The Fun of Preparing Prints

This last weekend I worked on a couple of prints for some clients, and found myself reconnecting with the images on my screen. I hadn't viewed them in a while, and I found myself reminiscing a bit.

This may surprise you, but I don't spend a lot of time "admiring" my images. Frankly, after hours of editing I need a break from them. I don't know if it is this way with other photographers; I can't remember ever asking. But it is certainly the case with me.

When I prepare prints I spend a lot of time evaluating the smallest details for correctness, which means viewing the image at 100% and viewing sections of it at time (think 16x24 image in real size on your monitor). In this case, the memory process kicked in as I remembered why I did certain things while composing the image - sizing up the scene, the placement of filters, working with the light, etc. The love affair started all over again. Not the love for the image, but rather the thought process that takes place behind the camera, which is where the fun is for photographers (it sure isn't sitting in front of the computer!)

These images, though both of Mt. Rainier, were taken at much different times. The first one is from near The Skyline Trail in August during the peak of flower season. Mt. Rainier offers some of the best flower shows our state has to offer, and can be an incredible experience to witness. You also stand to find yourself in good company. I ran into John Shaw and Jamie and Judy Wild on this day.

The second image was taken in the fall (October) from Bench Lake. I beat it up the dark trail with headlamp in hopes of catching alpenglow at sunrise, reflected in the lake. As often happens, Mother Nature had different plans and partially obscured the mountain with clouds. It was my first visit to this lake, and I was fascinated by it. As I watched the scene before me warm with the rising sun, the colors on the slopes drew light while the clouds thinned around the mountain, revealing a cloud cap. This view lasted a mere 10-15 minutes before the mountain disappeared again in deteriorating weather. I drove back home in the rain.

It was fun reliving these memories.

More Death Valley?

Yes, there will be much, MUCH more Death Valley coming soon. I have gotten busy with some publishing projects, and consumed by designing my new web site. I hope to offer a sneak peak soon, and go live shortly after. Stay tuned!

Zabriske Point - Death Valley National Park

Zabriske Point has so much history associated with it, beginning with Christian Brevoot Zabriske, whom it was named after. Zabriske was the vice-president and general manager of the Pacific Coast Borax Company, which used its iconic twenty-mule teams to transport Borax from this heavily mined area (one doesn't have to venture far to run into "Danger - Keep Out" signs).

In 1970, a movie of the same title included a soundtrack by Pink Floyd and Jerry Garcia. It has served as the "surface of Mars" in Robinson Crusoe on Mars and many other sci-fi movies, and not so long ago found itself on the cover of U2's famous The Joshua Tree album.

Of course, Zabriske Point is simply a beautiful place and worthy of a visit on its own merits, especially if one can time it at or near sunrise. Early light highlights the color contrasts of the area and turns much of the badlands a golden color, intermingled with darker browns. Views across eroded badlands to the prominent Manly Beacon, and across the salt flat and out to the Panimint Range. Sunsets can be attractive from here.

Manly Beacon is the centerpiece of the panorama viewed from Zabriskie Point. It begs for your camera's attention, and quite convincingly. It towers over the surrounding badlands as if standing guard over its kingdom.

I had hoped to catch the earth's shadow above Manly Peak the morning I visited (marked by a pink and blue layered sky), but light was filtered to the east. I also wasn't fortunate enough to have any clouds in the sky to catch turning pink at first light. But there was still plenty that interested me.

This area offers great photography before sunrise. In fact, while editing my images of the trip I realized these images taken during this time were amongst my favorites from the shoot.
The first light strikes the area a little later than one might imagine. In fact, the badlands to the south of the view point receive light long before the area around Manly Beacon.
I enjoyed catching the first light as it swept over the area to the west, taking notice of the subtle differences in the quickly changing colors. Then I switched over to my 70-200 lens and worked at isolating various colors and patterns. There is a lot here to entice a photographer and keep the adrenaline running!

There are also a couple of trails starting from the parking lot that are worth investigating. One climbs up and runs the ridge to the north of the view point, offering fantastic and much different views of the area, especially Manly Beacon.

The other descends down into Golden Canyon, one of the most popular hikes in the park - and for good reason! This trail offers incredible views, including up-close personal views of Manly Beacon and Red Cathedral. I'll be sharing images from there soon.

Zabriske Point is just a short distance south of Furnace Creek along Highway 190, and one of the main attractions of Death Valley National Park. If visiting the area, make sure not to miss it!

Artist's Palette - Death Valley National Park

Artist's Palette is on the face of the Black Mountains along Artist's Drive in Death Valley National Park.

As the name would suggest, it broadcasts an aray of attractive colors in its rock. The colors are brought on by the oxidation of different metals; red, pink and yellow is from iron salts, green is from decomposing mica, and the purple is from manganese.

The Artist's Drive area provides evidence of one of Death Valley's most violently explosive periods, though this is not the predominant thought on your mind while viewing these colors of the rainbow.

Geology and history aside, Artist's Palette is a darn right beautiful place! The contrasting palette of colors attract photographers and tourists alike, especially toward evening as the sun begins to set. This is when the colors start to pop as the light grows ever softer.

A great vantage point is on a bluff just south of the main parking lot. It's also accessible from the road shortly before the Artist's Palette turnoff.

This bluff serves as an excellent place to catch sunset over the Panimint Range as well. And if you are lucky enough to catch clouds in the sky, the reward can be excellent!

Arist's Drive is a scenic one-way loop located about halfway between Furnace Creek and Badwater, accessed from Badwater Road. It rises up to the top of an alluvial fan fed by a deep canyon, and includes many sharp curves and deep dips - much like a roller coaster.

These images were all captured with my 70-200mm lense, often in tandem with a 2x telenconverter. This setup was particularly useful in isolating the patterns and colors of the rock.

Hoh Rain Forest - Olympic National Park

In March I gave a slide show presentation at the Olympic National Park Visitors' Center in Port Angeles. It offered a great excuse to extend my visit and enjoy some of the park!

The forecast was for mostly cloudy skies, so I decided to take advantage (yes, you read that right) of the conditions and head to the Hoh Rain Forest.

Of course, I woke up to mostly sunny skies and immediately sought an updated forecast before committing to the drive out to the coast. Fortunately, the forecast remained the same.

As I neared the Sol Duc entrance, rains began to materialize and a smile appeared on my face. But as I reached Forks the sun came out again! The Hoh brought dark clouds and a heavy rain at times. But as I neared the TH, the sun parted the clouds. Such went the day. Don't like the conditions? Wait five minutes!

The best time to photograph foliage is under cloud cover. Why? It evens the light and gets rid of the high contrast shadows present under the harsh light of the sun. The colors are much truer. Add a polarizer to cut the glare and the greens will really pop! Those polarized sun glasses you wear? Same effect.

Add some water droplets to the foliage for some added brilliance and the scene really takes off! Some photographers actually carry spray bottles of water for this purpose. Of course, I had Mother Nature on my side.

March (when I took these images) typically is a little early for the Hoh as many of the plants are still in winter mode and awaiting the warmer temperatures of spring. I've found late April and May to be a great time to catch the vibrant new growth of the forest. So if you're looking for a place to visit in the next few weeks, I recommend the experience of the Hoh Rain Forest. You can walk the Hall of Moss trail, the nature loop trail, or even explore up the first few miles of the Hoh River trail. Lots to see!

Caution: Be careful of the resident elk in the area. Keep a respectful distance from them. Getting gored by one of the large bucks would not be a fun experience.

Lower Geyser Basin - Yellowstone National Park

The Firehole River provides some excellent photographic opportunities from various locations between Madison and Upper Geyser Basin. This sunrise was caught not far from the Madison Campground near a bridge crossing. A short meadow stroll lead me to this composition.

There were many other opportunities to capture the snaking Firehole River as well, including having the bonus of early morning fog hovering just above it.

Fountain Flat offers another opportunity for morning and evening photography. Here, still morning waters hold the reflection of clouds above.

Further along the road a herd of bison can be carefully watched and photographed from the road. Definitely have awareness of your surroundings here. While I photographed a couple of bison from the safety of the opposite side of my truck, I caught the approach of two large bison coming up behind me - much too close for my comfort level - and quickly moved to my trucks opposite side!

Further south is Lower Geyser Basin, punctuated by more geysers and of course, the Fountain Paint Pots. The Paint Pots are an active pool of errupting mud, and are very pretty in color. Late afternoon light brings out the color and texture of the mud, making it the ideal time to photograph them. Unfortunately, I had cloudy skies during my visit, subduing the colors.

The Paint Pots are the most accessible and colorful example of such a thermal example withing the park. Mud pots differ from hot springs in that they have a very limited supply of ground water available. Also, they do not overflow, but rather errupt in the form of steam bubbles. Iron oxides give the mud at Fountain Paint Pots their pink and red shades of color.

The Paint Pots are fun to watch and even more fun to photograph. Trying to time the burst of the mud bubbles is challenging indeed and will test your reaction time! A good telephoto lens will be needed to test this skill.

A wider lens will allow you to include the interesting mounds of mud along the edges. Lots of opportunities await the imaginitive photographer!

Futher along the boardwalk are a group of small geysers, highlighted by Clepsydra Geyser. Clepsydra is best photographed in late morning, not late afternoon when I photographed it! Here I tried to backlight it against a sky filled with looming storm clouds.

This is the last of a series of posts from a trip to Yellowstone National Park last June. I hope you have enjoyed them and found some of my information useful for your own planning.

I just returned from an extended trip to Death Valley, and hope to have posts from this wonderful trip soon! Of course, I have many other projects taxing my time, including the launching of a brand new web site. I will do my best to get them up soon!

2011 Mountains of Washington Calendar

Upon returning from Olympic National Park, I discovered my samples of Smith-Western's 2011 Mountains of Washington calendar had arrived at my doorstep. It was a nice treat to come home to!

I have two images in this calendar. The first one is for the month of March and includes an image I took a couple years ago on a trip up to High Divide with my good friend David Crowe. It was a great trip and included one of the latest flower shows I've witnessed in the mountains. It was early September and the huckleberry plants were already turning red right along side the lupine, paintbrush and asters!

The second image appears the month of May. What mountain is synonymous with the month of May? Mount St. Helens of course!

This image is from a fantastic backpack I did with my dad a few years ago. It's actually a repeat image for the calendar, having appeared previously in their 2009 calendar. In fact, it also served as a cover image for the calendar, along with an image of mine of Mount Rainier!

These calendars will be available in most stores in Washington this fall for those interested in checking it out.

Changing the subject, I just finished packing and am heading to Death Valley in the morning. I'll be gone 1-1/2 weeks and hope to come back with some nice images to share.

Also, I haven't forgotten about my Yellowstone posts! I have at least two more to share and will do so upon my return. I promise!

Special 'Thank You' to FONP and ONP

Last Thursday I had the honor to be the guest speaker at the Friends of Olympic National Park's annual meeting in Port Angeles, and enjoyed giving a narrated slide show presentation to a packed auditorium in the Olympic National Park Visitors' Center.

I really had a LOT of fun sharing my experiences in the park; everything from coast trips to extended backpacks into the interior, to the Bailey traverse and ascents of Mount Olympus. Of course, I shared many humorous stories from these trips as well!

The audience included the likes of Don Stoneman, Dave Skinner, and many other names of trail notoriety over the last several decades. I also got to meet new Deputy Superintendent of ONP, Todd Suess - a very nice guy who is bringing a fun attitude and wealth of experience to his new position.

Talking with the likes of Don Stoneman after the event was a real honor and treat for me. I also enjoyed learning more about the park from Larry Baysinger, whom I will have to take up for a guided trail ride with my family soon! Of course, the icing on the cake was seeing Dave Skinner arrive and getting a chance to catch up with him (and poke some fun with during my presentation!). I called Dave a week prior with an invite. He received my message only an hour before the event and still found time to attend!

I have so many people I would like to personally thank, beginning with Rod Farlee of FONP who really made it all happen, and who's efforts have gone far beyond this event. I would also like to thank FONP President Larry Stetson, Vice President Greg Halberg, Secretary Karen Jenson, and Treasurer Dan Peacock. All were very nice people who went out of their way to welcome me and acquaint me with their group. If I am forgetting anybody (and I probably am), I apologize.

Finally, a very special Thank You to ONP staff members Greg Marsh and Chris Eckard for their hands-on help in setting up the equipment for my presentation and making sure everything ran smooth. Chris in particular was a great help during my presentation.

The picture of Mount Angeles above was taken the next morning during a drive up to Hurricane Ridge. I followed it up with a drive out to the coast and to the Hoh Rain Forest, capping off a wonderful trip to the peninsula.

Presentation at Olympic National Park Visitors' Center

I am very excited to announce that I will be the guest speaker for the Friends of Olympic National Park's anual meeting this Thursday, March 25th at 7:00 pm. It will be at the Olympic National Park Visitors' Center at 3002 Park Ave. , Port Angeles, and will include the introduction of new Deputy Superintendent Todd Suess. You can read more about it here.

It's an honor to be a part of this event, and I wish to extend a warm and grateful 'Thank You' to Rod Farlee of FONP for considering me.

I would also like to invite you to join me for this fun evening of images and story telling! As I don't get over to the peninsula often for presentations, I'm looking forward to this opportunity to meet new people, and hopefully put faces to the names of many I have met via e-mail and forums over the last few years.

I hope to see you there!

Firehole Lake Drive - Yellowstone National Park

About 2 miles north of Midway Geyser Basin is Firehole Lake Drive, one of the few places you can watch geysers from your car. It's not nearly as popular as Midway or Upper Geyser Basin, and is often missed by people in a hurry. Big mistake!

Great Fountain Geyser reportedly erupts in a series of several bursts 100 - 200 feet high. I did get to witness an eruption, but it was from a distance with gray overcast skies (flat light). The terraced pools surrounding the geyser are magnificently beautiful and worth photographing in their own right, especially in the evening. They hold a reflection well!

Just northwest of Great Fountain Geyser is White Dome Geyser, an attractive geyser at any time of day with its white geyserite cone. I first visited the area in the morning to scout the area, and found the dramatic light under storm clouds to allow the imagination to run wild. Not a bad first impression!

I returned that evening hoping to capture an eruption of White Dome in much more appealing light. We arrived a half hour early, after having spent time at Great Fountain Geyser, so as not to miss an early eruption.

We waited and waited, braving the increasing numbers of mosquitoes in hopes of catching a pleasant show. The scheduled time arrived and nothing. Then, some rumbling began and steam began to come out in spurts, teasing our expectations before settling back down to calmness again. This continued several times over the next hour. The few people waiting besides us grew tired of waiting and left. Still we held hope.

Light faded as the sun began to set to the west and the sky began to turn orange, then pink. All of a sudden the Geyser awoke - nearly 1-1/2 hours late. Oh, the show Mother Nature had in store for us! What a treat to capture evening light on the erupting steam!

Then as quickly as it had begun, it was over. Still I was full of jubilation for the spectacular treat we were offered. The smile on my face was permanent this evening, and was due to the pride I had in being rewarded for my patience and perseverance. As many times as we photographers are not rewarded, those times that we are can be very especially satisfying.

We finished our evening at the Lower Geyser Basin parking lot as the dramatic sunset continued to unfold before our eyes.

This is the fifth part in a series I am posting from our wonderful visit to Yellowstone National Park last June. I hope you enjoy it.

Next Up: Lower Geyser Basin and Fountain Paint Pots!

U.S. Army Trade Show Display

I never would have guessed a relationship existed between one of my landscape images and the U.S. Army, but it does!

This image of Mt. Rainier was taken during a backpack to Mystic Lake in Mount Rainier National Park (before the Carbon River Road washed out).

It is now being used to help enlist recruits in the southeastern region of our country. Go Army!

Midway Geyser Basin - Yellowstone National Park

"Hell's Half Acre", as it was colorfully referred to by Rudyard Kippling in 1889, is still alive and well, and a deservedly popular destination in Yellowstone National Park!

Technically, Midway Geyser Basin is actually part of Lower Geyser Basin. But due to its isolation, it has established its own identity over the years, and deservedly so. It possesses two of the largest springs in the world: Grand Prismatic Spring and the now dormant Excelsior Geyser. Excelsior Geyser used to be the largest geyser in the world, erupting nearly 300 feet in the air before 1900. Today it is considered a hot spring discharging more than 4050 gallons of boiling water per minute.

The loop trail trail at Midway Geyser Basin is about a mile long and a very easy walk. It immediately crosses the Firehole River (which isn't a bad place to hang out) and climbs up the south bank of the river. Along the way you pass the colorful runoff stream from Excelsior Geyser Crater. The crater emits a large amount of steam. Though I tried to play with photographic possibilities, I didn't come away with anything successful.

Further along the trail are the colorful Turquoise and Indigo Springs. Turquoise Spring has an underground connection with Excelsior Geyser. When Excelsior was active, Turquoise lowered nearly 10 feet. In June and July, Turquoise can be surrounded by a beautiful display of purple gentians.

Moving further along the trail one comes to the climax of the tour - Grand Prismatic Spring. Grand Prismatic is easily the highlight of Midway Geyser Basin, and probably my favorite spring to photograph due to its rich, vibrant colors. The brilliant oranges are extremely captivating as you search out compositions from along the trail.

The patterns are also quite intriguing and fun to play with. They are numerous and very accessible from the boardwalk. Allow your imagination to run wild!

The colors of Prismatic are very dependent on the temperature of the runoff water. Yellow bacteria appear in the hotter water near the spring, while red, orange and brown are prevalent in the cooler water. Colors and patterns change from year year as a result. I've seen some beautiful shades of red in published images of Prismatic. My visit witnessed mostly oranges and browns.

Whatever the color, the attraction of Prismatic will likely win you over. Take your time and enjoy this beautiful spring. I encourage you to visit mid-morning for the best light.

This is the fourth part in a series I am posting from our wonderful visit to Yellowstone National Park last June. I hope you are enjoying.

Next Up: Firehole Lake Drive!