May Trip Part 2: Kamiak Butte

After Fields Spring State Park, the first destination of my mid-May trip, I camped at Kamiak Butte for a night. The wildflowers and views are spectacular enough on their own to merit a visit. Adding even more interest, though, is the stark contrast between lush forests of the northern slopes (more shaded, particularly in the winter, causing cooler temperatures and slower snowmelt) and the open meadows of the south-facing slopes.

The weather took a turn for the worse during my visit, and I had to contend with intermittent breezes and rainfall. My initial plan was to camp for two nights, but I cut my stay short due to the predicted possibility of strong thunderstorms (and indeed, one hit the Butte just as I was driving away!). For these reasons, my photography time was challenging and more limited than I would have liked, but I came away with a few interesting images.

First, a characteristic view from the ridgeline of the Butte, with balsamroot flowers (Balsamorhiza sagittata) in the foreground and rain-threatening clouds in the distance. To achieve a sufficiently wide depth of field, I used a relatively narrow aperture (F/22). I've noticed that image quality deteriorates noticeably at this setting. As such, I'd need to be careful about large sizes were I to print this image. Nevertheless, I like the way it looks. I made a conceptually similar composition on Kamiak Butte a few years ago, but the image quality in this one is actually better, and there are fewer distractions (such as roads) visible in the distance.

 

Here's another landscape that turned out well: the lush forest of Kamiak Butte's north side, with star-flowered false Solomon's seal (Maianthemum stellatum) blooming in the foreground. F/22, with the same image-quality limitations as the above image.

Here's a composition from the ridgeline with a narrow depth of field; the yellow flower in focus (left) is desert parsley (genus Lomatium). F/5.6.

Next, a closeup of blooming phlox flowers, with phlox buds in the background. My guess is that these are showy phlox (Phlox speciosa), judging from the flower color and notched petals. F/3.3.

Finally, a medley of wildflowers: paintbrush, desert parsley, and balsamroot. Because the flowers were moving in the breeze, I deliberately underexposed the image a bit. This enabled me to use a shutter speed short enough to get the in-focus paintbrush flower sharp, but the lower light caused a loss of image quality that could be noticeable at large print sizes. F/3.5.

Stay tuned for Part 3, which will include images from two locations in the Cheney area: the Fishtrap Recreation Area, and Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge!