Angel Terrace, Yellowstone National Park

Epic scenery, beautiful sunsets, stunning natural moments—these are the things that amaze and inspire viewers. And I like to capture such moments as much as the next guy, but . . . for some reason I find them less fulfilling than when I capture the more subtle moments of nature.

Don’t get me wrong. There’s a chest-thumping swell of pride whenever I get something epic. But often, the initial wow moment fades over time. On the other hand, sometimes the subtle moments grow on you the more you look at them. The image below is one such image—for me, at least.

"Angel Terrace" - Yellowstone National Park

I took this image of Angel Terrace in Yellowstone National Park several years ago, on my first winter visit to the park. There’s not much to the image—Angel Terrace is just some warm thermal runoff, interesting scenery but hardly inspiring. The only reason I took this photo was the fleeting convergence of elements—the curving shape of the thermal feature and its mirror image reflected in the shape of the sunrise cloud above, the two trees on the left pointing to the cloud above, and the sliver of moon between them. Although I doubt anyone will fall out of their chair looking at this image, to me, it is exactly the kind of image I like making most: creating something out of nothing, and capturing a unique convergence of elements that bring the disparate pieces of a scene together into a pleasing whole, the sum greater than its parts.

Technical details: Canon 5D camera, 14-24mm lens (@14mm), ISO 100, f/11, 0.5 seconds.

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About Ian Plant (275 Posts)

Ian Plant's photographs and instructional articles have appeared in a number of books, calendars, and magazines, including Outdoor Photographer and Popular Photography. Ian writes a regular blog column for Outdoor Photographer online, and he is the author of numerous instructional eBooks and digital processing tutorials. Ian leads several photo tours each year.

Tags: angel terrace, geothermal feature, winter, yellowstone

4 Comments

Chris Kayler March 8, 2011 at 10:17 am

Hi Ian,

Subtle, but I like it. It’s funny how our opinions of our own images change over time. The only thing that slightly bugs me, and I know I’m being a nit-picky little bastard, is that “right-angle lookin’” stick on the far right middle. I can’t quite tell what it is or how it is attached to the skinny “tree” below it.
Isaac Green March 8, 2011 at 5:31 pm

Beauty is everywhere, one must look to see it.
Ian March 8, 2011 at 9:18 pm

Hi Chris! It was just a weird broken dead branch. It bugs me too, looks too much like a telephone pole!
Nancy de Flon March 20, 2011 at 8:07 pm

Ian, sometimes the purpose of the best images isn’t to make the viewer fall out of their chair but to give them a sense of, well, peace, of actually being in this image and able to relate to the various natural elements as companions in the outdoors. I suspect you enjoy making this kind of image most because it’s an intensely personal experience for you; it comes from what you love best rather than from a need to create the epic image.