Shooting the John Moulton Barn and the Grand Tetons

While I didn’t have magic clouds or weather, this past August, I had the pleasure of finally shooting the famous John Moulton Barn in front of the magnificent Grand Tetons, and here’s what a beginner to the scene learned:

•  First of all, the barn is here.  If you’re staying in Jackson or Grand Teton National park, it’s easy to get to the scene quickly in time for the morning light.
• In early August, first light hits the barn about a half hour after “sunrise”.  The Sun n Moon app on my iPhone had Sunrise at 6:14am and the barn was bathed in light at 6:42am.
•  Pass the driveway, and continue up to pull outs on either side of the road (indicated by “2” in my diagram)
•  A 70-200mm is all you’ll need.  I’m not really a landscape photographer — my passion in capturing people.  All I had with me on this trip was a 17-40mm and my 135mm f/2.0 (my favorite lens).  Backing up to spot #2, and using the 135mm, I was just able to get the entire scene in my 5DM2 full frame.  (To me, the comparison with the 40mm shot, that I shot closer to the stream near spot #1 in the map is fascinating.)
• Have fun, and I hope you get more interesting weather than I did!

Rocky Mountain Joe® of Boulder, Colorado
September 3, 2011
Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0