It’s Peak, Epic, Fall Color in the San Juans of Colorado

I love this location along 550 north in Durango. The Needles mountains are dominant in the background while at the right moment, the Aspens in the foreground can be well lit. I hung out for about 1/2 hour at this site. While there, about 30 people came and went, grabbing their shots. ©Kit Frost

A local favorite, Potato Hill, on the left is surrounded by Aspens glowing in their fall glory. I waited for a few moments to capture this wide angle image with the shadows outlining the Twilight peaks (West Needle Mountains) ©Kit Frost

Looking South east, what struck me the most in framing this image is the strong, dominant, clouds and the late light hitting the aspens. I used a polarizing filter to make the clouds even more dramatic. ©Kit Frost

And also enjoy the intimacy of the forest roads in the San Juans, in this case I took a group of students up along Junction Creek Road, out of Durango.

I like to find “opposites” on the color wheel in my photos. In this case the backlit aspens were gold, orange and almost burgundy, against the blue of the La Plata Mountains. The camera meter wants to expose backlit subjects too dark, so, go ahead and overexpose a series of images and see which tones you like the best ©Kit Frost

Once the sun set behind the mountain, then we could capture some detail in the background and the soft color of the aspens. Take your images into Lightroom, Aperture or iPhoto to make them sing. ©Kit Frost