NATURE'S BEST PHOTOGRAPHY
HIGHLY HONORED

Frosted Pines
Clear Creek Canyon

Golden, Colorado, USA
By Russ Shugart
Parker, Colorado, USA

Frost occurs when a solid surface becomes cooler than the dew point of the air around it and the overall temperature reaches below freezing. Translucent crystals form, varying in size depending on the water vapor that exists at the time of the frost. This natural event often creates a beautiful white landscape of sparkling light and emerging color as the frost begins to melt.

“As a dense fog lifted on Lookout Mountain, revealing Clear Creek Canyon below, pine needles had been coated with thick, sparkling hoarfrost. Here on the Front Range of the rugged Rocky Mountains, directly west of Denver, storms frequently sweep down from the Continental Divide, leaving beauty in their wake.” —RS

Nikon D3X; 24-85mm ƒ/3.5-4.5 lens; 1/15 sec at ƒ/22; ISO 250; Manfrotto 3001N tripod; Gitzo G2272M head.