Weekly Photo Challenge: The Golden Hour

It’s Lonely At The Top

This lonely tree grows on a rock outcropping in the Grand Canyon of The Yellowstone.  I photographed it one cloudy morning but the result was even, flat lighting, leaving the photo without much of a sense of perspective.  The next day I was lucky enough to return at just the right time.  The cliff face and tree were bathed in the warm, direct morning sunlight but the opposing canyon wall and the foreground elements were still in shadow.  As a result, the subject is literally highlighted.