My favorite Ancient Bristlecone

Yep - that is the one. The money shot. The keeper. Keep that lens! - Stick with pleasing Ansel.

Gee, Jim, how does one choose between an early Steichen or Cunningham and a mid-career Adams? I like the cropping and "motion" of the soft image, and I find the clouds distracting in the sharp shot. Now, if you had made the sharp image from the same perspective/vantage point as the soft one, it would be easier to compare. I guess I vote for the swirly one. It has more "soul."

Peter Gomena