One of Fifty-Two

One
Originally uploaded by desertskyblue

We'd planned on rising at 6:30 am. Our goal was to arrive at Tibble Fork Reservoir before the sun rose above the craggy granite peaks, but having gone to bed at 2:00 am New Year's Day...sleep won out over watching the first sunrise of 2010. With only 3-days in the first week of the new year, I needed to get busy collecting shots to process for my first of fifty-two.

The sun was up in Utah County and the jeep was ready to go at 8:00 am. I loaded an extra jacket, gloves, camera, and cinnamon rolls from Shirley's. Hot chocolate completed our breakfast. As we drove up the snow packed windy road and rounded the corner at the top of the dam, the frozen lake was still in the shade of the forested cliffs. We witnessed our first sunrise of the day as the sun crested the mountain. The air was crisp and cool, but the sun on cheeks was fabulous. I love being out of doors.

What I learned: I used my tripod for most of the shots and I was able to level it even in the snow. It was a little slippery hiking down to the lake so juggling the camera and tripod was a bit tricky. But my biggest lesson came while taking this shot of the creek...BE SURE TO CHARGE THE BATTERY! This photo was the last shot I took before the battery went dead. I lightened it up a bit as it was the first of 3 shots (AEB). I'm posting it because this one taught me the most valuable lesson this week.