Bench and Snow Lakes

Yesterday, I visited the short trail to Bench and Snow Lakes in Mount Rainier National Park. The wildflowers were blooming and the mountain views from Snow Lake were impressive; the only disappointment of the day was that clouds obstructed any views of Rainier itself.

First, two views of Snow Lake and the surrounding terrain. Landscape compositions from this vantage point were challenging, due to the high contrast between dark trees and bright clouds. Occasionally, however, clouds that were slightly darker would pass over the lake, and a bit of filtered sunshine helped brighten the trees; this enabled me to avoid complete overexposure or underexposure in any areas. The first of this pair is probably my favorite; the image quality is a bit better, the reflection on the lake is more prominent, and lake's color is more vivid. F/18 in both cases.

Next, a closeup of beargrass (Xerophyllum tenax). It was fun to see these blooming abundantly all along the trail. F/5.6.