Chicago Skyscape, originally uploaded by tomkellyphoto.

The Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) stands out amidst the south loop skyscape in Chicago as sea gulls fly from the nearby Chicago River. The 110-story Willis Tower stands 1,450 (not including radio towers) and is eighth largest building in the world and tallest in western hemisphere.

I love making photographs of skyscapes. In this case, the sea gulls were an added enhancement. (c) 2011 Tom Kelly

Rainy New York City, originally uploaded by tomkellyphoto.

Kind of a random shot, but kind of like the way this policewoman captures the frenetic scene on 42nd Street in New York City in the middle of a fall rainstorm – people dashing to and fro, umbrellas raised!

Via Flickr:
A policewoman directs traffic on 42nd Street near Grand Central Station on a rainy morning in New York City. (c) 2011 Tom Kelly

Yellow Aspens, originally uploaded by tomkellyphoto.

What a fall color run we had! I’m making some 24×36 gallery wraps of this glowing aspen scene from Guardsman Pass for an upcoming show. If anyone wants to pre-order one for yourself or a holiday gift, let me know and I’ll give you $50 off the show price.

Singletrack, originally uploaded by tomkellyphoto.

This image is a personal favorite – not only as a photograph for the memory of a great ride on Park City, Utah’s Mid-Mountain Trail.

This singletrack route through the mountains represents the genius of Mountain Trails. The three resorts are naturally laced with trails, many old mining roads. They go up and down and can give you thousands of feet of vertical in an afternoon ride.

Mid Mountain Trail is different. It basically hugs the 8,000 foot contour offering what I call pedal and roll terrain. Sure, there’s a few climbs. But nothing significant. And the views as you crisscross from open ski runs to dense aspen and pine forest are some of the most memorable in the Wasatch.

It’s not easy to ride with a heavy Nikon D700 hanging from your neck. There are lots of stops. This particular vantage point was fascinating to me. The steep ski run on the front face of Park City Mountain Resort put everything on an angle. And the singletrack trail bisected the run and headed back into a glowing yellow grove of aspen.

It shows the diversity of the terrain on the Mid Mountain Trail as a long rider speeds along the narrow singletrack and into the next stretch of forest.

The trail runs from Deer Valley Resort through Park City Mountain Resort and on to Canyons. The most popular segment is from Empire Lodge, where you climb up and above The Montage, on to Park City Mountain Resort.

My afternoon ride took me from Empire all the way through PCMR, dropping into the Silverlode lift canyon where I picked up the Crescent Grade Trail which took me back around to the frontside and eventually down to the bottom by the First Time lift.

Have fun!

Tate Barn, originally uploaded by tomkellyphoto.

The Tate Barn is a local icon, standing at the gateway to the Olympic cross country trails at Soldier Hollow near Midway, Utah. It was reconstructed before the 2002 Winter Olympics. It’s often photographed but a memorable shot had always eluded me.

My assignment this morning was to photograph the U.S. Cross Country Ski Team rollerskiing at Soldier Hollow. My personal goal was to take advantage of the early morning light to pickup a landscape or two along the way.

It was a cool, crisp morning – good views of Timpanogos. But every scene I tried was just lacking a good foreground. I came close with a group of three horses on the highway, but they were uncooperative in moving into my viewfinder.

Time was running short as I headed into Soldier Hollow. I passed the barn and barely gave it a glance. Driving past, though, it caught my attention out of the corner of my eye.

It was a classic HDR situation with the north side of the barn about four stops darker than the sunrise-lit east side. A quick tripod setup and I was ready to go – five exposures at .7 stops differential.

One of the elements that really captured my attention was the brush around the barn. At first, I was concerned I didn’t have enough elevation. But as I framed the shot, I used the brush to my advantage to create a boundary for the barn and also to mask a bit of the north side which was darker.

The final photograph captures an iconic local landmark set against one of Utah’s most memorable mountains.