goodbye to summer
The transition to autumn has begun. Late summer wildflowers are fewer and smaller, many have gone all to seed with no blooms left. Aspens leaves are turning golden yellow and contrast beautifully with the greens of the conifers. The broadtail hummingbirds are leaving the area and will be remembered fondly until next spring. Their rival, rufous, is long gone. Nights are very cool and mid-days warm. I want to write that it’s my favorite time of year, but in January I may contradict that when I proclaim my love for winter.
tripod
I first saw his magnificent head ornament as he grazed with two smaller bulls at late dusk. Then I saw the short hind leg and knew it was “tripod” a bull elk I’d heard about and seen in a recent newspaper photo. I chose an ISO of 1000 to make a few images of him on August 21 in the minutes available before darkness came to the meadow.
moon and lions head
This was yesterday morning in which two of my favorite subjects offered an image I could not ignore! I woke at sunrise and grabbed tripod and camera and hit the deck barefoot. The temperature was 49 degrees F, but I didn’t notice my cold feet until I’d spent 25 min. watching and photographing the moon setting alongside lions head. I love the way the shadow of the mountains behind me slip away to reveal the a radiant lion as the sun rises.
Some people say they can’t see the lion in this over 9,000 ft rock outcrop, but I know he’s there for he motivates me to get out of my warm bed and photograph. The lion performs well with clouds and fog, snow and trees, and early light. I adore him with the moon. Some people do morning yoga salutations to the sun, but my morning salutations often point to the lion on my western horizon.
Rufous
Beautiful little rufous arrives in July and the property disputes begin as he tries to claim ownership of all the feeders, flowers, and the good lookout perches. The Broadtails give way to him and sneak in to sip when he’s not watching. The smallest of our bird community, Rufous is only here to rest and feed for a bit on his long migration south, so the broadtails who stay all summer only have to put up with Rufous ruling for part of their time here. I’ve read Rufous is the faster and more agile flier and my natural light shutter speeds confirm this.
hummingbird and penstemon
hummingbird
Broadtail cleans his beak by scraping on aspen twig.
tall penstemon
Wild Iris
