Trail through the canyon floor at Chaco. The bluffs catch the afternoon light and the sky fills in above. The walks between sites are close to as good as the ruins themselves. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #ChacoCulture

Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Canyon. Raised the camera overhead to catch the sunrise through this window. The starburst lasted seconds before the angle shifted. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #ChacoCulture

Valley of the Gods, Utah. Last light on the mesa, everything below in shadow. Beth and I were camping out here — the color lasts just a few minutes and then it’s gone. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Utah

Chaco Canyon at night. The bluff right next to camp, stars filling in above, clouds drifting through. The dark skies out here are the real thing. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Astrophotography

Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Canyon. One doorway leads to another, which leads to another. Each one framed inside the last, lintels still in place after a thousand years. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #ChacoCulture

Fajada Butte at Chaco Canyon. Last light on the rock, everything else in shadow. It’s been catching this same light for a very long time. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #ChacoCulture

Bench at Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Canyon. Got low and let the wood grain fill the frame while Beth wandered off shooting with her Z50. Sometimes you find a composition while you’re just sitting around. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #ChacoCulture

Observatory dome on Mauna Kea, golden light, clouds far below. Beth brought me here to see the islands she once called home. I came for the views and stayed for the hardware. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #MaunaKea

Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Canyon. Walls rising several stories, windows open to sky at every level. Hard not to think about who looked out of them centuries ago. Thanks for taking a moment to look. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #ChacoCulture

Lāʻie Point, Oahu. Moody sky and rough water — caught a wave the moment it hit the lava shelf. Beth brought me here to see the island she once called home. Landscapes like this make the journey memorable. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Hawaii

Canyon wall at Chaco — looked straight up and let the rock and sky split the frame. Pure shape and texture. A quick pause can reveal a lot. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #ChacoCulture

Red sandstone near Moab. Just the rock and the sky. The warm light catches the face and the blue does the rest. Another horizon worth chasing. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Moab

Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Canyon. A thousand-year-old window still framing the sky. The wooden lintel is still holding. Sometimes the best moments are the ones you almost walk past. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #ChacoCulture

Waterfall in Porphyry Gulch, Colorado. Snowmelt dropping off a cliff into a green alpine valley with mountains stacking up behind it. Another horizon worth chasing. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Colorado

Trail to the ruins at Chaco Canyon. Beams of light through the clouds, ancient walls at the end of the path. The light hasn't changed in a thousand years. The quiet details are always worth noticing. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #ChacoCulture

Observatory dome on Mauna Kea, shutters open, telescope visible inside. Getting ready for a night of work while the sun goes down behind it. Machines like this never stop being fascinating. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #MaunaKea

Haystack Rock at Cannon Beach, Oregon. Low tide, wet sand, and reflections. The people walking toward it give you the scale. Landscapes like this make the journey memorable. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Oregon

Mauna Kea summit at sunset. Observatories lining the ridge, clouds far below, and a sky cycling through every shade of orange before it’s done. There’s always another view waiting somewhere. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #MaunaKea

Six Blue Angels Super Hornets lined up on the ramp at the Great Colorado Air Show. Still and quiet before the noise starts. Machines like this never stop being fascinating. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #BlueAngels

Sunset from the summit of Mauna Kea. Nearly 14,000 feet up, looking down on the clouds. Beth brought me here to see the place she once called home. Landscapes like this make the journey memorable. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #MaunaKea

Sunrise at Chaco Canyon. Found a gap in the ancient masonry and waited. The starburst lasted maybe a minute before the angle changed. Thanks for taking a moment to look. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #ChacoCulture

Lāʻie Point, Oahu. Raw lava rock and white water on the North Shore. Beth brought me here to see the island she once called home. Another horizon worth chasing. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Hawaii

Blue Angels at the Great Colorado Air Show, 2021. Five in formation, one breaking away overhead — their first season flying the Super Hornet. If you know an aviation nerd, send this their way. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #BlueAngels

Full moon with bare branches cutting across the disc. The trunk and limbs divide the light into sections — the moon becomes backlight, the tree becomes design. The quiet details are always worth noticing. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Moon

Pronghorn pair in the sagebrush at Yellowstone. One standing watch, one bedded down. Spotted them during a trip with Beth and Ash. Wild moments like this are why I keep the camera ready. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Wildlife

Castle Geyser erupting at Yellowstone. Water, steam, and a sun starburst all at once. Early in a camping trip with my son through the western U.S. Landscapes like this make the journey memorable. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Yellowstone

Paddleboarder heading past the break in Sayulita, Mexico. Last light, quiet water, and a trip that told me a lot about good company. Thanks for taking a moment to look. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Sayulita

Monument Valley in black and white. Strip the color away and the shapes sharpen — clouds, buttes, light. Everything becomes structure. Another horizon worth chasing. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #MonumentValley

Milky Way over Valley of the Gods, Utah. Camped out here with Beth — no light pollution, just the galactic core opening up above the mesa. There’s always another view waiting somewhere. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #MilkyWay

Dead tree near Yellowstone — looked straight up and let the twisted branches fill the frame against the clouds. B&W stripped it down to pure shape. A quick pause can reveal a lot. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #BlackAndWhite

Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque. The burner fires and the whole envelope lights up — safari sunset glowing against a grey dawn sky. Then it fades back to dark. Glad you’re here to share the moment. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #BalloonFiesta

Crater Lake on a still afternoon. When the water goes calm like this, it stops looking like a lake and more like a piece of sky fell into a bowl of rock. Thanks for taking a moment to look. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #CraterLake

Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque. Mass ascension — every direction you point the lens, another cluster of color fills the frame. Nature always has another story waiting. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #BalloonFiesta

Paramotor at the Frederick balloon festival with the Front Range behind it. A machine this simple against something that massive — the scale just works. Precision and motion always make a compelling scene. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Aviation

Driftwood on the rim of Crater Lake. Weathered wood against that impossible blue — the contrast held me here. Sometimes the smallest subjects hold the most detail. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #CraterLake

Balloon glow at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta with my son, 2018. The burners fire and the whole envelope becomes a lantern for a few seconds. Scenes like this stay with you long after the trip ends. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #BalloonFiesta

A butte standing alone near Moab. Layered sandstone catching the afternoon light with just enough cloud to balance the frame. Another horizon worth chasing. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Moab

Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, 2018. Got in close during inflation and the overlapping envelopes turned into something almost abstract. The closer you look, the more there is to see. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #BalloonFiesta

F/A-18 Super Hornet in a steep bank with afterburners blazing at the Great Colorado Air Show. One second overhead, the next it’s a dot. Moments like this are why I keep looking up. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Aviation

Crater Lake, Oregon. That blue is something you can’t prepare for. Some places just make you stand still for a minute. Landscapes like this make the journey memorable. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #CraterLake

Shafer Trail near Moab. Layer after layer of red sandstone stretching to the La Sal Mountains. Your eyes just keep finding another ridgeline. There’s always another view waiting somewhere. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Moab

Powered paraglider over the Frederick balloon festival. A motor, a fan, a canopy, and a seat — that’s the whole aircraft. Machines like this never stop being fascinating. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Aviation

Balloon festival in Frederick, CO. One guy, one rope, and a job to do while the envelope filled in front of him. Glad you’re here to share the moment. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Colorado

Movie set cabin at Valles Caldera, NM — built for Ron Howard’s “The Missing” (2003) with Tommy Lee Jones and Cate Blanchett. Still standing, still convincing. Know someone who’d love this view? Share it their way. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #NewMexico

Sun dropping behind a sandstone butte near Moab. That backlit edge where light wraps around the rock is the whole shot. Another horizon worth chasing. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Moab

This one at the National Aviary was posted up on a log like it was posing for a portrait. Sometimes the quieter birds make the best subjects. If this tiny moment caught your eye, pass it along. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Wildlife

Art in Public Places installation at Roosevelt Park in Longmont. Blue circles, strong shadows, and a 40mm at f/2 to soften the background. A quick pause can reveal a lot. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #PublicArt

First crocuses of the season — purple petals and orange stamens pushing through the rocks. Spring doesn’t ask permission. The closer you look, the more there is to see. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Spring

Fence post near La Veta — old enough to split and twist into its own shape. Barbed wire holding on, Spanish Peak going soft behind it. Sometimes the smallest subjects hold the most detail. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Colorado

One PPG Place in Pittsburgh — 40 stories of neo-Gothic glass by Philip Johnson. My son spotted that I was off-center and guided me to the right line. Cities always reward a second look. #Photography #ScottKissPhoto #Architecture