The dramatic Alps

I took this picture of the Swiss Alps from 10,000 feet in the mountains. I had taken 3 cable cars to get to the spectacular vantage of Schilthorn high above the village of Stechelberg, Switzerland. From here, 360 degree views of the Alps offers dramatic landscapes everywhere. When my photo tour group first arrived, the sky was blue without a cloud to be seen. Within a couple of hours, clouds were swirling around the peaks offering countless opportunities for great images. Depending on which direction I'd aim my lens, the lighting could be direct front lighting, sidelighting, or backlighting. For this very contrasty image, I used a 40mm focal length on a 24-105mm lens, and the settings were 1/3200, f5.0, and 160 ISO.