I’ve received interesting landscape photography challenges in the past. One such challenge was to make certain Idaho lakes/reservoirs look pretty. Lately, I felt as if I had revisited that particular challenge with a naturally occurring Utah lake. Panguitch Lake is one of very few lakes in southern Utah of any “significant” size. I revisited that lake for landscape photography. Check out what I came back with.
I remember well when I received the task of photographing the Ririe and American Falls Reservoirs. They are both what I call “big ugly holes in the ground.” Ririe’s sort of pretty until you pick up a camera. American Falls is just ugly. Still, I managed to find places and angles which made those lakes look beautiful and inviting. Panguitch Lake reminded me a lot of both of those lakes.
Much like Ririe, Panguitch Lake rests in a valley or canyon surrounded by hills and cliffs which have the potential of being scenic. Potential until a camera enters the equation. Then both areas seem dull and uninteresting. I struggled to find just the right place to stand with both lakes. But I’m not here to reminisce about Ririe. I’m here to talk about Panguitch Lake.
I attempted the lake a while ago. You can read more about that experience in this article. I found I wasn’t satisfied with that attempt. This happens sometimes. I wanted another attempt at Panguitch Lake. All I needed was the time. Well, I found that time here recently.
I finally explored all sides of the lake searching for that perfect angle I needed. Sometimes I must search hard for those angles, but I usually find them. Fortunately, Panguitch Lake has roads spanning the full circumference of the lake. I went all the way around the lake looking for just the right spot to set up my tripod and camera. I finally found a promising looking spot right at the end. It was about time too. Sunset was upon us.
I had difficulty with the shot because there were people fishing on the shore. I didn’t want their pickup trucks in the shot, so I had to be careful. The swimming and preening ducks, on the other hand, captured my interest so I included some of them.
I found myself drawn to the inlet which was showing so prominently with the lower-than-usual water level. So, I included it in frame. Suddenly, my photo had foreground interest in spades. I couldn’t have asked for better given how difficult this lake is to find a photogenic angle. I’m glad I got this shot when I did because I heard a few days later that a wildfire started in the area. Now I couldn’t go out there until the fire is quenched and the smoke cleared.
