Gigapixel panoramas

A selection of my Gigapixel panoramas in high resolution. A gigapixel image is a digital image bitmap composed of one billion (109) pixels. Choose and a new window opens where you can zoom and pan. And don’t forget to turn on your sound! You must click the picture one time to turn the sound on.

Animas Forks (Colorado, USA). The first prospectors wintered in ‘Three Forks of the Animas’ in 1873, looking for silver and gold. In 1875 the name was changed to Animas Forks to accommodate the Post Office Department, and funds were committed by the San Juan County Commissioners to build a road between Silverton and Animas Forks to connect with the trail from Lake City, now known as Cinnamon Pass. By 1885, the summer population reached 450 people. Few people braved the harsh winters when most mining activity stopped. The town weathered the boom and bust cycles of the mining industry until the early 1920’s when metals prices fell worldwide and it began its slow transformation into a ghost town. 

32550x16239px, 300dpi, 276x137cm, focus stacking, 24 x 5 images, camera D810 24-70mm, 70mm 1/200 F/18 ISO250

Dallas Creek (Colorado, USA). A fence to collect cattle. High in the mountains of the San Juan Mountains. 

31662x16570px, 300dpi, 268x140cm, focus stacking 42 x 5 images, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 70mm 1/200 F/16 ISO200

West Fork Dallas Creek (Colorado, USA) is a waterstream just 14 km from Telluride, in Ouray County. A great place for fly fishing. But also to photograph landscapes. 

33304x11497px, 300dpi, 282x97cm, focus stacking 43 x 5 images, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 70mm 1/50 F/16 ISO250

Mt. Sneffels (Colorado, USA) is one of the most photographed peaks (> 5000 meters) in Colorado. One of the best locations to take pictures, namely along County Road 7 (Dallas Creek) 

24451x7598px, 300dpi, 207×64 cm, 14 images, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 70mm 1/200 F/16 ISO320

This is a small basin for irrigation water. Mt. Sneffels (Colorado, USA) is perfectly framed in the background. 

27895x12009px, 300dpi, 236x102cm, focus stacking 40 x 6 images, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 70mm 1/640 F/18 ISO640

Deb’s Meadow (Colorado, USA). This meadow is best known as the filming location for the penultimate scene in the original version of ‘True Grit’ (1969) where John Wayne charged across the field on horseback with a gun in each hand and the reins in his mouth. The sound guides you through the field. 

18904x14480px, 300dpi, 160x122cm, focus stacking 16 x 6 images, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 70mm 1/50 F/22 ISO800

In the state of Colorado of the United States of America there’s a special highway built in the late 1880’s: the Million Dollar Highway, part of the San Juan Skyway. It’s one of the nation’s most spectacular drives. You’ll be on the “outside” for a while with a hell of a view to your right (let the passenger look, you’ll want to watch the road). Forget standard driving safety measures like guardrails and shoulders, there aren’t any on this stretch, so swerving off the road is not advised!
It was cut from the side of the mountain and became know as the “Million Dollar Highway“. It’s one of the most scenic drives in the USA. The Million Dollar Highway stretches for about 25 miles (40 km) in western Colorado and follows the route of U.S. 550 between Silverton and Ouray, Colorado. I passed here a deserted hamlet. 

22988x12983px, 300dpi, 195x110cm, focus stacking, 25 x 5 images, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 70mm 1/50 F/16 ISO125

Crystal-Lake (Colorado, USA). A crystal clear lake between mountains that are so orange of the minerals that it is inconceivable that it is still so clear. 

27053x7421px, 300dpi, 229x63cm, 10 beelden, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 70mm 1/50 F/18 ISO400

Bumpy, colorful, vast and adventurous, this hidden dirt road in historic ranching country gives stunning rewards for those willing the take the time to get around the bend.
As Last Dollar Road (Colorado, USA) winds through a low valley surrounded by jagged peaks and deep-blue skies, each bend delivers jaw-dropping scenery. At one turn you’ll find yourself in a cathedral of sun-bathed aspens; at another, a flat vista with views of a quilt-like terrain of furry pines and aspens; turn again, and you’re in a wide-open grassy field, where pristine nature is the only thing between you and the San Juan Mountains. 

31524x11407px, 300dpi, 267x97cm, focus stacking 26 x 5 images, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 70mm 1/80 F/18 ISO200

This shot is make possible on invitation from the ranch owner we met when we where along the Last Dollar Road (Colorado, USA) photographing his cow-country. He’s living there in a beautiful part of the southwest of Ridgeway. My interest was taken by the form of the pond: it’s heart shape! 

29697x14153px, 300dpi, 251x120cm, focus stacking 24 x 5 images, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 70mm 1/80 F/18 ISO200

Along with Maroon Lake and Crystal Mill, Dallas Divide (Colorado, USA) is one of Colorado’s iconic photography locations. It’s proximity to the rugged San Juan mountains makes it an ideal location to capture some of Colorado’s most incredible scenery in one picture frame. The following panoramas are various moments of the day. This panorama is made during sunset. 

27388x7910px, 300dpi, 232x83cm, focus stacking, 18 x 5 images, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 70mm 1/30 F/16 ISO800

Full moon over the Dallas Divide (Colorado, USA). The light is enormous and illuminates the entire spectacle. 

29206x4620px, 300dpi, 247x39cm, 36 images, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 70mm 1/30 F/6.3 ISO800

The Milkyway can also not be missed! 

21857x67890px, 300dpi, 185x57cm, 36 images, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 70mm 10s F/2.8 ISO1600

One of the most famous National Parks is the Grand Canyon in Arizona, USA. For me the South Rim was a challenge. It is considered one of the seven wonders of nature. Millions of years ago, part of the earth’s crust was pushed up here; this created the Colorado Plateau of which the Grand Canyon is now a part. The Colorado River has paved its way through the rock layers of the Colorado Plateau for the last 6 million years, where the rock was constantly being (and is still) being ground away. Because each rock layer consists of another type of rock, the effects of the power of the water are different everywhere. This creates a complicated system of deep, erratic ravines. In addition to the water of the Colorado River, other erosive forces, such as frost and the wind, have had a lot of influence. And especially the consequences for color formation! 

20294x5785px, 300dpi, 172x49cm, 12 images handpano, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 40mm 1/800 F/8 ISO250

Grand Canyon National Park, South Rim – Mather Point Visitor Center, (Arizona, USA). I stood here on an excellent rock party. And that with my fear of heights! Behind me were many people waiting and watching the sun go down. Rustic and colorful. One couple was in my line of sight. They had no one in the picture and enjoyed it clearly. 

32587x13498px, 300dpi, 276x114cm, 28 images, camera Nikon D810, 24-70mm, 70mm 0.3s F/18 ISO500