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Hiking Longs Peak

Hello again, everyone! I'm still completely buried under photographs, but slowly and surely I am getting through them, and will hopefully be caught up some day soon.

Not long before I moved out to Denver myself (well over a month ago at this point), I came out for an interview, as well as to visit Scott. That weekend, we spontaneously decided to drive to Rocky Mountain National Park in order to hike up part of Longs Peak. We had no intention of getting to the summit that day, as we had a pretty lazy and slow start to the day, and instead just wanted to get up to see The Diamond. 

It ended up being a perfect day for a hike; just warm enough, light winds, and without the typical afternoon storm. It was cloudy when we first started our hike, but when we were within view of The Diamond the clouds broke, creating some incredible light for us. 

Next up: a break from images of mountains, with a flashback to my time as a nanny. Expect lots more mountain posts after that, though!

Have a happy Monday!

Guanella Pass

I have been living the Colorado life to the fullest so far (climbing every weekend, hiking. including hiking the tallest fourteener in Colorado, a camping trip, and lots of great beer and food) which has kept me quite busy and kept me away from my computer for the most part. This Sunday we finally had a somewhat lazy, plan-free day, which gave me a chance to get a new post up here. 

These images are from over a month ago, when Scott's Dad and I helped to move Scott out to Denver. It was a short trip, but we wanted to get at least a brief taste of the mountains while we were there. We ended up driving up to Guanella Pass, which always provides stunning views. The wildflowers were blooming all over as well, which made it extra pretty. 

Next up (which I still have to edit), are images from a hike up part of Longs Peak. So check back soon for lots more alpine views! 

Estes Park (Mountain Views)

Time for the second installment of our latest Colorado trip!

Normally our trips to Colorado revolve around the mountains and adventure. This time, however, we were in Denver for the entire week, and only saw the mountains from a distance a few times (they were covered in clouds nearly the entire time as well). That Friday, the day before we had to head back to Kansas, Scott was finally done with all of his obligations (and relieved after having a successful interview), and we had no plans until that evening. Since we hadn't really seen the mountains yet, we spontaneously decided to at least drive to Estes Park to get some mountain air for one afternoon.

It had been rainy all week, and was forecasted to be cloudy and rainy on that day as well. The mountains on the drive to Estes were so incredibly green and magical with the clouds low and dense, swirling around with the breeze; it was like a dream. Despite the incredible beauty with the rain and fog, we were pretty excited when the clouds broke to show off some of the mountains surrounding Estes after we arrived. The sun warmed things up pleasantly as well, making for a perfect afternoon. 

We grabbed lunch at one of our favorite Estes spots, and then wandered around some of the shops, trying to decide what to do with the rest of our day. Scott has a minor obsession with Longs Peak, so we decided to drive up to a lookout area to check it out before heading to Boulder for dinner. 

Unfortunately there was a patch of clouds that was hovering around the peak, never breaking up enough to allow us to catch a glimpse. We stood and watched for a while as they moved past, but the clouds were dense over the mountain and the Diamond and summit area never were visible. I took a few pictures, but then mostly photographed Scott as he looked on. (I think he looks like he belongs in a Barbour add in these images.) 

We then headed back to Boulder, via a bit of a random, backroads way. It brought us down some narrow, windy roads past some tiny little towns, all through dense fog and rain. It was beautiful and dreamy, though admittedly I wasn't the one driving, which was probably fairly stressful. 

This fall I will be moving to the Denver area, and am so very excited to be only a short drive from sites like these. Now to find a job and place to live (does anyone out there need a photographer or live-in nanny??).

Happy Monday all!

Rushing Waters

Just over a month ago, (yikes I am behind on sharing images) Scott and I went fishing at Rocky Ford State Fishing Area, just outside of Manhattan. It was an absolutely perfect evening. Perfect temperatures, stunning light, and a nice flow of water over some mini rapids. It could not have been any better. 

It was so perfect, I didn't even cast out a line once. I was in heaven just wandering around taking photographs. The light hitting the water was like a dream, and I couldn't get enough of it.

Scott, of course, was very focused on fishing. Luckily he doesn't seem to mind when I follow him around snapping photographs; which I do a lot. 

With the heat and humidity setting in here in Kansas, I find myself longing for this day. Between the light breeze, warm, golden sun, and cool water I couldn't ask for anything more. This is my type of perfect. 

This week has been a bit busy, so I'm unfortunately a day off on my normal posting schedule. Friday I am handling a garage sale, though I will try to get the next Flashback Friday up despite that. I hope everyone enjoyed the golden light and beautiful water as much as I did! Have a wonderful end to your week!

Dreary Fishing

*I have been a bit MIA here the past week or so. Last week I celebrated my birthday, the commencement ceremony for my MFA, and left for a trip to Denver; all within three days! Between finishing up things for the semester, preparing for my parents' visit for graduation, and packing for my trip, blogging and editing photographs took a back seat. I'm still out in Denver, but had some downtime this afternoon and thought I would start to get caught up, at least slightly. Hopefully things will get back to normal next week!

A few weeks ago (I guess it's been nearly a month at this point), Scott and I celebrated two years together! We had decided to go fishing and have a picnic, but unfortunately the weather wasn't exactly ideal. It was a chilly, windy, and drizzly day. The picnic ended up taking place in Scott's car, while we shivered from being out in the wind, and we didn't get so much as a bite while fishing. A less than ideal afternoon, but I love spending time with this man no matter what it involves. 

I realized while we were out there that I hadn't created an in-camera multiple exposures since shooting for my thesis work back in January, and so I decided to try one just for fun. It ended up turning out better than expected, and I kind of adore this image now.

Happy Wednesday everyone!

Farm Life

A few weekends ago Scott and I went to visit his parents on their farm in central Kansas. Their farm has become a bit of a muse of mine, and I posted lots of images from our many stays there on my old blog before I switched over (some of which you can see in various galleries here). Between the chickens, horses, barn cats, beautiful house, large pasture, and vast wheat fields, it is sort of a photographic heaven. They tend to get rather wonderful evening light there as well, though this time the sun ducked into the clouds almost as soon as I got outside to take photographs.

One of my favorite photographic subjects (as you've probably noticed if you have flipped through my portraits gallery), though perhaps a bit cheesy, is my man, Scott. It is partly because he's around me more than anyone else; partly because he puts up with me constantly taking pictures of him; and partly because, well, look at him. 

I am also pretty obsessed with wheat fields, and this time of year they are an absurdly bright shade of green. It makes the landscape become like something from a dream, and I can never resist snapping away on my phone as we drive to his parents' house. Luckily his dad grows wheat as well, so right before we had to head back to Manhattan I ran out and grabbed a few images, despite the light being a bit lackluster. 

I have plans for a new series of posts starting on Friday (to go beyond my current Monday and Wednesday schedule, in case you haven't caught on to that). So check back on Friday for something different!

Daffodils + Light

Just a simple and quick post today. I know I just recently posted photographs of flowers and light, but I have some more to share. When the light is this good, and I have daffodils on hand, how do you expect me to resist? 

And finally, a single portrait from the evening as well; because my man is handsome and again the light was too perfect to resist. He was working on his fly fishing setup while I was running around chasing the light, and right when I thought I was done I turned around to notice the near perfect spotlight on his hat and face. 

There will likely be more flowers in the coming posts, so hopefully you all don't get sick of them. I've also been trying to decide on some themes to my posts for certain days, so if anyone has any suggestions or requests for particular content types please leave a comment below to let me know!