Lower Yellowstone Falls as seen from Artist Point at sunset on July 9th, 2013. The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone National Park is an incredible sight.

Artist Point was so by named Frank Jay Haynes who incorrectly this spot along the south rim as the location from which Thomas Moran sketched the lower falls in 1872. Those sketches were later determined to have been made from the north rim of the canyon, but the name stuck.

Shot as a vertical panorama at six levels of exposure (0.25 sec to 8 sec).

Adobe Photoshop CC.

Nikon D700, Carl Zeiss Makro-Planar T* 2/100 ZF.2.

Photo Settings: 100mm, f/16, ISO 200.

Map: 44.7211, -110.4794

The Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone National Park is the largest hot spring in the United States, and the third largest in the world.

The vivid colors in the spring are the result of pigmented bacteria in the microbial mats that grow around the edges of the mineral-rich water. The bacteria produce colors ranging from green to red; the amount of color in the microbial mats depends on the ratio of chlorophyll to carotenoids and on the temperature of the water which favors one bacterium over another. In the summer, the mats tend to be orange and red, whereas in the winter the mats are usually dark green. The center of the pool is sterile due to extreme heat.

The deep blue color of the water in the center of the pool results from the intrinsic blue color of water, itself the result of water's selective absorption of red wavelengths of visible light. Though this effect is responsible for making all large bodies of water blue, it is particularly intense in Grand Prismatic Spring because of the high purity and depth of the water in the middle of the spring.

The spring is approximately 250 by 300 feet (80 by 90 m) in size and is 160 feet (50 m) deep. The spring discharges an estimated 560 US gallons (2,100 L) of 160 F (70 C) water per minute.

Wikipedia: Grand Prismatic Spring.

Circular polarizing filter. Adobe Camera Raw.

Nikon D700, Carl Zeiss Distagon T* 2,8/21 ZF.2.

Photo Settings: 21mm, f/11, 1/125 second, ISO 200.

Map: 44.5251, -110.8381