This print is signed by Gavin Hardcastle and has a […]

Nestled in the mountains of Colorado this old mill clings to a cliff overlooking a beautiful snaking river. I chose to visit during a thunder and lightning storm while carrying two tripods. Not my most intelligent move but I think the photo was worth the risk.

What a privilege it was to witness this moment in time. I count my blessings every time I look at this image. I was one of hundreds of photographers that day who all captured some wonderful images.

I'll be honest, there are times when the composition finds you. This was one such time.

I will take some small amount of credit for recognizing it but I defy anyone to walk past this arrangement of rocks both big and small and not see the most delightful composition. That lovely soft light and the flat, calm reflection were 100% worth the third degree burns from severe chaffing due to the massive hike to this lake. I would do it all over again if I had the chance.

This canyon was one of the strangest places I've ever seen and not easy to photograph. The freezing cold snowmelt river might have made things more difficult as my hands were shaking from the cold just as much as from the excitement of capturing this special moment.

I'd also ripped my shoulder to shreds on the way down into the canyon but the temporary 'photographers high' took care of that, at least until later when the pain came home to roost.

For this glorious window in time I was ecstatically happy just to witness these conditions in this hard to reach canyon on Vancouver Island.

During a high winter tide and after massive rainfall this small tree can disappear completely as it desperately clings on to this submerged log on the west coast of Vancouver Island. I captured this image a couple of days after such a deluge just in time to for the perfect conditions.

A big part of photography is seeing the unseen.

Sometimes you can't actually see a beautiful feature of a scene until you take a long exposure like this one. By choosing a creative shutter speed I was able to reveal the wonderful spiraling patterns of the bubbles as they weaved their way downstream. After some experimentation I was able to capture this delightful long exposure that I feel does justice to this tranquil and enchanting little scene.

This composited image of a Rialto Beach sea stack reflection has even less chance of becoming a reality now that the sea stack has partially collapsed. There are still some beautiful images to be had however so it's always worth the hike.

This print is signed by Gavin Hardcastle and has a […]

What do you do when a beautiful scene is crawling with humans? You wait of course.

Then you wait some more.

After waiting all afternoon I finally had my moment and managed to capture this image without a single human AND during gorgeous afternoon light.

Now if I hadn't told you this and you saw this photo you could almost call it false advertising but you've been warned.

These conditions are possible but you'll have to be patient and share the trail with several hundred other purveyors of majestic beauty.

Blue hour on the Donegal coast is a time of pure magic. Rather than quit after a nice sunset I stuck around as the clouds began to eat the sky, waves roiled up and birds went into a feeding frenzy. Sometimes all you have to do is just be there and wait.

I'll admit that sometimes I get lucky. On my second visit to this viewpoint in the Faroe Islands I knew as soon as I arrived that something magical would happen. At almost 11PM the sky erupted in a vivid display of magnificence and I couldn't believe my luck.