State Park Adventures

Well, well, well, the state parks are open. You know what that means...

Olallie State Park

A few days ago, I visited the Twin Falls hike in Olallie State Park. I went early, to beat the crowds and the sunshine. I was able to make a few compositions work before the sun got too high, but the lighting was too harsh for pictures by the time I reached the falls. Thankfully, the entirety of the short trail is scenic, so it was still a productive visit.

First, two views of the South Fork Snoqualmie River, with emerging bigleaf maple leaves in the foreground. F/16 and F/14, both 1.3 seconds. Almost all of the leaves are sharp, thanks to the remarkably still air that morning.

There were abundant Scouler's corydalis (Corydalis scouleri), or Scouler's fumewort, plants blooming throughout the hike. Due to the advancing sunlight in the forest, creating a suitable composition was difficult, but I was able to photograph the plant below with out overexposing either it or any of the background due to sun splotches. I like that there were water droplets intact on the flowers, and that I got some of them in focus. F/4.

Deception Pass State Park

On another day, I wandered around the Rosario Head and Lighthouse Point area of Deception Pass State Park. It was a sunny day, so landscapes were difficult. I had better luck with closeups, so I'll start with those.

First, a species of paintbrush (genus Castilleja). It could be harsh paintbrush (Castilleja hispida), but I'm not very good at identifying paintbrush species, so don't quote me on that.

Next, two compositions of broad-leaved starflower (Lysimachia latifolia; I've also seen it listed under the genus Trientalis). Although I like the way the leaves look in the second composition, the first uses space more efficiently. F/5.6 and F/5, respectively.

Next, a fire-scarred Douglas fir tree near Lighthouse Point, captured during a rare moment of cloud cover. F/18.

Finally, a view of Deception Island from near Lighthouse Point. If you look closely, you can see some small, pink flowers at lower left (kinnikinnick?). I'm not sure whether I like this composition; the flowers don't add as much interest to the foreground as I had envisioned, due to their small size, and the colors ended up a bit washed out. F/16.

That's all for now! Stay safe and enjoy the weather!