Washington
Sporting Thursday: Rattlesnake Ridge in Snoqualmie, Washington.
Landscapes, Photography, TravelOn a beautiful, sunny, Easter Sunday, people thronged to Rattlesnake Mountain Scenic Area so they could relax, sun, and ascend Rattlesnake Ridge. Nestled in the foothills of Washington’s Cascades, just outside Snoqualmie, Rattlesnake Ridge is a is a solid hike, gaining roughly 2000 ft. of elevation in 2 miles.
The trail was packed. Without any attempt at counting adventurers, the number easily surpassed 100. I would estimate closer to 300, over a small portion of the day. A few larger groups appeared to be in double digits. After a long, rainy winter in Washington, people want to play.
For those interested the climb includes some slightly harrowing overlooks. Deaths are not unheard of, one as recently as 2012, according to the Issaquah Reporter.
Thankfully there were no reports of accidents on my trip.
Weekly Photo Post: Color at Washington Park Arboretum.
Macro, Photography, Travel, Uncategorized, Weekly Photo PostIt’s been a long time since I participated in Weekly Photo Post, and what a perfect theme since my return from Washington and Oregon. While Fairbanks has been receiving a mid-April snowstorm, resulting in lots of white, the Washington Park Arboretum had very-vibrant warm, spring hues.
My botanical identification skills are sub-par, and the only plant species I recognize are tulips, which were actually in someone’s front yard. The first three images are of pink flowers. Pink is a subset of red, a warm hue which is known for psychological responses of passion, love, and happines. But also blood and anger and danger. The pink petals with green leafs are also complementary colors.
The final image is a pretty purple, a cool color, which in western culture is asosciated with royalty, luxury and occassionally magic.
Critter Corner: Mt. Rainier and Georgeson Botanical Garder Frogs
Alaska, Landscapes, Photography, Travel, WildlifeA few weeks ago I posted images of real bears in Denali National Park and a bear statue from UAF’s Georgeson Botanical Garden. Today I’m posting a similar diptych: A frog from Reflection Lake in Mt. Rainier National Park and a frog from the botanical gardens.
The first image the frog is the only subject, he was an itty-bitty frog, maybe half a deck of cards. The mostly brown hues were rather ugly, so I did a quick and dirty desaturation of the image, converting it to black and white. I think the the black and white does a better job accentuating the frog’s natural camouflage. The shadow provides a small amount of depth to the mostly flat image.
The second image I like a lot because of layers. Shooting through a fence, with more fence in the background. The frog is far from the main subject. What’s fun for me is comparing the two subjects, the real frog in nature and the artificial frog in a man-made environment. I enjoy both, though the statue was a little easier to shoot.
© Robin Wood
Foliage on Mt. Index, Washington State.
UncategorizedI had been pondering what my next post should cover earlier today, the decision became easy when I read a comment I received from Where’s My Backpack?, a travel-themed blog, inviting me to her weekly travel theme of foliage.
Foliage seems to be one of those unique subjects, truly different everywhere you look. Which is amazing because there is a lot of foliage, but no two ever look exactly the same. Photographs frequently benefit from different perspectives, high or low angles, though I find photographs of foliage do more then normal. My thinking is because of the incredible depth and layers that can be achieved.
Today’s images hail from Mt. Index, in the Cascade Range, Washington State. The first image is a fun silhouette pattern of the curved branch in the foreground.
The second image benefits from direct sunlight on the main subject, a dead tree with a hole that looks like a nice home for a lucky bird.
Mt. Rainier: I fell asleep beneath the flowers
Landscapes, Macro, Photography, TravelWildflowers are a main attraction to be found on Mt. Rainier. There are obviously many others: great views, unique structures, waterfalls, glaciers and abundant wildlife. I will feature them all in the weeks to come. But it’s Friday, so let us relax, enjoy the beautiful fall and maybe daydream a little. To facilitate those feelings take a look at the pretty purple flowers.
Please click on the image to view full size.
Weekly photo challenge: Near and far
Landscapes, Photography, Travel, Weekly Photo PostThe weekly photo challenge is a different photo assignment from dailypost. This week is near and far, two-dimensional images with a three-dimensional feel. Low point-of-view and converging diagonal lines are two ways to accomplish this, another approach is get some high elevation. To increase the effect foreground objects or size perspective give depth.
My image comes from a very overcast day on Mt. Rainier in Washington. Not only does the ominous hanging cloud provide more of a foreground it creates an extra horizon line and a tunnel for the eye, directing it towards the hundreds of miles of rolling foothills.
Please click on the image to view full size.
Lake Washington, panoramic and a spider.
Landscapes, Photography, Travel, WildlifeMy parents are currently visiting my grandma on the shores of Lake Washington. Since I wasn’t able to make it down on this trip I figured I should post some pictures from last time I was in the area. Maybe they will find their way to my relatives.
I was only in town for a few days, but caught gorgeous fall weather, allowing me to take this picture of a large orb weaver silhouetted by the setting suns reflection.
I also took the opportunity to take a panorama. These are very easy to create, simply shoot multiple images, select them all in a viewing application such as Bridge, and choose photo merge. It’s amazing how good the program is at combining images. Unfortunately I didn’t overlap a few images enough and lost a few frames, so overlap significantly.