Extreme conditions often result in memorable photos. With that in mind, I drove down to Garden of the Gods on MLK Day before sunrise to see what I could find.
When I say "extreme," I mean bone-chilling cold. The coldest reading on my car thermometer was -5.
After bundling up at the Central Garden parking lot and heading out into the frigid morning, I made the mistake of setting up for two shots. By the time I finished the second I hustled back to my car, where I turned the heat on full blast and sat until my nausea passed and I had feeling in my fingers again.
Having officially received my painful reminder of the perils of shooting in the bitter cold, I drove the loop through the park and got out of my car for single shots only before returning to warm back up.
The loop brought me back to the Central Garden as the sun broke over the horizon, providing a different mood for the scene.
The dusting of snow on the
National Natural Landmark sign is the kind of thing you can't plan and can't create yourself. Absolute serendipity.
Balanced Rock is a detour of the loop, but a necessary one. The predawn clouds had burned off and blown away, leaving bluebird skies with a miniscule moon in the distance.
Recomposing doesn't count as a second shot. And with the sun up my fingers weren't losing sensation anywhere near as quickly, anyway.
Pikes Peak looks stunning with a fresh coat of snow. Then again, everything does.
A great couple of hours in one of Colorado's many magical places, and I returned home with all my fingers still functioning!
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