Tonga and Sawyer

On Saturday, I hiked the Tonga Ridge trail to Mount Sawyer, near Skykomish. The trail has been on my radar for years, but this was my first visit. I was impressed by the density of wildflowers, especially lupine, and by the views from Mount Sawyer. Sunshine and clear skies made for challenging lighting but excellent visibility. I would love to return here on a cloudy day during wildflower season; there would be lots of opportunities for closeups and meadow compositions not involving the sky.

First, horizontal and vertical compositions from a lupine-filled meadow along the trail up Mount Sawyer. I think the horizontal version is a bit more aesthetically compelling; the flowers feel closer. The vertical one, on the other hand, ended up having better detail quality, and fewer issues with overexposure of the distant mountains. Both F/16.

Next, some tiger lily (Lilium columbianum) with out-of-focus mountains in the distance. I've had trouble getting orange or yellow flower highlights like these to look right in print, and I think the sky could stand to be brightened a bit more, so the processing here is probably a work in progress. Nevertheless, I like how the composition turned out. F/8.