Vashon Island

Vashon Island

Lately I’ve been trying to explore areas that are easier to travel to. I’ve been intrigued by Vashon Island and the numerous photos I’ve seen taken on the island. Vashon Island can be reached by ferry from either Port Orchard, West Seattle, or Tacoma which is where we departed from. The ferry ride itself only took about 30 minutes which wasn’t long enough in my book because the scenery is of course gorgeous!

 

After a short drive we headed to Spicy Sisters for some brick-over pizza. HIGHLY recommend the California Club! It was some of the best pizza I have ever had! Not to mention the owners and employees were great. For dessert we walked across the street to this cute ice cream shop Glass Bottle Creamery.

Our main destination was Point Robinson Park. Here there was a beach with a great view of Mount Rainier and of course Point Robinson Lighthouse. The best part of the night was watching the sunset reflected off of the mountain! There were a few other people here, but overall it was a nice and serene evening.

The ferry ride back had quite a few cars but nothing like an Edmonds or Seattle sailing. Vashon Island made for a quick and fun trip!

Seafair 2016

Seafair 2016

An overcast day makes for perfect photography weather! We braved the traffic and made the trip to Lake Washington to see what Seafair in Seattle was all about. The US Navy Blue Angels did not disappoint; as we walked onto the closed I-90 bridge we could hear the roar of their engines! The show lasted about 45 mins so then we made our way to Genesee Park to catch the hydroplanes and grab a bite to eat. We had a surprise fly-by from a couple of US Air Force A10s! The big hydroplanes rival the Blue Angles when it comes to loud engines fyi. Needless to say I’m thankful for the somewhat cloudy weather that kept the heat at bay and made for a great day by the lake.

Lake Washington panorama during Seafair 2016
US Navy Blue Angels flying over Lake Washington during Seafair 2016
US Navy Blue Angels flying over Lake Washington during Seafair 2016
US Navy Blue Angels flying over Lake Washington during Seafair 2016
US Navy Blue Angels flying over Lake Washington during Seafair 2016
US Navy Blue Angels flying over Lake Washington during Seafair 2016
Air Force A10s flying over Lake Washington during Seafair 2016
Seafair 2016 Hydroplanes on Lake Washington
Seafair 2016 Hydroplanes on Lake Washington
Seafair 2016 Hydroplanes on Lake Washington
Sol Duc Falls, Marymere Falls, and Lake Crescent

Sol Duc Falls, Marymere Falls, and Lake Crescent

To celebrate an occasion my husband and I traveled past Port Townsend to Lake Crescent and set up camp. The campground itself is a lot of fun and comes with running water, bathrooms, established fire pits, dogs allowed, and an area to get your kayak in the water! We absolutely loved camping here. Lake Crescent is beautifully opaque at both sunrise and sunset with vivid colors throughout the day.

We took the quick drive up to see Sol Duc and hiked the short trail leading directly to the falls. The Sol Duc Falls are absolutely stunning! There were several people there, and a couple even decided to skip onto the middle rock to get pictures. Please don’t do that. A week later someone fell from there, went over two falls, and had to be rescued at the bottom of a cliff by search and rescue. The falls were constantly changing in the light because of all the tree coverage and the spray made it somewhat difficult to get a decent shot without getting my camera wet as well. I also wish my tripod was about six inches taller! But I would love to come back to these falls, considering they were so easy to get to and deliver many photographic opportunities.

On the way home we stopped at Marymere Falls. Storm King Ranger Station is on the bank of Lake Crescent and the trail to Marymere Falls begins there. A flat hike, we made good time and made the short incline to the falls. They don’t impress as much as Sol Duc, but the hike is serene and gentle and would make for a good stroll and picnic at the falls. There is a higher vantage point but of the two the lower is more conducive to a good waterfall shot.

I highly recommend a trip with these destinations. If we had more time we could have easily gone to the coast, Neah Bay and Rialto Beach. Next trip up there I want to spend some time at Hurricane Ridge!

 

Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium Field Trip

Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium Field Trip

An afternoon photographing some beautiful animals

One of my favorite trips from the last few months was taking a photography field trip to the Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma, WA. A good friend let me borrow one of his lenses and I was excited to get some different shots!

We got there just as the zoo opened on what looked like could be a rainy day. But as the sun moved over the sky the rain dissipated and the sky became a lighter grey. We couldn’t ask for much better in the Pacific Northwest in December!

Because we got there at opening the crowds were minimal and we were able to see the animals pretty well.

Peacock
Emerald Tree Boa
Peacock
Tiger
Tiger - Darn glass support got in the way!
Clown Fish
Jelly Fish
Jelly Fish
Arctic Fox
Arctic Fox
Arctic Fox

The hardest obstacle I had was glare and reflections! Many of the exhibits were glass which made it very hard to get clear pictures. I found out if I angled the camera just right I got better pictures. The animals themselves were the perfect models! Of course we were greeted by one of the zoos peacocks. He strutted his stuff and didn’t mind us being near to him while the tigers looked like they wanted to stay in bed a bit longer. The adorable arctic foxes were irresistible as they ran around and posed.

About noon the zoo started to get more crowded and the rising sun was causing the animals to go into hiding. It was a great day of shooting and I plan on going back!

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