River on Fire

I am not a "landscape" photographer. I find most landscapes un-photographable. This first occurred to me when I was at the Grand Canyon. Like 5 million other people who were at the Grand Canyon that year, I had my camera and was trying to figure out how to take a photo that could capture the magnificently visual image I was experiencing first hand. Actually, I am not even sure that the human eye can comprehend the expansiveness, depth, and color of the Grand Canyon. The analyst inside of me figured that if 50% of the people visiting the Grand Canyon brought a camera and took an average 20 photos, that would be 50 million photos per year. That means that in the last 50 years, over 2 billion photos have been taken of the Grand Canyon. What is the likelihood of my being able to take the "quintessential" photo? That doesn't mean I don't appreciate landscapes, I certainly do. And it doesn't mean I never take a landscape photo. Case in point: I was traveling over the Canadian Continental Divide when this view took my breath away. I quickly set up the tripod and took this photo, which did win an award. But, while it might give you an idea of what I was excited about, it just doesn't compare to the real thing. I think, "I didn't really capture anything, most of it got away." On the other hand, the photo does remind me of the experience, and for that reason alone it was worth it.