Photography in Banff and Jasper has been interesting this winter. For starters, there hasn’t been much fresh snow in the past month, and temperatures have been unseasonably warm. Just yesterday I played hockey on a Canmore pond in short sleeves!!
However, there are still numerous great photo opportunities throughout the parks. All of the great peaks in the parks are still snow-covered and with the gorgeous sunny days, dramatic sunrise and sunset shots abound. For those of you visiting the Banff-Canmore-Lake Louise areas, try Mt Temple near Lake Louise at sunset, Castle Mountain halfway between Lake Louise and Banff at either sunrise or sunset, or Mt Lougheed near Canmore at sunrise.
If waterfalls are your thing, then the Canadian Rockies sports a spectacular collection of frozen waterfalls, so much so that this area is actually considered to be the premier ice climbing destination in the world! Try Haffner Creek Falls in Kootenay National Park, Johnston Canyon in Banff, or Maligne Canyon in Jasper for some great frozen falls photography.
And even though the lack of snow is making tracking wolves difficult, there is still a lot of great wildlife to be found. There are more than 100 elk hanging around both the Banff and Jasper townsites, and Jasper has some fantastic spots to photograph bighorn sheep, like Wilcox Pass along the Icefields Parkway, or Disaster Point on Highway 16 east of Jasper.
Happy shooting!
John
