Category Archives: Landscape Photography

Getting Ready …

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Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California

I am getting ready for a photography workshop with John Barclay and Mitch Dobrowner at Capitol Reef in southern Utah.  Part of the preparation is to select images of past work to show to the workshop group.  I’ve spent the last two days reviewing my images over the past year.  My focus for this workshop will be black and white photography.  Overall, I am disappointed in my progress in 2018.  I could not identify many individual stellar single images that stand completely by themselves.   However, I did notice that I have several good images when taken together tell a story of the feeling I had experiencing a particular site.  A collection of my images is stronger than any single image.  For the next few days I will post a series of images from the Alabama Hills last April.

The Alabama Hills is a series of rounded rock hills and rock formations on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range near Lone Pine, California.  Mt. Whitney towers above the range.  Since the 1920’s the rugged area has been used as a location for over 150 movies and TV show’s.

This image was taken looking northwest over some large boulders of the Alabama Hills toward the eastern Sierras.

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Winter Persists

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“Silhouettes”

Hawks perched above
On high bare winter trees,
Waiting for dinner below.

Winter continues to persist.  Birds of prey frequently perch on surrounding trees looking over the snow covered pastures waiting for slight creature movement below.  It is a good time for bird watching.

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Beautiful But Cold!

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Neighbor’s Pasture

How beautiful the snow is, but it is really cold.  Today was -6 degrees when I got up.  It is “dry” cold, so not too uncomfortable.  Since Punxsutawney Phil made his prediction of an early spring, winter has hit Eastern Washington hard.  We have had our first real snow of the year and the temperatures have dropped below zero.  We are in for more!

The only good advice I have heard is to not trust the groundhog.  Out of Phil’s 103 predictions, he has been right only 39% of the time!  I see that he has about the same prediction accuracy as our regular weather forecasters.

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It Is About Time

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“First Snow”

It is about time that we had our first real snow of the year.  Our luck of having mild winter weather has just run out.  Last week I was out golfing.  I don’t think I will make it out this week!

This morning was 20 degrees when I went out to photograph.  I came in after about an hour walk around the house.  After warming up, I decided that I would rather review and work on my images instead of going out and shovel snow.  I guess I can’t put it off any longer … it’s time to go out and get to work.

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Spooky Morning

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Backyard Fog

I looked out the window and watch the fog roll in.  Ghost images appeared where just a few minutes earlier trees stood.  I couldn’t resist going outside to try to capture the feeling.  I was thinking, “Look at all these cool silhouettes!”  It only took a few moments for my fingers to freeze, making it difficult to operate my camera.  I took a few images and scurried back into the warm house.

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Yakima Wine Country

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Yakima Valley Wine Country near Zillah, WA

On a clear day, Mt Adams prominently displays its beauty on the horizon.  Well this was not a clear day, but the rows of the various vineyards were on display against a light dusting of snow. In a couple of weeks, the Yakima Valley wine country will be bustling during the February Red Wine and Chocolate festival.  It will be a good weekend to take a break from eating wisely and indulge in the wine and chocolate. 

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Winter Trees

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Roadside Near Prosser, WA

Bare branches against a winter sky always catch my eye. Last week I was driving along the Interstate when I saw an interesting pattern on the Horse Heaven Hills.  I took an exit to explore with my camera.  After a little walk, I looked up and saw these tree branches against the sky.  It gave me a cold, gloomy feeling.  I couldn’t resist the opportunity.

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History in My Backyard

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Selah – Naches Irrigation Flume

A few days ago we had a light snow.  I gazed our from my kitchen window and became fixated on the wonderful piece of history in my backyard.  The snow provided a nice contrast between the irrigation flume’s wood structure and the sagebrush speckled background.

This piece of history was built in 1892 to provide irrigation water to the Selah Valley.  Over the years, much of the canal has been upgraded and the wooden flumes torn down.  I am lucky to have one of the few remaining sections above my home.  I currently get my irrigation water directly from this flume.  Sadly, it won’t be for too many additional years.  Plans are to replace this section with an underground pipe.  So until funds are available, I will enjoy what remains of our little bit of history.

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The Story Behind the Picture

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“The Fog”

Does anyone remember the 1980 horror film, “The Fog?’  I had a remarkable spooky experience last weekend.  As my friend and I were returning from a trip to Portland back to Central Washington, we decided to take a little side trip to the metropolis of Bickleton, WA.  We headed up the Roosevelt grade from the Columbia River.  I was expecting some very interesting scenic overlooks as we drove up the switchbacks, but is wasn’t meant to be.  Quickly after we started climbing up the grade, a thick fog engulfed us.  I could see only about 20 feet ahead of me.  Curves on the switch back were difficult to see.  We crept along going about 15-20 miles per hour following two large trucks.  I was hoping that another vehicle would not race up and rear-end us.  My driving partner was a little relieved, she could not see the steep grades sloping down toward the river.  All we could see were the lines on the road.  Our gas level was getting low!

We finally reached the top of the grade and drove into Bickleton.  It was like a ghost town.  The town’s few buildings were all closed up.  There were no signs of inhabitants.  No gas here, we decided to drive on.  About 10 minutes later, without any warning, we jetted out of the fog onto a wide open plain.  It was bright and beautiful.  We drove a couple of minutes, then looked back and saw the huge thick bank of fog from which we had emerged.  I quickly stopped the car, got out, and grabbed my camera to try to record the sight.  Too, slow … the fog was rapidly coming toward us.  It engulfed us before I could click the shutter.  I felt that I was being swallowed by the creeping fog.

We drove several minutes more and emerged from the fog again.  We drove a mile or two this time before we stopped to photograph “The Fog.”  This time, I was able to capture a few images of the moving fog.  We quickly got out of “The Fog’s” path before it could engulf us again.

P.S.  We made it to the next little town, Mabton, got gas, and then made it safely home.  It was an interesting drive!

 

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