Catching the fall colors in Mount Rainier National Park was something I had on my bucket list for a while. I arrived at the park and began scouting the area, eventually finding my spot for sunrise.
When I arrived early the next morning, it was still dark, and I noticed the skies were bald. I was hoping for more clouds for sunrise and was a little bummed with the bald skies. I ended up hiking out in the dark anyway to make the best of it.
As I was shooting, I noticed the pink band in the sky known as the “Belt of Venus” setting behind Mount Rainier. I quickly set up amongst the huckleberry bushes and started shooting. With peak fall colors mixed with a beautiful pink sky and Mount Rainier perfectly illuminated in pre-dawn light, I knew I had my shot.
It was incredible and got brighter before sunrise. You can catch this phenomenon opposite the sun before sunrise or sunset, about 10–20 degrees above the horizon. And no, this is not AI; it was that incredible.
