Emerald Lake is one of Canada's classic destinations, located in Yoho National Park in the British Columbia Rockies, not far from where the artist lived for many years. This panoramic view spans 180 degrees. If the viewer wants to take in the scene correctly, it should be viewed from the centre, fairly close to the painting while panning. “If a curved canvas was possible, that would have been ideal for this,” John says. While some artwork is disappointing to view closely, this piece, because of it's detail, is not. Artistic interpretation isn't licensed with pieces like this that intend to be true to actuality. "When I paint a mountain facet, I imagine that a climber could successfully plan a route using my painting"

This piece was the first place winner in the landscape category of Canada's 'National Fine Art Competition', which had more than 1400 competing artists.