Landscape Archives - Page 2 of 6 - Sean Phillips Photography

The Beauty of Castle Mountain

Castle Mountain is in the Rocky Mountains about half way between Banff and Lake Louise. It is a very scenic spot that looks good in all sorts of light and weather conditions. I love to see it when it is being lit up from the side because the shadows in between each of the parapet like peaks falls into deep shadow and makes the mountain look even more rugged than normal.

We were passing by at just the right time the other day to enjoy the sunrise. It was a particularly beautiful thing when the Alpenglow dropped down the face of the mountain. I love the Rockies!

Panoramic image of the Calgary Cityscape at Night

I went downtown the other night to try to make an image of the cityscape while the Olympic Torch on top of the Calgary Tower was burning. The flame was lit in honour of the Olympic Torch relay run passing through Calgary while enroute to Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

Unfortunately I only had time to make a couple of close-up images of the Tower itself before the flame went out. Since I was already there I took the opportunity to make a new panoramic image of the skyline.

I’ve made quite a few images from the same spot over the last couple of years. I really love the look of the city lights reflecting on the ice covering the Bow River, so I really prefer to make these images in the winter.

Sunrise Starburst

The winter landscape on the prairies can be so beautful that sometimes I find it hard to decide what image to make next. This was one of those examples where I was torn between wanting to make images of the grain bins that I knew would be glowing a beautiful red as the sun rose, or to try to create the starburst effect you see here just as the sun peeked over the horizon. In the end I managed to do both, but I really only got to try one composition for the starburst shot, and then I ran back over to the bins to make a few more images there. Fortunately this old fence was close enough to the bins that I was able to use it to give the starburst shot some foreground interest.

Grain Bin Panorama

I went out for a sunrise photoshoot with my Dad the other day while he was visiting for the holidays. It was really nice to be able to head out at a very civilized time (8:00 AM) and still be there in plenty of time to fully enjoy the Magic Hour. This is very different from the other seasons where the sunrise is much earlier in the day, and is one of the few advantages that winter photography has over the summer.

I’ve shot these grain bins before but because of their position relative to the sunrise I knew they would be a good photogenic subject to share with my Dad.

Pretty Yellow Wildflowers

Here are a few more images from my trip to Kelowna last spring. The Okanagan Valley is an extremely hot and dry location, and only the most rugged vegetation survives without irrigation. So it was very fun to see these beautiful little yellow flowers poking up and reaching for the spring sun. The following images give a little better view of what the Kelowna area naturally looks like. If you’ve ever been there you’ve probably been amazed by the rustic orchards and vineyards. They are very beautiful, but they wouldn’t exist without a whole lot of irrigation. That doesn’t really mean anything on its own, but I think it helps to put my images below into proper perspective.