Candle Rock

Gallery: LandscapePosted March 6, 2011449 views30 comments

It took me nearly 15 years of early morning daily driving by Chimney Rock in SW Colorado on the way to work to figure out that during one week or so on either side of the Solstice, the first light of the rising sun shone upon the eroded and exposed sandstone top through a small gap in Mesa Verde. It only lasts about three minutes and then fades away as the sun angles upward and back behind the mesa, to be replaced later by much weaker overall sunrise light.

Then it only took five more years to get near perfect conditions in which to photograph this event. Any suggestions or advice greatly appreciated!

Canon 5DII w/17-40 lens @ 29mm
1/15 sec. @ f16 ISO100

Comments

30 comments

Comment posted by Eva McDermott on March 6, 2011 at 9:51 PM

Congratulations John! The alpenglow is fantastic as is the position of the moon. The presence of detail in the foreground also adds to the impact of your image. I also like the contrast of the reddish butte against the deep blue sky.

Registered on January 4, 2009, 1015 Posts, 13229 Comments

Comment posted by James Fougère on March 6, 2011 at 9:55 PM

Well done John

Nice light on that rock. The larger presentation is nice to look at since the Moon is a bit larger. I will be in the area in a few weeks !

Registered on October 25, 2010, 41 Posts, 831 Comments

Comment posted by Stan Rose on March 6, 2011 at 10:25 PM

The spotlighting here is fantastic, John--that alone makes this a winner! I also like the moon. The contentious part is the balance--obviously you decided the symmetry of the base was too appealing to waste--if it were me id 'waste' it and crop square, since the shot as is is rhs heavy. But i like.

Registered on September 15, 2005, 836 Posts, 17099 Comments

Comment posted by Mark Metternich on March 6, 2011 at 10:27 PM

Wow!

Registered on June 19, 2009, 276 Posts, 6240 Comments

Comment posted by Craig Myers on March 6, 2011 at 10:38 PM

Lovely light and detail. 15 years of observation has resulted in a beautiful image. The moon offers a wonderful counterpoint to the warm sunlight.

Registered on September 1, 2008, 85 Posts, 757 Comments

Comment posted by Eric Good on March 6, 2011 at 10:38 PM

Persistence has paid off here. A beautifully compose and captured image, start to finish.

Registered on March 17, 2007, 116 Posts, 4764 Comments

Comment posted by Chris Chamberlain on March 6, 2011 at 10:39 PM

Well, the education is complete. It might have taken awhile, but you ended up with a wonderful shot. Normally I don't like the moon included in wider views as it is usually just too small. I think it works to an advantage here. Very nice!

Chris

Registered on March 13, 2007, 500 Posts, 8365 Comments

Comment posted by Vance Gese on March 6, 2011 at 11:25 PM

Phenomenal, John, truly a phenomenal image. The light on the rock is stunning, and how the base of the rock catches a bit of glow only adds to the magic. And then there is the moon. Amazing. It sounds like this is quite a rare event, and with the moon, must be even more so. What I find so remarkable is that your image conveys the rarity of this event so well, even if one had not read your story behind the image. One look at this and one knows this is special.

Registered on November 13, 2008, 298 Posts, 6629 Comments

Comment posted by Floris van Breugel on March 7, 2011 at 2:35 AM

I remember seeing this one some time ago.. such an incredible photo! The timing with the light, moon, and wispy clouds is just perfect. Well done John, your efforts were well rewarded.

Registered on December 19, 2008, 306 Posts, 4840 Comments

Comment posted by David Chauvin on March 7, 2011 at 3:48 AM

Fantastic shot, John. The spotlight on the rock by itself would be nice but the light clouds and moon put it way over the top. Excellent!

Registered on August 5, 2004, 1007 Posts, 5595 Comments

Comment posted by Abdullaziz Bin Ali on March 7, 2011 at 5:28 AM

love the spot light

awesome

Registered on May 31, 2009, 112 Posts, 1590 Comments

Comment posted by Neale Dyster on March 7, 2011 at 7:25 AM

certainly worth the time you put in John, great shot!

Registered on February 19, 2008, 94 Posts, 738 Comments

Comment posted by Bill Chambers on March 7, 2011 at 8:15 AM

Wonderful capture John! I only have 1 question - how did you light paint something that big?

Great light, and the moon really sets this apart.

Registered on April 10, 2005, 753 Posts, 21216 Comments

Comment posted by Gary McGhee on March 7, 2011 at 8:18 AM

Definately worth all your hard work and time John, the larger version really looks good with all the detail in the sandstone. The lighting on the rock is sublime.

Gary.

Registered on April 15, 2010, 142 Posts, 2416 Comments

Comment posted by Mark Pelton on March 7, 2011 at 8:27 AM

Congrats, John. Your persistence definitely paid off. Wonderful image.

Registered on November 25, 2003, 380 Posts, 4647 Comments

Comment posted by Matt Anderson on March 7, 2011 at 8:55 AM

Nice work John!
Intriguing balance and form.

Registered on September 6, 2007, 346 Posts, 2696 Comments

Comment posted by Rick Goldwasser on March 7, 2011 at 11:50 AM

A beautiful and original image for sure, the lighting is superb! I think I might prefer a square crop but it works quite wel as is.

Registered on May 10, 2009, 127 Posts, 970 Comments

Comment posted by Mitch Erwin on March 7, 2011 at 11:57 AM

John, talk about some long term scouting efforts to find the image and another testament to patience paying. I wouldn't change a things here and the moon adds that touch to make this image shine! Great photograph!

Registered on April 24, 2006, 98 Posts, 656 Comments

Comment posted by Morris McClung on March 7, 2011 at 12:39 PM

The amount of detail in the foreground puts this over the top, John! It would be great without that, but with it, spectactular.

Registered on May 7, 2007, 670 Posts, 19650 Comments

Comment posted by Barry Vangrov on March 7, 2011 at 4:23 PM

Superb for all of the reasons already stated. I'm definitely in the camp that thinks the square crop would make a stronger comp.

Registered on September 1, 2009, 148 Posts, 749 Comments

Comment posted by Mark Seaver on March 7, 2011 at 8:05 PM

Congratulations on your persistence and vision. The spot light effect is great and the moon is a nice addition. Given that the sun and moon dance in lock step across the sky over the course of a year, the moon will be in the same place next year. It will be about 10 degrees lower in the sky a day later (roughly even with the top of the rock).

Registered on January 23, 2011, 1103 Posts, 17270 Comments

Comment posted by Miles Morgan on March 8, 2011 at 2:14 PM

This shot mesmerizes me John. It's one of my favorites that I've seen in a long, long time.

Registered on November 23, 2009, 6 Posts, 185 Comments

Comment posted by Michael J Greene, on March 8, 2011 at 2:25 PM

Minimalistic southwest landscape. Lovely processing and color combos. I could see a large crop off the left side as the composition favors the right with Chimney Rock and the moon. Solid work John.

Registered on June 18, 2009, 86 Posts, 2317 Comments

Comment posted by Jeff Hackett on March 8, 2011 at 9:32 PM

I'm a slow learner as well John!

I like everything about this. A classic southwestern scene.

Registered on March 13, 2006, 65 Posts, 1119 Comments

Comment posted by Andrew Morrill on March 8, 2011 at 11:24 PM

Sorry I didn't get to comment earlier. This is fantastic. I love the color and the meaningful composition. Maybe I'm crazy, but the sky/clouds immediately around the top of the butte seem somewhat unnatural - any cloning going on there? Anyway, great job.

Registered on June 10, 2010, 51 Posts, 216 Comments

Comment posted by John Mumaw on March 8, 2011 at 11:54 PM

Thanks for the kind words and the great suggestions, folks!
Actually, I see what you'r referring to Andrew, but I can assure you that nothing untoward was done to those clouds.

Registered on September 9, 2005, 62 Posts, 2289 Comments

Comment posted by Preston Birdwell on March 9, 2011 at 12:43 AM

I'm late to the party, John, but this is really nice as presented. You were well rewared for your efforts!

--P

Registered on November 1, 2003, 471 Posts, 5188 Comments

Comment posted by Zack Clothier on March 9, 2011 at 2:32 AM

Simple, yet powerful. No suggestions from me, this is perfect.

Registered on January 28, 2010, 343 Posts, 2257 Comments

Comment posted by Jimmy Gekas on March 9, 2011 at 1:12 PM

Nice! Way to be persistent. Kudos.

Registered on July 26, 2007, 244 Posts, 2807 Comments

Comment posted by Jared Atencio on March 9, 2011 at 3:05 PM

This is really just unreal and is one of my faves of yours John. It almost has that Yosemite "Fire Falls" effect, where for a brief period annually, conditions are just right to set this thing on fire. The dark blue sky and white wispy clouds work so well with this and the exposure is just perfect throughout. I would love to see a large print of this someday, congrats and excellent work here

Registered on June 23, 2009, 21 Posts, 422 Comments