Foto Friday – Rocky Mountain National Park

Late last year I had the opportunity to spend a week in Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP).  Strangely, I’d never actually been to RMNP although I’ve been just about everywhere else around RMNP.

The trip was part of a trip to nearby Denver for a conference so I didn’t get as much time to spend in the park and surrounding areas as I’d wanted to, but I did spend every morning in the park for sunrise – and loved every second that I had there. I’d had a few pre-planned locations found during trip research and got a couple of really good sunrise shots but didn’t get as many opportunity for Elk that I wanted.  That said, I did get surprising access to multiple Moose during the trip as well as a few Pika.

Before we get into the trip photos, let me share the gear I used on the trip. If you want to know more about the gear, let me know and I can share my thoughts.

• Sony a7R III
• Sony a9
• Sony 100-400 GM
• Sony 24-70 2.8 GM
• Sony 16-35 2.8 GM
• f-stop backpack
• Really Right Stuff Tripod/ballhead
• Assorted accessories

Now, onto the photos. If you would like to purchase a copy (or copies) of any of these photos, check out my portfolio site .

* Sunrise over Sprague Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park.* * Sometimes, a quick ‘snap’ of the camera turns into something special. While I was walking around the lake after sunrise, I grabbed this quick snap, which turned out much better than expected.* * Sprague Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park with a black and white treatment* * While in Rocky Mountain National Park, I knew I wanted to find some Pikas. I was lucky and found a perfect habitat for them without much hiking. This is the outcome of my first visit.* * While wondering around Rocky Mountain National Pakr (RMNP) I found this spot and thought it’d be a good place for a sunrise photo. There wasn’t a lot of clouds that morning but I did get some fog that rolled in while the sun was rising. The fog plus the few clouds with color add some interest to this photograph.* * While at Rocky Mountain National Park, I had the chance to photograph a few moose. While walking down the road toward where a lot of folks said some moose had been spotted, I noticed this Bull Moose standing in the trees perfectly lit by the sunlight.* * Went out to Sprague Lake in RMNP to capture sunrise hoping that the clouds would stick around. While setting up, I took a couple shots while the moon was out….and turned out the moon shots were so much better than the sunrise photos (the clouds disappeared before the sun came up).*

See more of my photography here .