Finding My Groove Again

Finding My Groove Again

Being at this location is always a chilling one. It’s January and we just experienced some of the coldest weather here in the PNW in several years. The snow and ice finally melted for us but left our mountains absolutely gleaming! These are the nights you prepare your warmest coat, make sure your batteries are fully charged, and prepare for a cold couple of hours. This time I was running to beat the sunset (not too unusual for me), and thankfully I had already packed up my camera with the correct filters and SD cards.

I’m running through possible locations as I realized I wouldn’t make it in time to the one I was planning on. Shoot! Well I knew of this location and it’s been some time since I’d gone. Let’s go for it and see what happens. It’s always extra cold here. The cars rush by relentlessly. If you’ve ever walked the Cushman trail or walked across the Tacoma Narrows Bridge you’ll understand. Add in the cold weather and it’s not a place I want to spend a ton of time, but this sunset was too perfect and I settled in.

I’ll admit, I’m out of practice taking photos. Two years of grad school and a pandemic will do that to you. This is another reason why this outing was so important to me. I saw the fog rolling through and I thought to myself, this time it’s a bit different. I watched the light change and was reminded why I love to do this. Cherishing every moment and finding the uniqueness of each one. I took photo after photo and got back into the groove. Sunset’s never last long enough, but that’s why they are so fun to catch. You never quite know what to expect.

These are my favorites: (click on one to make them bigger)

Wings and Wheels 2021

Wings and Wheels 2021

A Gig Harbor Air Show

This year’s Wings and Wheels was minus the wheels. This year only featured a drive-in air show due to COVID, but it was quite the experience! It was way cool to hear and feel the rumble of the engines, especially the F-35 closing out the show!

Gig Harbor Wings and Wheels 2021 P-51 Mustang “VAL-HALLA”
Sunny March Days in the Pacific Northwest

Sunny March Days in the Pacific Northwest

Mount Rainier and the Olympics during a few days of beautiful March weather in the PNW

Thankfully, my new lens came in the mail not long before the weather decided to let the mountains shine! I took full advantage of these two days and got to know my new 55-210mm lens for the Sony A6000. I shouldn’t have waited so long to upgrade from the kit lens! I know a lot of these Sonys came with the zoom lens but mine did not and boy was I missing out! Check out what a combination of beautiful weather and zoom can produce:

Cherry Blossoms and Olympics

I couldn’t decide between these two which worked better.

Cherry Blossoms and Olympics in focus

It is difficult to choose my favorite from these shots. I think they work well together rather than by themselves. This last one, however, stands out simply because Mount Rainier is absolutely amazing on its own. I have a few shots from this location and I love that whenever I come back the scene is different. When I first arrived I noticed the sail boat was further off and heading in the opposite direction. But as I waited for the light to change and the clouds to shift it turned around and headed straight across the mountain! Just proves that sometimes a better shot is worth waiting for.

So there you have it! I am thankful I was able to basically take two days off and spend them outside. This pacific northwest weather can be finicky, especially in the spring! We have to take advantage of the weather when we can.

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