Rainy Day Details

On my most recent photography trip, because I had only a brief amount of time available, I chose the short and easy Big Four Ice Caves trail so I could still have some time to slow down for photography without feeling rushed. Due to ongoing drizzle, I didn't really have any success with landscapes - the mountains were hidden, and I was getting water on my lens every time I tried to apply or remove a filter. I had better luck with flower closeups by the ice caves. My macro lens is able to have a polarizing filter live on it more or less permanently, and my closeup shots generally didn't need to angle up the way mountain shots do in that location, so I kept the lens surface dry. The water droplets on the flowers were an added bonus.

First, partridgefoot (Luetkea pectinata), growing in a dense mat amongst other leaves and rocks. These flowers are small and I've often overlooked them; I'm glad I slowed down enough to notice how interesting they are up close. I like the color contrasts between all of the elements: stems, flowers, and leaves. F/5.

Next, raindrops on a tiger lily, or columbia lily (Lilium columbianum). F/5.

Next, subalpine spiraea (Spiraea splendens), with Sitka valerian also in the background. I was intrigued by all of the tiny water droplets on the flower cluster. F/5.

Lastly, red columbine (Aquilegia formosa), again with out-of-focus Sitka valerian in the background. F/4.5.

Happy summer, even if (for my local readers at least) it doesn't quite feel like it yet!

Blue Skies at Perry Creek

On Saturday, I took advantage of the gorgeous weather and hiked the Perry Creek trail, which is one of my favorite early-season mountain hikes. The weather was by far the warmest for any hike I've done this year. While hiking uphill, I had a moment where I thought to myself, "why am I sweaty and uncomfortable?" I realized that this feeling was indeed warmth, and I needed to shed some layers! Once I'd made that mental transition, I had an excellent time in the sunshine, admiring the mountains and watching hummingbirds zip around.

First, two shots of Hall Peak through maple trees. These are compositions I've never been able to try before, because clouds would make for too much contrast between the sky and the maple trunk. I haven't decided which of these I like better. The first one has a better sense of depth, and the mountain is more prominent; the second one has fun near-symmetry. F/14.

Because of the sunshine, and because of the breezes that the sunshine was generating, I didn't have as much success with wildflower closeups as I've enjoyed in the past. I like this shot of trillium, however; the different colors are due to the fact that trillium petals turn purple as they age. The sunlight was filtered through some trees, which helped moderate the contrast. I also like the yellow flowers (some sort of violet) that are out of focus in the background. F/5.

Next, a little stream along the trail, with what I think are devil's club leaves (among others) in the foreground. F/16, 1.6 seconds.

Lastly, one more shot of Hall Peak, this time framed through new maple leaves. F/16.

Clear Day at Deception Pass

Every spring, I try to see the wildflowers up in the Deception Pass/Fidalgo Island area. This year, I visited Lighthouse Point in Deception Pass State Park on an exceptionally clear, and exceptionally quiet, rare Monday morning off work. The sunshine and breezes made very close flower shots a challenge, but I enjoyed having blue sky and water colors to work with, as well as good visibility of the Olympic mountains.

First, camas flowers (Camassia quamash) with Deception Island in the distance. The Olympics are visible as well, but at this depth of field they don't stand out very well. F/6.3.

Next, chocolate lily (Fritillaria affinis). Because of the darker flower color, these ones are easy to miss, but I was fortunate enough to find this one growing alongside a trail. F/5.6.

Next, one of my favorite flowers: broadleaf stonecrop (Sedum spathulifolium). I didn't get quite as close to the flowers as I have in the past (see the first photo here),  but I like how the shapes and colors of the plants are more perceptible. F/5.

Here's a new flower for me: I suspect it might be common woolly sunflower (Eriophyllum lanatum). I like the stark color contrast in this shot. F/5.

Lastly for the wildflowers, death-camas (Toxicoscordion venenosum). Neither of my tripods worked for the camera height I needed for this shot, so I had to shoot handheld. Because of that, the sharpness isn't quite what I'd like it to be. F/6.3.

Now a landscape from the day: looking roughly south from Lighthouse Point toward West Point and the Olympics beyond. F/14.

Middle Fork Moods

My last two photography trips were both to trails along the Middle Fork Snoqualmie River, but with very different results due to the weather. My most recent outing was to the Oxbow Loop Trail under bright sunshine and clear skies. The first image shows one of the mountain views from that trail. I like how the yellow-green color of spring growth comes through clearly. It was also a somewhat hazy morning, and I like how the mountain almost becomes a silhouette in this picture. F/14.

Next, Pacific bleeding heart (Dicentra formosa) out in full force along the Oxbow Loop. The sunlight coming through the forest made the contrast a bit tricky. It helps that the in-focus flowers in the foreground are fully shaded; if sunlit, their overexposed highlights would have been less attractive. The bright highlights in the out-of-focus background aren't as much of an issue. F/5.

In the next one, I tried something a little different with the Middle Fork Snoqualmie River. Usually when I take pictures of rivers and other moving water, I use long shutter speeds to get a blurred/silky look. This time, I used a short shutter speed - 1/320 of a second - to freeze the water's motion. To accomplish this, I had to use a wider aperture (F/5.6), which is why only the foreground rocks are in focus. I'm not thrilled with how dark the background is, but I still thinks this image is interesting overall.

Next, red elderberry (Sambucus racemosa) blooming, with a peek-a-boo mountain view in the background. F/5.6.

Finally from the Oxbow Loop, a wider-angle shot of the Middle Fork Snoqualmie River, with red alder leaves in the foreground. The image quality ended up okay, considering the high contrast. This is a decent "rough draft" but if I were ever to print this, I think I'd go back to the RAW file and tinker a little bit more with the lighting and white balance. F/16.

Before the Oxbow Loop trip, I hiked the Middle Fork Snoqualmie trail on a rather rainy day. There weren't many dry breaks for pictures, but during one of them, I found this nice cluster of salmonberry flowers. I like the deep pink, and the out-of-focus mossy tree at left. F/7.1.

Finally, during another brief dry break, a view looking uphill at some shrubs with new growth (huckleberry?) and the forest beyond. The bushes aren't as distinct from everything else as they seemed in person, but the sense of depth works well. F/16.

Trillium bonanza

It's been a while since I've blogged! I have been on some hikes in the meantime, but I wasn't thrilled with most of the pictures from those trips, which is why they didn't get posts of their own. Yesterday, though, I went to Dash Point State Park and had some success photographing the trillium and salmonberry currently blooming there.

First, a fairly close view of some trillium flowers, showing varying degrees of pinkness (the petals turn pink as they age). F/4.

Here's a wider shot of some trillium, with ferns and other forest scenery in the background. Even though it isn't as in-your-face as the last one, I still really like it. F/4.5.

Third, a trillium scene where I experimented with some sunlight. The lighting isn't as harsh or distracting as I feared, although I'd have to see the image in print to make the final verdict. F/4.

Now for something different: salmonberry flowers. I took this one pretty early in the morning; due to the low lighting and the higher ISO I needed to use to get a sharp picture, the image quality suffered a little bit, and there's a lot of noise. I do like the sense of depth, though, and the contrast between all the different greens. F/8.

Lastly, the only picture from my previous couple trips that I liked: some new foliage from lady fern and bleeding heart plants, from Little Mountain Park in Mount Vernon. F/4.

Flowers, Foliage, and Fungi

Over the last two weekends, I've gone on short trips to trails in the Cougar Mountain and Tiger Mountain areas to look for spring foliage and early flowers, particularly Indian plum (or osoberry, Oemleria cerasiformis). I found a few, and I also heard lots of birdsong and saw other shrubs just barely beginning to bud, which is exciting - frequent readers of this blog know how much I enjoy spring!

First, my favorite image from the trips, dewdrops on new foliage on an Indian plum. F/5.6.

Next, flowers on an Indian plum. F/5.6. 

Next, a slightly wider view of Indian plum foliage emerging. When out-of-focus, the reddish tint of the bare shrubs in the background is pronounced, making for a fun color contrast. F/11.

Here's a fun first for me: mushroom closeups! In my closeups, I typically stick to flowers and foliage, but these were too striking to ignore. I found them growing on a decaying log, and the color bands reminded me of tree rings. I am not at all familiar with mushrooms/fungi, so I don't know where to begin in identifying these, but I like the pictures. Both F/5.

Next, Far Country Falls on Cougar Mountain. F/14, 1 second.

Finally, two views of Round Lake on Tiger Mountain. I don't like how busy these compositions are, but I do like the color contrast between the warm foreground branches and the blue of the sky and its reflection. Both F/16.

That's all for now! Happy spring!

January Views

This post will cover my two most recent trips, in which I benefited from the stretch of dry weather we've been having. Most recently, I hiked Heybrook Ridge, near Index. It's a relatively short hike that climbs moderately to a nice view of the mountains on the other side of the highway. I've had this hike on my radar for some time, but had never gotten around to checking it out until now. The view from the top really is quite nice, and even though you can hear traffic on the highway below, it isn't visible, so the summit still has a more remote feel than you'd expect for how easily accessible it is. I tried a few compositions from the viewpoint, and the one below is my favorite; it has the clearest foreground of any of them, and I like how the warm colors of the foreground contrast with the subtly cooler colors of the mountains and sky. F/14.

Prior to that, I hiked some trails in Grand Ridge Park near Issaquah. The hiking experience there is a mixed bag. There was a lot of mountain bike traffic, more than the last time I visited, which made it difficult to set up a shot with the tripod. On the plus side, the forest was very lush and green even in January, with some older trees than I'm used to seeing in nearby parks like Cougar Mountain. First, a view down a lush ravine, with a cedar in the foreground. F/14.

Next, another lush and mossy forest scene. I might need to finesse the white balance a little bit, because the greens seemed to contrast with each other better in person than they do in the picture. As it is, I like the composition, but just need the elements to stand out from each other more. F/14.