Sneffels is in the Background. This is a great spot to take a photo but make sure to stay near the road!

There are a series of beautiful vistas of the San Juan Range.

Color beginning to show in the San Juan Mountains.

Aspen beginning to change.

Take a look at the times stamp on the photos. It is accurate. Color is somewhat early, but spotty. We had a very dry summer.

The public land begins at the mouth of this little valley, much closer to the mountains.

You are getting closer to the camp ground now.

I have not traveled much farther than the campground. The whole area is beautiful and worth extra time exploring or hiking. Blue lakes trail is fantastic and well worth the effort. Yet there is so many places to photograph before the campground I have a hard time choosing. Best of luck.

And enjoy the View!

Amy

 

Photo Locations in the San Juan Mountains – County Road 5

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This will take you to County Road 5

This gallery contains 12 photos.

I am often asked where to shoot for fall colors and gorgeous mountain scenes. So while talking with Trey, our new employee and professional portrait photographer, he mentioned that the gallery was the only photographer stop around. Now this is … Continue reading →

The Last of Winter Landscapes

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Photo taken in Black Canyon National Park by Vince Farnsworth

This gallery contains 5 photos.

I can not believe that Winter is officially gone. My grass is greening, the weeds are showing their ugly little leaves, and I feel overwhelmed. The lazy days are now replaced with weeding, mowing, planting, and the usual… work, photography … Continue reading →

Crane Crazy

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I keep receiving Crane photos in my inbox from  both Wil and Vince. I thought it would be good to share them with you. Wil just sends me photos, Vince narrates his. The first set are from Wil.

Sandhill Duet by Wil Harmsen

Sandhill in Flight by Wil Harmsen

Sandhill Cranes flying by Wil Harmsen

Sandhill Crane by Wil Harmsen

Vince likes to describe what he takes photos of so I will include his text:

Mike Boese and I hit Delta before dawn today to see if we could get some nice reflections of the cranes in the pond.  We did get a few shots but the light just was too dim and they were moving too much to get a sharp picture.  At least in my case.  Maybe Mike had better luck.  Anyway, they started flying just before the sun came up and I got a few very nice silhouettes against the dawn sky.  These were done at ISO 1600 but were exposed properly so the noise is minimal.  The shutter speed was slow but at that distance they are still sharp enough.  The last picture is a full frame image of a crane in the warm morning light with the sun low and lighting from the front.  All shots were done with the Kenko 1.4X teleconverter so EFL was 900mm.  The big bird was shot wide open at 1/1600 second.  I have about 200 more pics (the birds were thick) but they’ll have to wait.  Also, Mike and I were joined by two other photo enthusiasts of the equine variety, who followed us around and begged for attention while we were trying to shoot.  I have mule spit on my gloves.  Take care.

Photo by Vince Farnsworth

Photo by Vince Farnsworth

Photo by Vince Farnsworth

 

I know, just what you wanted to see – more crane pictures.  Hey, it keeps me off the streets (and in the fields).  These are from Tuesday morning with Mike.  Lots of warm light and nice soft blue sky that early.  All were taken at 900mm EFL wide open at f/8 with the TC.  Cranes are supposed to be just gray but they like to cover themselves with mud when preening so their feathers become stained all sorts of browns and reds.  They do have some color of their own but much of it is just dirt.  I especially like the backlit crane coming in for a landing almost over my head.  Lighting was tough on that one but it works.  Take care.

Photo by Vince Farnsworth

Photo by Vince Farnsworth

Landing Crane by Vince Farnsworth

I think they have gone Crane Crazy. What do you think?

;) Amy

AN ADDICTION

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My Husband has an Addiction. It’s photographing wild animals. I say this like it’s a bad thing, even though there are far worse addictions out there. He spends his nights editing animal portraits, or checking out new gear on the web. On the occasions he is out photographing them, he doesn’t mind spending hours tracking an animal, or waiting in a blizzard to catch a glimpse of a wolf or bear. I don’t think I would mind that so much if every now and then he would get some great shots of the wildlife growing up in our house, and by that I mean our children.

Andy Cook once told me that “wildlife photography is high maintenance”. I couldn’t agree more. Sometimes I wish Wil liked only landscape photography. Then, he would be gone at sunrise or sunset but definitely not all day because the light is too harsh. Plus the gear is really starting to add up in the $$$ department. I think we could have paid for a small house by now.

Last November, Wil took Vince Farnsworth photograph Eagles. Vince did not have all the right gear so he borrowed some of Wil’s Canon cache (a 200-400 lens with a doubler). I think Wil needed another person to share in this addiction. Vince did now what he was getting into.

Now Vince is Addicted. He openly admits it is a rush. Over the holidays he went out and purchased his new wildlife equipment. His first subjects were eagles, then sandhill cranes. Now he has moved on to herons.  He will join  us in Yellowstone in May.

Below are some excerpts from Vince’s emails to us…….

Mike and Joey and I were in Delta Sunday to shoot birds.  We parked by the pond.  We didn’t see any cranes at first so we hiked to the river and found a bunch of birds, but a women walking her dog scared them away.  We decided to go back because we heard a lot of cackling coming from that direction.  When we arrived back at the pond there were hundreds of birds along the shoreline.  Moments later they all took flight. I captured some in this photo.  How they keep from colliding is a mystery.  The adobe foothills of Grand Mesa are in the background.  We saw more cranes Sunday than ever.  There were probably close to a thousand flying at one time filling a significant portion of the sky and working their way up to altitude on the thermals.  These birds can get really high.  Great fun.

Here are three more from yesterday at Delta.  The first is a shot taken from far away and shows the effects of atmospheric blurring (much more obvious at full size), which I like in images like this.  The second image is of a group of cranes circling near the sun to gain altitude.  The backlighting makes the wings appear almost tranparent.  I have several like this one from an earlier trip, too.  The last is a fly-over very near the camera and fills the frame.  All taken with the 400mm with teleconverter (900mm EFL) at ISO 400 and wide open.  

I think Vince has forgotten Landscapes…..

Best of Luck,

Amy

Friday, March 3rd Wine Tasting and New Artist Reception!

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Join us for a Wine Tasting and New Artist Reception

Image by Ryan McGehee

 Friday, March 3rd 5:00-8:30 PM

The Pour House Features: Value Priced Wines

This month Linda and Wyatt will Temp us with delightful value brand selections. From Pinot Noir to Pinot Grigio you do not have to spend a fortune to enjoy a great wine. These selections are perfect for the “everyday wine-o!” All selections will be under $10.99! Any wine featured, that is not on sale, will receive a 15% discount thru March 16th!

Satisfy your sweet tooth with cupcakes from Dilly Dale Delights!

Discuss Photography with….

Photographer of the Month  Ryan McGehee Shows “ASPEN”

 Here is what Ryan had to say about himself!

I enjoy capturing the beautiful moments in this world. Photography allows me to create works that I can share with others. That which I see and feel.

It may be an entire valley below me or the way the shadows fall on the snow. It may be the way the light ripples across the water or the perfection of a little detail. Whatever it is, it is that which I connect to, that I become a part of. This I try to capture the essence of, that feeling, that moment.

Knowing that I will always be a student in this amazing craft, I continually try to learn how to capture and present this beautiful world at its best. I want to be able to connect the viewers of my work with the beauty, uniqueness, and the poetry of this world through my eyes, my photography.

My name is Ryan McGehee. I was born and raised in western Colorado. I married my wife when I was 18 (another western slope native) and we now have four beautiful daughters and one son.

When I was 18 I graduated from the New York Institute of Photography (having enrolled when I was 16). This helped start me on my journey of photography. Now many years later my passion for this art has continued to increase.

See you all on Friday!

Amy :)

New Everything, and Introductions!

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I’m sure you have noticed that this is our first foray into blogland! We hope that you will follow all our adventures in our attempts to capture the “perfect shot”.

From here you will get to see our adventures thru photos and video. You may read posts from Vince Farnsworth, Wil Harmsen, Brett Pfister, or Amy Harmsen.

Vince is one of our resident photographers. Vince is a certified genius, artist, classical violinist, and smart-ass. I ask you to please forgive him now for talking above most of our heads. He has all the best shots of the Black Canyon National Park. I often wonder why anyone tries to photograph that park after seeing his work. But maybe he will share his secrets to photographing it in the best light, which I hear is before the sun is up.

"Cheese" Photo of Wil and Vince by Maggie Farnsworth - Wife of Vince

Wil Harmsen is the owner of The Canyon Gallery and the brains behind the overall operation. He often send us messages that pop up on the computer as we work. I have no clue how he does it but it is very annoying. I got a text today that I must write this post or else! Wil loves wildlife and could be called the “animal whisperer”. He doesn’t mind sitting still for hours in a blizzard waiting for wolves. I would call this crazy – but I generally am sitting with him. I have a hard time waiting and often sit in the truck, or go for a drive and end up kicking myself when I miss all the action. He and Vince have a secret language. When they speak with each other and I am around I smile and nod like I understand…….

Part of Brett

Brett Pfister is our graphic designer and print shop manager. He is great at creating digital art. I am hoping he can give tips about design, editing examples, and daily jobs.

Excuse the double chin, I was 6 months pregnant!

Last but not least, Me! I run the gallery and am inspiration for all. I have a ton of crazy ideas which I try to get others to bring to life. I am not a photographer, but a photographers wife. This gives me a bit of liberty to complain about photographers, which only other wives – or husbands of photographers will understand.

Until our next post – click away!

:) Amy Harmsen