Candee

After hearing reports about the flowers blooming on St Helens, a few of my friends and I decided to head up.. The night was so clear and beautiful, it was the perfect evening

I decided to drop in on Mount Rainier this weekend, hoping to catch some light. I have been here many times, and the moutain as always eluded me. After I had taken my shots that I wanted, I stood there in silence just taking in the view. Even thought there were other people around, I felt like it was just me and the mountain. We were finally at peace.

This was such an amazing place!! It is one that you have to experience for yourself. There are just not words.. other than surreal.. to describe this place!! From the crunching of the crampons on the ice, to the huge crevasses.. there is just nothing like it!! It is 4 miles wide, and 27 miles long! It moves a foot and a half every day, and you can hear it moving, and calving in the distance.

This is the Milkyway over Mount Shuksan on Picture lake. We had started at the top of Baker, but quickly realized that the Milkyway would be almost directly over the mountain. We grabed our gear and headed to the lake. There were a few clouds surounding the mountain. We decided to wait it out, and eventually the clouds began to clear. As I stood there looking around, all I could see was the darkness of the night. It was so quite, the only thing you heard was silence. It almost gave me an erry feeling being out there. But it was also so peaceful. Sometimes we get caught up in trying to get the shot, we foreget to enjoy the moment. So, next time you are out shooting at night.. take a moment and listen to the night.

This is the majestic Mount Shuksan, in the Mount Baker area of the North Cascades. I had tried to hike this area in late May, but was unsuccessful. This time however, the roads were open. This was the first evening of a three day trip, we got to spend in this gorgeous area. There was still a fair amount of snow in the higher elevations, but will definitly go back to explore this area further.

As I viewed my images from the incredible weekend that I had, this particular image really stood out for me. It was the last image I took, before leaving the Alvord Desert in Oregon. We had only gotten about 3 hrs of sleep, but it was so worth getting up for. As I looked at the image, the clouds looked like a Phoenix rising up from the dry desert earth. The "Phoenix" is a symbol of a renewal or rebirth. It is a reminder to me, that no matter how far we fall, or how bad things get.... We all have the strength to rise again, and come out even stronger than we were!!

This was taken at Sparks Lake, Oregon. It was the most beautiful night I had seen in a while. There was not a cloud in the sky, and there seemed to be a million stars out. As we stood on the rocks, we noticed a campfire across the way. I thought to myself, what a beautiful night to be camping beneath the stars. Their fire seemed to make the trees glow with a brilliant orange. What an incredible night this turned out to be. We were even blessed to see the longest shooting start we had ever seeen. It was the perfect evening!!

I had heard about the famous Dalles Mountain Ranch. People from miles around come to shoot this old car. I knew that if I wanted a shot, I had to act fast. The flowers had already reached their peak. I got up at 5 and drove 2 hrs to this place. It was totally worth losing a little sleep over. When I see stuff like this, I often wonder about its story. I wonder who the people were, and how the car happen to be left here, and why. No matter what the story is, though our photographs, the memories live on.

Decided to go on an adventure despite the weather. Most people will not venture out in the rain, I welcome it. I think it adds a special ethereal look to the scene. This was taken on the way up to Mount Adams.

I had been to Palouse Falls twice before. The skies were always not very favorable, but this time I hit it just right. As I stood looking at the scene, there seemed to be a peacefulness about it. It was a perfect ending to a very long week.

Shoot All

Flora

Portrait

Out of all the Mountains in the PNW, this one means the most. I have a special connection with Mount Hood. Every time I see this Mountain, I am reminded of my grandfather. During his summers, he spent many lonely days and nights watching for fires keeping it safe from harm. Also as a young man, he even climbed this mountain a few times. I never really understood his love for it. Because to me, it was just another mountain. But now after exploring and photographing it, I understand its magic, and his love for it. It will always hold a very special place in my heart.

~Memories~

As I stood there watching the sunset, I was reminded that env though life can be full of dark clouds, there are still beautiful moments to see and treasure.

This image was a long time coming for me. I had traveled to the beach several times this last summer, in hopes of an epic sunset. But each time I went, I was greeted with overcast skies or fog. I was beginning to think I was cursed with bad weather. Like an ugly cloud that followed me where ever I went. This time however, I was lucky enough to witness the most beautiful sunset I could have ever imagined. It even looked like the rocks had wings!! Sometimes, persistence pays off.

This is for the Sunrise/sunset challenge.

On this particular day, the smoke from the fires had been really bad. We had wanted to go out shooting earlier in the day, but it was just too smokey. I had not totally given up hope, and thought that with all the smoke in the sky, that it could create a pretty sunset. So at the last minuet, we grabbed the gear, braved the smoke, and headed out. We were looking for the perfect spot, when we came upon these trees. We quickly pulled over, as we were running out of time. We only had just a few minutes to set up, before the sun started to set. Out of all the devastation the fires caused, it did make for some awesome sunsets.

During the Thanksgiving weekend, my brother and I decided to do the "opt out" thing. Instead of hitting the Malls, we went hiking. It was a windy and bitter cold day, but the hike in wasn't too bad. Once we got there, I did not feel the cold any more. I was too busy being in the moment. The thing that made this hike even more special, was I was able to hike with my brother. He lives in Denver, and is also a Photographer, so this was a real treat for me.

Early in September, before the fall colors really got going, I found this one tree with some color on it. This was a place called Lower Lewis Falls, in Washington. I had seen a lot of images from this place, and wanted to try for something a bit different.

When the Ocean is calm, or the tide is low, Thor's Well can seem very tame. But in a matter of moments, it can become a very dangerous place. While there is some risk being that close to it, I love feeling the power it has, and watching the waves come crashing in.

We had scouted out earlier in the day, where we wanted to set up for sunset. I had been practicing my long exposure for the waves, so I would be able to catch them just right as the sun was setting. It was not very easy. Only being 5'3, I had a hard time standing with the waves coming at me. I even got chased away a couple of times. But, I knew if I wanted to get my shot, I had to stand my ground, and take what the ocean had to give.

Normally this isn't my typical style of work, but I wanted to try something different. I was in the creative mood. This image was taken in Florence Oregon. We had gotten up early to catch a sunrise. But were instead, met with foggy and dark morning. I think that the fog, actually adds to the mood of the image.