Twin Falls

On Saturday, I visited the popular trail to Twin Falls, near North Bend, WA. I wanted a (mostly) snow-free hike, and this one delivered. First, two images of the trail's main attraction - the waterfalls visible about a mile and a half along the trail. These are the upper falls (I wasn't thrilled by my compositions of the lower falls, but they are also an impressive sight to behold). I think setting the falls against the prominent trees to the left worked well. F/18, exposure time 1 second, in both cases.

Next, an interesting backlit forest scene from near the trailhead. Despite the high contrast, I was able to get all the lighting in range, with the help of Lightroom. The light brings out the foreground tree and keeps the composition from being too busy (even if the tangle of branches and tree trunks might still make this image less than well-received as, say, a 500-piece jigsaw puzzle). One of my favorite things about mossy bigleaf maples (the prominent tree in the foreground) is that they are easy to personify/anthropomorphize - my hiking companion thought this one looked like a person pointing and giving directions. F/18.

Here's another mossy maple image, this one with the South Fork Snoqualmie River in the background. I wish the background trees were just a bit more distinct; otherwise, I like it. F/18.

Finally, the riskiest shot of the day. Filtered sunlight reaching the water overexposed the rapids just a bit. Even with Lightroom, I was unable to get everything in range, and some of the highlights are still blown out. It looks okay on the computer screen, and I'd be willing to try it out in print, but this one may not work. F/18, 0.6 seconds.

Twin Falls is a fairly short hike, which ended up being just fine, as Saturday ended up sunnier than I had anticipated and the lighting was quite harsh by midday. Despite the challenges posed by bright sunshine, though, I am very excited about the return of spring weather and the upcoming wildflower season.

Until next time, readers!

Sharpe Park

On Saturday, I visited Sharpe Park on Fidalgo Island (near Deception Pass State Park), which features short trails to expansive views of the surrounding waterways and islands. Sunny days before wildflower season, with lots of snow in the mountains, can be challenging to plan for (I don't yet have snowshoes). Furthermore, I had just finished one of the busier work weeks of the year, and was in no condition to get anywhere for dawn light. Sharpe Park promised snow-free walking and attractive views attainable during the morning. Below is my best result, looking more or less northwest from the Sares Head overlook. F/18, with a polarizing filter to help deepen the sky and water.

Other than this composition, I tried a selective-focus shot with a small pine (probably shore pine, Pinus contorta) in the foreground; other trees, a rocky meadow, and distant water and sky were in the background. Somehow, I had trouble with image quality - the needles looked pixelated, which surprises me. Moreover, with selective focus, the composition didn't convey the sense of space and openness that would have been appropriate for that vantage point. It was worth a try, though - I'd like to experiment more with selective focus at open locations like that.

Upon reflection, I might have to make a return visit to Sharpe Park in April or May - as trip reports and pictures I've seen would have me believe, the rocky meadows will sport wildflowers later in the spring. Don't threaten me with a good time!

Franklin Falls

This weekend, I visited the popular Franklin Falls for the first time. This time of year, a visit requires a long walk up the closed access road, which isn't much to shout about aesthetically, although thankfully not particularly strenuous. The destination is definitely spectacular, especially in the snow, worth braving the throngs of other admirers.

Fortunately, the lighting was overcast during my visit. This kept the lighting contrast to a manageable level, enabling me to expose for both the snowy highlights and the shadows. The brightness of the snow, however, meant that my shutter speeds were not quite as slow as I would have liked (to blur the water, I would have wanted to try shutter speeds of perhaps 1-2 seconds). I resisted stopping down as much as I could have (to, say, f/22) due to the loss of image quality; slightly wider apertures gave me a sufficient depth of field for my compositions here. Even if I had stopped down, I might not have squeezed out 1-2 second exposure times.

I'll start the post with my two favorite views of the waterfall itself. I like these the best because they convey the most depth. In the first of these, I shot the waterfall at an angle. In the second, I zoomed sufficiently to treat the waterfall as a foreground and the surroundings as a background. F/18 and F/16, both 1/8 second.

Next, three more views of the falls. These don't convey as much depth as the first two, so I'm not quite as thrilled by them; on the other hand, they do more to put the waterfall in the context of its surroundings. All F/16, 1/8 second.

Finally, a view up what I believe is the snowbound South Fork Snoqualmie River (I'm unsure of the waterway's name at this location, just past the start of the actual trail). I'm on the fence about this composition - there's not a lot of color variation, obviously, and parts of the image are pretty busy. Ultimately, if the lines and subject matter are sufficiently well-defined, a more monochromatic landscape like this can still work on its own as a photographic composition (if not as, say, a jigsaw puzzle, as some of my readers can imagine). I'd have to see it in print to really know in this case. F/18, 1/6 second.

Big Four views

Yesterday, based on some favorable trip reports that I had seen on the WTA website, I wandered up the closed portion of the Mountain Loop Highway from the gate at Deer Creek. I don't own snowshoes, but there was a well-packed path on the road that was walkable in ordinary hiking boots. I would have liked to explore the Big Four Ice Caves trail, but had to turn back early due to an uncomfortable, but thankfully minor, injury. This setback notwithstanding, I came away with a pair of nice compositions involving Big Four Mountain itself. First, from the snowbound Beaver Creek campground along the highway. F/18, with a polarizing filter to deepen the sky:

Second, from near the Big Four Picnic Area, with red alder trunks prominent in the foreground. F/18, polarizing filter used.

Ordinarily, I have trouble with sunny weather like this, due to the high-contrast lighting. I think the low angle of the winter sun, plus the snow-covered brightness of Big Four and the surrounding landforms, helped to mitigate this. I may return here later this winter, for a hopefully incident-free and more extensive photographic venture!

Hike to Otter Falls

On Saturday, I made the roughly 11 mile hike to Otter Falls and back, through second-growth forest up the Taylor River valley. It was a sunnier day than expected, making photography difficult but the walking very pleasant. Second-growth forest isn't always my first choice to visit or photograph, but there are a number of very picturesque stands of red alder along the trail, particularly near the Taylor River and smaller waterways. Otter Falls is also a very unique and impressive natural feature, and seeing it was well worth the journey.

First, Marten Creek from the bridge crossing it, a few miles into the trail. I liked the soft lighting created by the fog-filtered sunshine. This composition doesn't follow the rule of thirds very well; with the creek where it is, the image roughly divides in half. I improved upon this with further attempts, but the lighting became less interesting as I worked. Ultimately, I've decided to prioritize the lighting and post this version. F/18, 0.4 seconds.

Next, the Taylor River not far from the trailhead, framed by red alder trunks and branches. F/20, 1 second.

Lastly, Otter Falls, my lunch and turnaround location. I have mixed feelings about this composition - there's not much of a foreground, so I worry there isn't sufficient depth. The lighting was also troublesome, as sunlight frequently emerged from the broken clouds, directly illuminating the falls and causing overexposure. Still, this was the foremost natural attraction of the hike and the reason for my visit, so I'll post my best result. F/18, 1/3 second.

Boulder River in winter

On Monday, I visited the Boulder River trail near Darrington, in search of snow-free hiking and, due to the waterfalls and river scenery, photographic possibilities even in this relatively dreary time of year. As it turned out, I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of color I found. Obviously, mossy evergreen trees made for a lot of green. Decaying foliage and dormant shrubs also added contrasting hues, which I was able to use to my advantage in this first shot, my favorite of the bunch. Featured here is the double waterfall maybe a mile and a half along the trail; an obvious side trail leads to this vantage point. F/16, 0.6 seconds. This shutter speed sufficiently blurred the background waterfalls, while still capturing some of the water's turbulence in the foreground; longer shutter speeds blurred the foreground water too much.

Next, a view of the same set of waterfalls, from the hiking trail. I was worried about the high contrast between the waterfalls and the dark trunks, but was able to use Lightroom bring both into an acceptable range. The image quality in the darker areas isn't fantastic, but I think it's good enough. F/20, 1.6 seconds.

Here's a view of a different waterfall, farther along the trail. The waterfall is closer to the center of the composition than I'd prefer, perhaps violating the Rule of Thirds, but the trunk and branches seen here were the most attractive way to frame the falls. F/20, 3 seconds.

Another image from the same vantage point. The sense of depth is not as strong as in the composition above, but I still like it. F/20, 2.5 seconds.

Lastly, a vertical composition from the double waterfall. The image quality here is not as good as in this post's other images, but the image might still be usable, at least at some print sizes. F/20, 1 second.

In contrast to the warmth of my Sugarloaf trip the previous weekend, temperatures on Monday hovered in the upper 30s in the valley - "back to our regularly scheduled January," as my hiking companion accurately put it. Considering that it was dry, however, with good lighting and interesting scenery - not to mention the fact that I didn't make it out at all for photography last January - I'll take it!

Sugarloaf

On Saturday, I made my first-ever visit to the Anacortes Community Forest Lands on Fidalgo Island, hiking to Whistle Lake and then Sugarloaf (continuing from the Whistle Lake trailhead). Whistle Lake is mostly forested with a few rock outcroppings and small clearings; it'd probably be worthwhile to return on an overcast day in the spring, for lake landscapes or to look for wildflowers. Sugarloaf sports some open meadows with views of both the Olympics and the Cascades; also likely worth a return trip.

Sunshine and glare made photography around the lake difficult, but I had one success at Sugarloaf. The composition below looks roughly east, with the Cascades visible. Were I ever to get this printed, the white balance might still need a bit of work, but it's getting close. F/16.

I'm excited to have already made my first photography trip of 2019, as I didn't really make it out last year until March. This time of year, with snow and storm damage in the mountains (plus this year's addition of the federal government shutdown), and bare trees and shrubs in the lowlands, the kind of photography I do can be difficult. So I'm considering Saturday's one post-worthy image to be a success!