My First PCT Foray

On Saturday, I visited the Pacific Crest Trail going north from Snoqualmie Pass toward the Kendall Katwalk (I didn't make it all the way to the Katwalk...I had other objectives in mind). This post is a bit bittersweet because it probably marks my last long summer hike. The next two weekends are busy; after that, if I have time to hike, summer may well be gone from the mountains. This is not to say that I don't enjoy or appreciate autumn. I do. But summer has always been and will always be my favorite, and I'll miss long, warm days and wildflowers.

The weather and scenery were echoed this sentiment on Saturday. Skies were crystal clear but the air was very chilly early on, and there was a stiff breeze; it definitely felt a bit like autumn. Some of the wildflowers along the upper slopes were still blooming, but most had begun going to seed, or were at least looking old and disheveled.

...I say most because the numerous fireweed stands all along the trail were in full bloom, and thus very impressive. This first picture, made early along during the hike, was my favorite of the whole trip. The polarization of the sky is a bit uneven, but it's not too striking. Mostly, I am pleased that the lighting turned out well, with good tonal definition in both the foreground and the sunlit mountain. I tried a wide variety of apertures, and ended up choosing f/6.3, the widest (I didn't go any narrower because I wanted the whole front flower stalk to be in focus). Narrower apertures created too much detail in the mountains, taking the focus off the fireweed stalk and making the image too busy.

That early lighting on the mountains afforded me two other opportunities. I really liked the way the sun was streaking onto the mountain from the side. On the second of this set, I wanted to juxtapose the sunny mountain against the shaded valley; I don't think the valley has enough depth or contour but I thought I'd post the picture. Maybe some color and lighting work would bring out the concept I had in mind when I shot the photograph.

The next two are some wide-angle perspectives of the rocky mountainsides. It was still relatively early, but already the lighting was a bit harsh. I still like the looks of them, though. You will notice the uneven sky polarization. I scaled back the polarizing filter a bit, in anticipation of this effect, but obviously not enough. I used relatively narrow apertures (f/16 I think) to make sure everything from the foreground rocks to the background peaks was in focus.

Finally, a few floral shots. The first two are Indian hellebore, the third some sort of penstemon, the fourth a scarlet painbrush. In all of these pictures I sought out natural diffusion - i.e. an area where the harsh, close-to-midday sunlight was partially diffused by leaves, softening its effects a bit. None of these images is fantastic, but they're alright. Even with the natural diffusion, though, the picture of the penstemon is inordinately contrasty.