Reflections on Butterfly Lake

September 04, 2012

Bflylk546_16july12 (3)

Photographer
Ray Boren 
Summary AuthorRay Boren  

Earlier this summer, I walked around beautiful Butterfly Lake in northeastern Utah's Uinta Mountains and, as is often the case, found myself mesmerized by the reflections on the water. Someone both observant and clever noticed that this high mountain pond (elevation: about 10,000 ft or 3,048 m) has two winged bays and a peninsular body, hence “Butterfly Lake.” This photo shows an upside down view taken on the lake's south shore. The dark strands at top, looking like Spanish moss, are in fact a stand of conifers. A light breeze formed small capillary waves on the lake surface that together with the skypools give the scene an artistic look. The Sun kept playing hide and seek behind monsooncumulus clouds that sometimes produced a few sprinkles. The partly cloudy conditions are literally reflected in the cloud-white and sky-blue colors of the lake's surface.

Photo details: Camera Maker: NIKON CORPORATION; Camera Model: NIKON D60; Focal Length: 75.0mm; Aperture: f/10.0; Exposure Time: 0.0040 s (1/250); ISO equiv: 125; Exposure Bias: none; Metering Mode: Matrix; Flash Fired: No (enforced); Orientation: Normal; Color Space: sRGB; Software: QuickTime 7.6.4.