The first snowfalls of the year always seem the most beautiful; like your brain has forgotten how transformative it is. This is a cloudy sunrise at Sunwapta falls after the first snow of the season. It sits on the Athabasca River that is fed by the Athabasca Glacier. Sunwapta is said to mean "turbulent water" in the Stoney language. Jasper National Park, Albeta, Canada. Make sure you have some snowshoes or crampons when trying to get this shot in the winter. We almost saw someone slide into the canyon scrambling down the ice in runners.
Maligne Canyon just before it was gripped by winter. I have been in this canyon on numerous occasions but the light is frequently difficult down these slot canyons and it is hard to get a realistic final image without it looking overworked. On this occasion we were there just after midday however it was quite dark with passing snowstorms and not quite cold enough for the snow to stick. The light was soft enough to fit the entire dynamic range into a single image which was then edited in lightroom. This is in contrast to the normal time consuming layering that is often required for high dynamic range canyon shots. Looking forward to some ice hiking up this canyon this winter. Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada
Having lived with the constant risk of fires on our rural property in Australia, and recently living though two of British Columbia’s worst fire seasons on record since moving to Canada I am grateful that my family has never had to experience the worst of what nature has to offer. I don’t have any shots from California, but I took this shot this past summer in Northern BC when we were smothered in smoke for weeks on end as fires raged about 50km away from us. It is a single exposure taken with a 400mm lens and 2x teliconverter. The smoke was so thick that I did not need to recover any highlights from bracketed shots even looking directly into the sun at 800mm ! Fires are a natural phenomenon, however with a warming climate resulting in more frequent droughts and extreme heat waves, will need to adapt to their increasing frequency and intensity. Northern British Columbia, Canada
