Becoming one with nature through photography

My appreciation for nature photography and the environment has increased significantly during the six years that I have owned a camera. Few things in life are as rewarding as taking an early morning or late evening hike through the backcountry. Exploring the beauty of nature in a peaceful environment is one of the healthiest ways to let go of life’s distractions. As sung by Luke Combs, “Still be doin’ this if I wasn’t doin’ this.”

Photography enhances the outdoor experience through a heightened awareness of light, shadows, composition, shapes, colors, motion and contrast. Photography has also made me pay closer attention to weather patterns, moon phases, seasonal changes, and animal behaviors. I enjoy looking for the beauty in grand landscapes; however recently I have also been paying more attention to the smaller less obvious scenes that nature provides.

I have never felt disappointed after spending time in the outdoors, even on those days when the conditions were unspectacular. Wildlife photography can be particularly challenging, as animals and birds are often unwilling to make an appearance. However, even during those adventures, there is usually something of interest to see.

Planning tomorrow’s adventure

As I write this article, I am preparing for a full day out in nature the following day that will begin with a 5:15 a.m. wake-up. A one-hour drive will put me on the trail that leads into a scenic canyon. As usual, I will be carrying more gear than will likely be necessary, as evidenced by the 32-pound weight of my backpack. However, I don’t want to be without my long lens just in case I come across wildlife.

I almost always carry an infrared converted camera to go along with my standard Nikon Z7-2 mirrorless camera, and both will be with me tomorrow. The forecast shows clouds throughout the day, which should provide several good photo opportunities.

A nature photography hike in Cheesman Canyon, Colorado

As with most of my outdoor adventures, I began today begin with an early start. I usually try to get to either my destination or somewhere along the way to capture the first light of the morning. This morning, a colorful sky appeared as I was entering the foothills of Colorado, about 30 minutes from home.

Near Deckers, Colorado, The South Platte River carves its way through the boulder-strewn Cheesman Canyon, providing many unique scenes. It is a very popular destination for fly fishing and is one of several gold medal waters in the state of Colorado. The canyon’s natural beauty, its popularity with the fly fishing community and outdoor enthusiasts helped protect it from the proposed $1 billion Two Forks Dam project, which was vetoed by the EPA in 1990.

My goal was to hike up to a stretch in the upper portion of the canyon. I pre-visualized the scene where the river flows through a deep channel in front of a large rock wall. It is a spot that I had been to many years ago but never photographed.

Challenging light

Deep canyons can be challenging to photograph, as soft light is difficult to find. By the time the sun gets over the upper ridge of the canyon, there is a short window of decent light that soon becomes harsh. During this short period of good light, I look for smaller scenes where specific subjects become illuminated by pockets of light. Oftentimes this will be a small group of trees or a single tree along the banks of the river.

When the sun came over the ridge, the light became harsh with strong contrast and bright highlights on the water. I was hoping for clouds that had been in the forecast to show up and help diffuse and soften the light. I turned to my infrared converted camera to take advantage of scenes that work well for black and white conversions.

Pressing on in the name of nature photography

I continued hiking up the canyon toward my target destination. The narrow trail is much more difficult in the upper portion with several steep sections of climbing and descending. As for photography, conditions were working against me. The lack of clouds together with a bright overhead sun would prevent my from capturing the photo that I had envisioned. I paused and made several casts with the fly rod I had been carrying and decided to hike back toward the car. I stopped several times along the way to catch my breath and photograph small wildflowers that were beginning to blossom.

Exhausted and refreshed

As I approached the small parking lot, I saw that my watch had recorded 9.2 miles of hiking. While I did not reach my intended destination further up the canyon, I know I will give it another try very soon. As I made the one-hour drive home, exhausted and thirsty, I reflected on the beautiful scenes I had come across. I was looking forward to getting to relaxing, processing a few images and completing the rest of this article on nature photography.

In the words of country musician Thomas Rhett, “Half of me wants a cold beer. The other half does too.”