Happy New Year from Tahoe!

Happy New Year from Tahoe! Shot last night at Palisades Tahoe ski resort. Tons of fun out there.

I was hoping to get a bit higher up the mountain. But security wasn't having any of that... lol.

Shot with a Canon R5 MarkII and a 15-35mm lens, set at 15mm. ISO 3200, lens aperture of f/7.1, and a shutter speed of .4 of a second. Shot on a tripod. A bit of noise reduction was used in Photoshop.

I hope you all have an incredible 2026!!!

Scott Thompson
Scott Shots Photography
www.TruckeeTahoePhotos.com - Art
Scott Shots Photography - Services

This Evening's Moon Rising Above Truckee, California

I attended a Christmas party in Downtown Truckee, California this evening. But, right before I went in, I knew I had some work to do...

I knew the moon would be rising any moment, and I had the camera in the car. So before I went in to enjoy the fun, I enjoyed this Christmasy moment in my favorite little mountain town.

Shot with the Canon R5 MarkII and a 100-500 Canon lens, set at 300mm. The ISO was 400, the shutter speed was 8 seconds, and the lens aperture was f/25. A small lens aperture was used so I could get both the candy cane and the moon in focus. And of course, a tripod was used...

It's already up on my website truckeetahoephoto.com, and Christmasy gifts are already available.

I hope you all are enjoying the holiday season!

Scott Thompson
Scott Shots Photography
www.TruckeeTahoePhotos.com - Art
Scott Shots Photography - Services

New Gallery Exhibit at Art Truckee!

I have some great news... I am now exhibiting and selling out of Art Truckee in Downtown Truckee, California! It's been a couple of years since I've sold out of a Truckee gallery, but I am back at it! Art Truckee is a tiny little gallery in an old historic tiny building. It's perfect for two photographers to share the space, rent, and time spent at the gallery. Michelle Erskine is the other photographer in the gallery. She is another long time Truckee local who has many incredible photos of the Tahoe area as well.

Art Truckee is located at 9950 Donner Pass Road in historic Downtown Truckee. Right behind the famous Moody's Restaurant. We will be keeping the gallery open 11-5, Thursday - Sunday, and we may increase our hours as we approach the holidays.

Here are a few photos of the gallery.

If you're even in Truckee, please contact me, stop by, and say hi!

Scott Thompson
Scott Shots Photography
www.TruckeeTahoePhotos.com - Art
Scott Shots Photography - Services

This Morning's Snowliage

Yup. Snowliage is supposedly a word... I love the look of fresh snow on autumn foliage! And this morning, I ran around Downtown Truckee, California with the camera for a bit, capturing a few lovely scenes. These two shots were my favorites.

Both shot with a Canon R5 MarkII and a 24-105mm lens. Handheld, no lens filters or tripod.

The fall colors have been incredible here the last few days. Hopefully they stick around longer for some more photos. And I hope you get to enjoy some of the color in your area!

Scott Thompson
Scott Shots Photography
www.TruckeeTahoePhotos.com - Art
Scott Shots Photography - Services

New Photos From Last Weekend's Backpacking Adventure

I finally had time to go trough and work on some new photos from a little overnight solo backpacking adventure last weekend. The destination was Flora Lake and Azalea Lake. Both lakes are near each other. It was a lot fun being out there, but it was mostly relaxing being all by myself.

In this first drone sunrise photo, you can see Azalea Lake on the left and Flora Lake on the right. Donner Lake and Truckee, California can be seen in the distance.

Here's one of Flora Lake at sunrise, with Donner Lake in the background. Again, shot at sunrise with the drone.

I love Castle Peak! And you can see it in the background of this Azalea Lake photo below.

This one is a nighttime shot, the light was provided by the moon. The water was so still and peaceful.

And another reflection shot, I really like how the rocky shoreline was looking at Azalea Lake.

And my peaceful little camp spot. Nobody else was out there!

I hope you all have some nice adventures this weekend...

Scott Thompson
Scott Shots Photography
www.TruckeeTahoePhotos.com - Art
Scott Shots Photography - Services

Interesting Trees Near Echo Peak, Tahoe

I recently went for a big hike with a friend and the dog se is dog sitting, up to Echo Peak in the Tahoe area of California. There was a fair amount of smokey haze in the air from a nearby wildfire, not many photos were taken, but I did end up with a few "keepers" of interesting trees.

These next three images were shot with the Canon R5 MKII, near the peak, after a long hike up the mountain. There were lots of trees and boulders that were weathered, twisted, beat-up, and photogenic. The weather up there is not gentle but that makes for some unique scenes.

Here's a few phone photos of the day's adventure. Echo lake is below, in Tahoe's Desolation Wilderness.

My friend's family has owned a property on Echo Lake since the 1920's. It's a boat-in only location, new homes are not allowed to be built in the area. It's a pretty special little cabin!

Tons of fun out there, even if tons of photos weren't taken.

Hope you are all having a great weekend!

Scott Thompson
Scott Shots Photography
www.TruckeeTahoePhotos.com - Art
Scott Shots Photography - Services

New Rainbow Photos

The weather has been wild this last week. So much rain in the afternoons! And what does that mean??? Well, lately it means RAINBOWS!!! There have been rainbows the last three evenings, and I have been lucky to have the time to get out with the camera and capture them.

This photo is above the cherry on top for me. I can't wait to print it up huge. I have been trying to capture a rainbow over Rainbow Bridge and Truckee, CA for over 20 years. Every time I make the drive up there after seeing a rainbow in town, it is gone by the time I make it up Old Hwy 40. Finally! And with yellow blooming rabbitbrush in the foreground, yes!

Shot with the Canon R5 MKII and a 24-105mm lens, with a polarizing filter on the front of the lens. The ISO was 50, the shutter speed was 1 second long (camera on a tripod), and the lens aperture was nice and small, f/22, in order to have a sharp focus on the flowers in the foreground and the mountains in the background.

Here's a couple more rainbow photos, above and below. These were actually shot across the street from where I live. It's so nice to be able to look out the window at the lake, see the rainbows, grab the gear, and capture these scenes.

Thank you for looking and I hope you all have a beautiful day!

Scott Thompson
Scott Shots Photography
www.TruckeeTahoePhotos.com - Art
Scott Shots Photography - Services

This Morning's Donner Lake Rainbow

I could tell this morning that it was "rainbow weather". So I was keeping an eye on the sky, and wouldn't you know, I saw one! It was an incredibly bright and vibrant rainbow, I happen to be driving along Donner Lake, here in Truckee, California when it popped out. As usual, I had my camera with me so I pulled over, slapped a polarizing filter on the front of my lens, ran out to the shore, and started shooting. I ran because experience has taught me that rainbows can disappear fast. I've seen them before, got all set up, only to have them fade away right before I start clicking.

Shot with a Canon R5 MarkII and a 24-105mm lens. ISO 400, the lens aperture was f/13, and the shutter speed was 1/200 of a second. Again, a polarizing filter was on the front of the lens. They help bring out the color a bit more in rainbows. But be careful with them, they can also make rainbows disappear if the polarizer is not adjusted properly. Handheld shot, I was rushing and didn't grab the tripod or have time to set it up.

As always, prints and photo products available on my website www.TruckeeTahoePhotos.com.

Thank you for looking, and I hope you all have a beautiful day out there!

Scott Thompson
Scott Shots Photography
www.TruckeeTahoePhotos.com - Art
Scott Shots Photography - Services

This Morning Along An Icy Donner Lake Shoreline

The temperature was 15°F at my place this morning. And I could see from my living room window that there was a little bit of ice on the surface of Donner Lake, along the shoreline. So I took a little walk with the camera, to see what I could find... Success!!! There were actually many little scenes like this with air bubbles trapped in the thin layer of ice on the surface of Donner Lake. I took quite a few photos. But this one happened to be my favorite, one of the last photos I shot. I've seen bubbles trapped in the ice many times, but in my opinion, it looks best when the ice is very thin, clear, and not too thick. Just like this!

"Donner Lake Morning 28"

Shot with a Canon R5 MarkII and a 15-35mm lens, set at 30mm. It was a handheld shot, no tripod. The ISO was 400, the shutter speed was 1/100 of a second with the lens image stabilizer on, and the lens aperture was f/22. A nice small aperture created the best depth of field I could get. The mountains and were still a bit out of focus despite the small aperture, because the camera was very close to the surface of the ice. Oh, and my boots were in the ice/water and I had water up over my shoelaces. Fortunately, they are quality boots and my socks did not get wet. 😁

This photo would make a very nice large print, I envision it looking best above a desk in an office. A peaceful scene to look at when feeling stressed out about all the office work that needs to be done.

Thank you for looking and I hope you all have a great weekend!

Scott Thompson
Scott Shots Photography
www.TruckeeTahoePhotos.com - Art
Scott Shots Photography - Services

Lake Tahoe Surface Reflection Abstracts

Although it was an incredibly beautiful day yesterday, fishing on Lake Tahoe, I was struggling to find any super photogenic scenes to shoot that would make nice large prints. But at one point, the light breeze created an interesting look to the surface, and I saw some potential for some fun abstract reflection shots. I posted a wider angle view as well, so you can see where these reflections came from. And I posted a photo of the fishing rod I was using, just because I want to brag about how beautiful and incredible of a time I had out there!

Abstract prints aren't my best sellers even though they are some of my favorite photos. What do you think? Do you like these Lake Tahoe surface abstracts? And can you picture seeing them on your wall?

Shot with a Canon R5 MarkII and a Canon 100-500mm lens. The ISO was 1600, the lens aperture was f/20, and the shutter speed was 1/1000. Handheld. The abstract image were flipped upside down in editing, I shot with that in mind as I thought it would be a better look.

Here's a wide angle view of the scene, below.

Yummy! The mackinaw we caught was delicious!

Thanks for looking, and I hope you have a great day!

Scott Thompson
Scott Shots Photography
www.TruckeeTahoePhotos.com

Oh, and I'm posting this room mock-up so you can image how the image would look printed big on a wall. We have a gallery here in Truckee that sells tons of large abstract paintings. I like the abstracts they exhibit, so here's my attempt at the look.