The Old Dome Station

  I recently reformatted my computer and began pulling in and re-organizing my giant catalogues of photos.  I started going over the pictures from when I wintered over at the South Pole and especially those of the Old Dome Station.  Construction of the giant Elevated Station was completed during my year at the Pole while the Dome was used for food storage.  The following summer the National Science Foundation and Raytheon Polar decided to finally demolish it.  I feel very lucky to have had the opportunity to photograph this historic and iconic building during its last winter.  

Me in front of the Dome and Elevated Station at the South Pole

Aurora and star trails above the Dome

The Dome sits quietly beneath the southern stars

The Moon and a hint of sunrise on the horizon

The Last Full Moon above the Old Dome Station

Full Moon above the South Pole

Dawn at the South Pole.  

Sunrise at the South Pole

Snow on the Flatirons

Snow on the Flatirons from Patrick Cullis on Vimeo.

  Video from my photo shoots of the Flatirons in Boulder on February 27th.  I took photos early in the morning before sunrise and then later in the evening after sunset and before the nearly full moon rose on the eastern horizon.  Once the moon rose, it put a spotlight on the iconic peaks while the stars were still visible.  Music is by Excavacation and my good friend Chad Parsons.  Thank you to him for providing good music to set my photos to.

Moon Burn Pt2

The Flatirons Pre-Moonrise

  Since I've been waiting over a year for the proper snow and lighting conditions to align, I decided to sack up and head back out in the chilly evening to set up cameras under crystal clear skies.  At first the bright stellar jewels of the western sky stole the show above the muted peaks of Green Mountain.  Then the moon rose and set a spot light upon the landscape, making the recent snow glow bright in the night.

The Moon rises in the East

Orion and Sirius above the Flatirons

Moonlit Flatiron Long Exposure

Moon Burn

Moon over the snow covered Flatirons

  Snow fell on the Flatirons yesterday and I decided it was about time for me to muster the motivation and take a few pictures before the warm Boulder Sun bakes it off.  In the first two you can just make out the halo that surrounded the Moon before the clouds continued to clear.  It was a seriously beautiful night.

Frosty Flatirons

The photographer and Boulder, CO

The Flatirons and Moon

Uintah Long Form

Uintah Long Form from Patrick Cullis on Vimeo.

  Here is the original video I made of Fantasy Canyon and the Uintah Basin in Utah.  In the "Ozone Balloons and the Uintah Basin" video I shortened the footage down and removed most of the night photography and time-lapse videos so that it could better capture the scene of our research and the strange atmospheric movements caused by the temperature inversion in the Basin.  This video takes a more leisurely stroll through the area, enjoying the movement of shadows on sculpted rock formations in Fantasy Canyon and the incredibly vivid sunsets through the pollution haze of the oil fields.

  Music by Chad Parsons.

05 - Zion at Night

  I was really excited to get in a good daytime project, but that didn't mean holding back on my night shots.  I always love when I can simply set up the camera outside the tent in a scenic spot, and the Watchmen Campground at Zion did not disappoint.

The Watchman Campground, Zion National Park, UT

Zion National Park, UT

  I was also able to run a few extended 15 minute exposures which I really enjoy.

A Beautiful Parking Lot

Milky Buffalo Pass

The Milky Way

  I went on a hike around Buffalo Mountain just west of Silverthorne, Colorado.  The first night we pitched camp on the trail to Red Buffalo Pass and I set my camera at 11,424 feet photographing the Milky Way throughout the night.  Smoke from forest fires burning in California and Montana created a thick red haze throughout the day and a green shimmer at night.  With clearing skies throughout sunset and in to the next day, stars blazed throughout the night above the New Moon's pitch black Rocky Mountains.

  I time-lapsed the subsequent images in to a video below.  Help preserve our dark skies...

Camp at 11,400".  Buffalo Mountain to the left.

My trusty Hubba Hubba with Red Peak in the background.  

JetBoil Coffee...  Yes

Red Buffalo Pass, the major trail from Silverthorne to Vail. 

Red Peak and Alpine Lake

High Alpine Wildflowers still hanging on at the end of this parched and hot summer.

Milky Way over Colorado

Moonlit Landscape

A couple of practice shots with the moon lighting up the front range.  I'm getting ready for a few night sky projects coming up and wanted to get my gear back in working order after taking a month off from time-lapse photography.

Green Mountain and NCAR - Boulder, CO

The recently burned peak of Bear Mountain - Boulder, CO

   Right when I went outside I was presented with the beautiful triangular formation of two planets and a bright star setting behind the front range.  Saturn sits atop the trio with red-orange Mars clockwise, followed by the binary star Spica.  This picture was taken 74 hours before the Curiosity Rover is set to touch down on the red planet in a thrilling Entry, Descent, and Landing.

Saturn, Mars, and Spica form a triangle above Bear Mountain, Boulder, CO

Caribou Night

This weekend Shondia and I went backpacking up in Indian Peaks Wilderness and camped at Caribou Lake. It was a fantastic trip and we had a blast getting away from normal life and back to nature.

I was a little extra excited while preparing because I knew the moon would almost be full and rising soon after sunset while we were there. One thing a winter at the South Pole will surely teach is how to be a good night photographer (as well as how to successfully thaw out electrical equipment...)

Soon after we arrived at the saddle of Arapahoe Pass, the wind picked up and a storm cloud built to the Northeast. Foregoing some hopeful dinner fishing at Dorothy Lake, the highest named lake in Indian Peaks, we hurried down the 750' slope of switchbacks to Caribou Lake and set up camp.

At the top of the saddle looking down the valley we would be camping in.

After a few casts of the lure in much-too-shallow water, and the realization I really must take up fly fishing, the cold breeze and drizzle sent us to the comfort of the tent early. A couple games of travel Scrabble later (Shondia whooped me both times,) we snuggled in to our sleeping bags to rest our sore legs and feet. Soon I could see the roof of the tent begin to glow. The sky had cleared and the moon was on the rise. Forcing myself to emerge from my now comfortably-warm sleeping bag, I opened the tent fly and set my camera as far out as possible. Once I saw the picture, I knew I had to get dressed...

The view from under the tent flap.

The moon rising behind the last remaining cloud in the sky.

I love moon light.

As the moon rose above the ridge line, the valley began to glow in orange and yellow.

It wasn't long before I was chilled to the bone from the cold mountain night and crawled back in to the tent.

The weekend was an amazing time and I can't wait to do it again. It would be a lot easier to go hiking if I didn't make myself carry an extra twenty pounds of camera equipment, but I don't think I'll be leaving it behind any time soon.