After days of overcast and rain and just plain dreary weather today broke off sunny and warm – very Spring-like – and I headed north out-of-town with no real destination in mind. I ended up at the Finley Wildlife Refuge just south of Corvallis. A nice place but I noticed that most of the birds were parked well in the middle of huge open fields and there was no way of getting any where near them for a shot. However it was pretty up there and the sunshine was delightful. The refuge is bisected by Muddy Creek – aptly named for sure. I think these slow-moving streams that carry a lot of sediment are pretty in there own way – certainly not the tumbling mountain streams of the Cascades but they have their own charm.
I came back to town via Prairie Road which just winds through the farmlands north of town and noticed this large leafless tree in the middle of a yellow field. Had to convince myself that it was worth the time to stop, turn around and take a shot but I am glad I did. This little trip sure did whet my appetite for Spring and some sunshine.
Categories: Willamette Valley
Shooting sunsets is not easy unless you are willing to settle for some mediocre shots or just rely on the power of prayer to get you what you want. The intensity of colors and patterns and the small amount of time you generally have to shoot makes it imperative that you focus (pun intended) when you are out in the field. I have found that I can just about predict the quality of the sunset west of town by walking out to the street in front of my house and taking a quick look. Last night looked like it was filled with possibilities from the street but was way more dramatic than I had anticipated. Shooting sunsets like this one is a challenge. I shot at least 100 images in every manner that I could think of and got one (1) – sort of. I tried HDR and the intensity of colors even with everything tuned down was just too much for me. So the following image is the ONE. Hope you like it. I did have a fun night out there and it was a glorious sunset. Now if I was more up to the challenge! I will keep trying – prayer is the next option I guess!
OK – after a bit more fussing I came up with another one that I like. The last shot of the evening. Go figure.
Categories: Willamette Valley
Bruce mentioned on his blog that sometimes a guy just has to get out and shoot a bit and with clearing weather and sporting a new haircut I decided I just needed to head to Delta Ponds to see if I could find the elusive Wood Duck. Alas it was not to be but I did get close to a adult male mallard and noticed how beautiful the patterns and colors of the feathers are – especially when you leave out the rest of the duck. Nature never fails to amaze me.
Categories: Uncategorized
Thought I might be going to the Oregon Coast this weekend for a visit with family but February looks much more likely for that connection. Hoping for a storm during that time.
Yesterday started out crisp and clear and cold – right at freezing – and as the day went on there was a touch of Spring in the air for sure. I was so tempted to head out mid day to the wetlands but there was not a cloud in the sky until mid-afternoon so I held off hoping for a great sunset. Alas it was not what I had hoped for but still it was a very gentle quiet evening out there save for all the ducks and geese that make a terrific racket!!
I got out there about 10 minutes before official sunset so the colors were just starting to deepen and take on some richness and they got better as the evening went on. This little pond had fresh pond weed growing in it – start of Spring for sure. There were banks of clouds forming over the Coast Range and they added some interest to my oft-visited grove of trees and it’s attendant pond. I looked into the top of the trees and saw what I thought were leaves coming on already – NOT – birds by the hundreds perched in the very top.
I know I have posted images of this group of trees time and again but I always find beauty in this little area and just can’t seem to help myself when I am out there – thanks for putting up with me.
Categories: Willamette Valley
After being rather house bound yesterday – the rain and wind and some chores that needed to get done – it sure was fun to get out this morning for a hike on Spencer’s Butte. The weather has cleared and it was almost spring like.
In some of my recent reading there was advice to visualize images in Black & White when you are in the field taking them. I am glad to say that I managed to do that – I know a miracle that I remembered – with the first image below. I sort of knew this would make a good Black & White image and I really think it is. It was one of those times when you just sort of ‘know’ – maybe ‘hope’ is a better word but I sure did look forward to processing this set of images.
On the way back down the trail – muddy and slippery – I was treated to the sun breaking through the forest and highlighting the moss growing on an old maple. Setting it against the dark forest background made the green of the moss standout really well, IMHO. Nancy gave me a book a while ago with wonderful quotes from past and present artists and I always seem to find the right one at the right time.
“Sometimes I get to places just when God’s
ready to have somebody click the shutter.
—-Ansel Adams
Now to clean the mud off the equipment and clothing.
Categories: Willamette Valley
I came home from Bandon with about 300 images so before you begin to think I am a good photographer I will remind you of a saying from a friend “Even a blind pig finds an acorn every once in a while” so of the 300 or so images there might be 3-4 that are really nice and a couple more that I think are OK. The following 3 are in the last category. The first one is from the Face Rock trail leading down to the beach and while sort of a postcard it does show how lovely this area is. This was a late afternoon shot taken in a serious rain shower.
The next two images are from the jetty just out of town – I like the misty feeling around the old worn pilings and the rocks that are with them. The Bandon Lighthouse no longer is in operation. A fellow at one of the galleries told me that they do have certain evenings during the holidays when they go out and manually turn a generator and the light glows!! Yikes – I bet that is some serious cranking but I would love to see it in operation. I sort of wonder why they cannot put a solar panel in there (just read that they did something like that over in Kennewick, WA for a river beacon) but perhaps it is just too expensive. Sure is a pretty lighthouse and sort of an unusual design.
Categories: Coast and Coast Range
I have a book called Photographing Oregon and in it the author says that Bandon is his favorite place to photograph on the Oregon Coast and after spending part of the last couple of days doing just that I agree. The area is simply beautiful and the town of Bandon is charming – especially the Old Town area and the docks. It was a little dead this time of year and it being mid-week but I would bet it is great fun in the summer and the autumn. However, the fellow at the motel told me that they were very busy over the Christmas/New Year holidays and there is certainly no reason not to visit right now – just go ready for some rain.
For my trip I had been looking for a dry day in the forecast and Thursday seemed to be THE ONE!! and the 3 hour drive down was dry until I got about 2 miles out of Bandon and the rain started and by the time I hit the beach with my camera and tripod it was coming down in earnest. I put a Rainsleeve on my camera/tripod and came away less than impressed with its usefulness. When fully pulled down it does cover the camera and lens but to focus and use the settings you have to pull up the cover – which is cold and soaking wet – and everything finally ends up pretty moist – probably helped some but did not really keep my gear dry. Am on the lookout for options. Also I have heard about the wind in Bandon but I guess I got lucky as it was pretty minor.
The images that follow are in a bit of a time sequence: 1) first wet trip down to the beach, 2) from a dry evening walk on the beach near Face Rock, 3) from the bluff overlooking the sea stacks toward evening with the tide coming in, 4) early morning shot from the same bluff looking south with a very high tide, 5) a beach shot from the jetty area just out of town.
The following two images were taken early this morning with long exposures and my 16-35 mm wide angle lens stopped down to f22.
Categories: Coast and Coast Range
My friend Bruce sends me images from the Pittock Mansion in Portland – overviews of the city often times with Mt. Hood in the distance - and the title of one of the emails was “I keep trying” — I feel sort of the same way about the wetlands just west of Eugene. I go out there quite often – most of you know that and are probably getting a bit bored with these images – but I seem to find a different landscape every time I visit and tonight was no different.
We have had a lot of rain lately and the wetlands were full – wish I would have put on some water-proof boots but alas that was not the case so came home happy but with wet socks. I was greeted with the following image when I first walked up the trail tonight and the evening just got better. The second shot was the last I took and it was about 15 minutes past sunset – so right in the Magic Hour.
I walked back to the car with a smile on my face – came home and downloaded images, opened a bottle of wine, made dinner, wrote this posting and now am off to watch Art Wolfe’s Travels to the Edge. I will keep trying.
Hope you like the new blog format.
Categories: Uncategorized
December 29, 2009 · 1 Comment
where the snowflakes storm, the rivers freeze and the summer ends ….
Girl from the North Country, Bob Dylan
I have wanted to photograph the Metolius River with snow all around for a couple of years now and today seemed like a good time to head east. I made stops all the way up the McKenzie River the first being right out-of-town near Walterville and then Koosah Falls for a pretty much postcard type shot but still such a beautiful place
Next stop up the road was near the headwaters of the Mckenzie – snow and cold and just so much beauty. It was 24 degrees when I got back to the car after an hour of shooting and I could feel it in my bones. The fresh snow and the remaining vegetation made for nice images that contrasted the two.
I almost turned around and headed home as I told myself that I got what I wanted – rivers, snow etc. but knew that I had set out for the Metolius and so continued further east.
The Metolius River is a spring fed stream – crystal clear and cold and with the fresh snow it was beautiful. So glad that I went. I concentrated, at least in part on the details contained in the riffles and breaks in the stream as they can form very interesting abstract images. This was another hour and a half of shooting and I spent part of it on the ground in the snow. It is really amazing how you can forget that you are wet and cold when totally involved in what you are doing. However is was nice to get back to the car and some heat. I have many more images to work up from this outing so may post a few more in the days to come. Thanks for looking.
Categories: Cascades · Mountains · Water
I have been re-reading George Barr’s book Take your Photography to the Next Level and it always gets me to start looking in places that I have not noticed in the past. We had some sunshine this afternoon and I think it got above freezing so I decided to go out to a local river crossing and just have a look. I sort of doubt that they make bridges like this any more as most of the new ones I see seem to be these pre-stressed concrete beams which over time may take on some nice color and pattern but when new don’t offer much to catch my eye.
As I packed up to leave I noticed the graffiti on the wall and it just seemed to resonate ‘Eugene!!” plus they are just good thoughts to start a new year on no matter where you are. Happy New Year to y’all
Categories: Willamette Valley
