Mountains

Rising above the earth, mountains have these epic shapes that inspire much of my photography

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Sky Rider

Milky Way over Half Dome, from Olmsted Point Yosemite National Park, California For the last 8 years I’ve gathered my friends in Yosemite National Park to celebrate my birthday (or, as of late, more of a “belated birthday” celebration). A few of us drove up early Friday morning and I watched an absolutely AMAZING sunset in Tuolumne Meadow: the sky to the east was filled with amazing lenticular clouds that glowed orange in the sunset. Afterwards, I hopped back in the car and drove to Olmsted Point. I knew that the moon wouldn’t rise until 2am and I had plenty of time to try to capture the Milky Way above Olmsted Point. I had recently downloaded the app “Sky Guide” and it told me the Milky Way would rise near Olmsted Point sometime around midnight. Most of my friends, including my photo friends, hadn’t arrived yet and I was all alone at Olmsted Point. It’s amazing how much creepier Yosemite can feel when it’s just you, crickets, and random eyes watching over you. Luckily the stars and the light pollution were so bright that I could see most of Olmsted Point without having to use a flashlight! In early June the Milky Way is more horizontal in the sky and I loved the way it almost paralleled the mountains as it crept towards Half Dome, almost as if it was flying through the sky on its way to take a break on The Dome! In September 2014 the "Meadow Fire" broke out on the back side of Half Dome and up the ridge to Clouds Rest, on the opposite side of the entire left ridge shown here. Hikers on Half Dome had to be rescued by helicopter and the fire caused many popular hiking trails to close. The fire, which burned over 5,000 acres, was naturally caused by lightning and extreme dry conditions due to our severe drought. Nikon D800 w/Rokinon 24mm f/1.4: Foreground: 24mm, f/2.0, 30 sec, ISO 500 Sky: 24mm, f/1.8, 13 seconds, ISO 1600

2014 Aaron Meyers Photography California D800 National National Park Nikon Nikon D800 Park Yosemite Yosemite NP Yosemite National Park camping friends fun hiking nature Olmsted Olmsted Point Point High Country Tuolumne Tuolumne Meadows Milky Milky Way night nightscapes stars glow sunset Clouds Rest Meadow Fire Half Dome Half Dome glacier hump clouds Tenaya Canyon Tenaya Lake Tioga Road Tioga Tenaya Canyon

From Yosemite