Naturescapes

First light in the glades

As the pre-dawn light was slowly whisked away by the rising sun, the sounds of the forest began to rise up: the chorus of crickets, the cacophony of storks and ibises, the shrieks of ospreys and the chatter of woodpeckers. Photos can do justice to the range of light, but never to the diversity of sounds.

Everglades National Parks

FL USA

Golden Gardens

Fall is still a month away, and yet I can't stop thinking about the hiking through the golden wall of larches that are pervasive in the drier parts of the Pacific Northwest. I found this grand forest of larches hiking in one of these areas, growing in profuse abundance around a deep blue alpine lake. I reveled in every step in this golden forest, admiring the bright yellows adorning the white bark of the conifers.

Will this year be just as good? Only time will tell.

Okanogan Wenatchee National Forest
WA USA

Rising above the fog

More often than not, when I am heading out to shoot, I have a place and time in mind that has been carefully planned for, taking into consideration the weather, smoke, light and landscape. And that constitutes a majority of what I shoot. And then I have others that I shoot by happenstance - I just happen to be at the right place at the right time.

This morning, as I was heading back after a long night of shooting, I noticed a river valley completely enveloped in ground-level fog, reducing visibility to a few hundred feet. I ventured a bit more cautiously, hoping to get out of the thick fog. But as the sun came up, this fog started to glow with an inner fire, and I knew I had to shoot it. Around me was the everyday workings of a rural farm: barns, tractors and a few cornfields. As I scouted for locations, I came upon a little rise in the road where the fog, now below me, was spreading through woods and catching the morning light. That scene matched an image I had had in my repertoire of a classic sunrise over a foggy Napa Valley, and while not the same, made me stop to catch the light.

Whatcom County
WA USA

The Lonely Tree

A twisted ash, a ragged fir,
A silver birch with leaves astir.

Men talk of forests broad and deep
Where summer-long the shadows sleep.

Though I love forests deep and wide,
The lone tree on the bare hillside,

The brave wind-bitten lonely tree
Is rooted in the heart of me —

A twisted ash, a ragged fir,
A silver birch with leaves astir.
- Wilfred Gibson

Theodore Roosevelt National Park
ND USA

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Mountain Summer

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The month of July in the Pacific Northwest is typically characterized by balmy weather and sunny skies, with just the occasional shower to keep the temperatures at a reasonable level. The Cascades still retain a bit of their winter snowpack while down below, meadows take their summer green coat and burst with wildflowers. This year though, was a tad different. By late July, the Pacific Northwest had already endured two months of dry heat, thanks to the heat dome. Without any precipitation, wildfires spread far and wide, and their smoke spread through most of the Cascades. The heat also caused most of the snow capping the volcanic peaks to melt away and reveal the dirty understory. It didn't take long for us to realize it wasn't a normal summer.

The mercury has certainly dropped in August, but the smoke is still hanging on, and during one of the clearer weekends, I caught sight of the characteristic volcanic cone of Mt Baker rising high above the green meadows and wildflowers of the North Cascades ranges

Baker Snoqualmie National Forest
WA USA

Colors in the Garden

While grand vistas draw me out to the mountains, there are times when I try to focus on the intricate details of the scene, especially in places whose aesthetic shines. Japanese gardens exude such aesthetics with a unique sense of design that highlight the natural landscape. And in fall, these intricate gardens are saturated with warm colors, which, when combined with architectural elements such as pagodas, teahouses and stone lanterns, form colorful subjects to photograph.

During a fall visit to the famous Portland Japanese garden early in the morning, I found many such scenes waiting to be photographed. I found one such scene where these architectural elements were juxtaposed against the green needles of Red Pines and the vibrant Japanese Maples in the soft morning light. Hopefully the smoke this year hasn't had too much of an impact on the garden this year.

Portland
OR USA

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A National Parks Journey - Joshua Tree National Park

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I was surprised that I had put off visiting the 8th National Park in the State of California for this long. Especially since I had lived in California for over 8 years. The Park itself was easy to access from the town of Palm Springs, which makes for a suitable base to visit the Park. And even though I hadn't expected to see much in this park except for its namesake - the Joshua Tree, I was pleasantly surprised to explore a thriving desert landscape with very unique rock formations.

Cacti of different species, including this forest of spiny chollas, called this rocky landscape home, as do the iconic boulder formations that have attracted boulderers from all over the continent. But framing all this are the namesake cacti - the Joshua tree, that is so emblematic of the Colorado Desert Region of Southern California. While heading out of the park on a colorful evening, I found this forest just as the sun dipped below the mountains and lit up the sky.

Joshua Tree National Park
CA USA