Daily Image - Sep '21 Archive

16 Sep 21 Back in 2007 when we made our trip to Yellowstone with the camera club I had belonged to when we lived in MD, there were, according to the Rangers, three rogue bull elk roaming the park that were to be avoided at all costs. You already know where this is going. Not getting any of the bears to cooperate with me, why not an elk or two. Now there was no knowing where these three guys were, and for sure they weren't hang'ng out together, so you at least had a bit of an opportunity to seek one out. All the more of a challenge. None of them had names of course and the Rangers didn't put up their photos in the park post offices, but they were collared so the boys in brown did know where they were located. But for some reason they wouldn't tell me so I had to go looking on my own during the little free time we had on that outing. As luck would have it I "stumbled"upon one of the three while doing some macro work and we chatted for a couple / three minutes while I took his portrait. He was hungry, I was curious, and we agreed to keep a social distance - HIS - between us. I thought to myself, if this is rogue, I wonder what laid back might be like. Dead maybe? This is perhaps the best of all the shots because I got to be in it. Doesn't hardly ever happen, but this day it did. Other than the removal of a few pieces of grass in front of his face, this is what the camera captured. Watch'n Ya Nikon D200; 105mm Macro; Aperture Priority; ISO 400; 1/100 sec @ f /5.6.

15 Sep 21 Up to the Mt Baker National Forest for today's offering. I'll venture that everyone on this list knows about Picture Lake and has seen it either in person or at least a photo of it in its fall splendor. Surprisingly, the link I provided doesn't have a single shot of it in the fall, but once you see one of them or today's offering you'll go, oh yeah, I've seen that. I've written about the place several times and shared some shots from the area, but they were all many moons ago so I thought I'd share another today. The location sports a small lake, Picture Lake, and a large beautiful mountain, Mt Shuksan, in the background reflecting off the surface of the lake. There is an ADA path that circumnavigates the lake and you can drive right up to it, get out of your vehicle, and walk around the lake. The lake itself is surrounded by aquatic grasses, huckleberry, and other foliage that turn vibrant colors in the fall. The most commonly seen shots of the area are taken when the huckleberry is in full Autumnal RED! Today's image was taken 11 years short 10 days ago. The reds hadn't fully matured at the time but you can get a reasonable idea where they are headed from the image. The lake is slowly filling in and the last time I visited it had noticeably shrunk; by now I would imagine it is substantially smaller. There used to be a reader board detailing the normal progression from lake to forest at one rest location that was quite interesting; I'm curious as to whether it is still there or not. The shot gives you a good idea of the lake surrounds as well as the quality of the pathway. If you haven't visited the location it should be on your bucket list. Other than some small amount of cropping and my adding the eagle, this is what the camera recorded. Walk Around Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 320; 1/800 sec @ f /11.

13 Sep 21 Tuesday last I mentioned the Olympic National park in passing while talking about Hurricane Ridge. Instead of taking the left turn in Port Angeles that takes you to Hurricane Ridge, if one keeps on the main road it will take you to the Pacific Ocean beaches and through a section of the park that is home to Crescent Lake along the way. The drive around Crescent Lake is a tortuous one and the speed limit is just 25 mph which either makes for a lovely sight seeing drive or just a "roadblock" on those days when you are, but shouldn't be, in a hurry. Regardless, the scenery alongside the road is simply gorgeous and today's offering is a shot of one of the many small waterfalls/streams that cross under the road on their way to the lake. None of them are large enough to make the calendars or photo mags but each has its own simple beauty and often that is augmented by the streams that meander past the road into the lake. The park sports three distinct rain forests but virtually all of the park is a rain forest. With an average of 149 days of rain annually, it should come as no surprise that it is quite wet, and green! Of the three separate rain forests in the park, the Hoh Rain Forest claims an average of 12 feet - 144 inches - of rain annually. Rain in this amount helps the state in claiming the name the Evergreen State but this is true only of the western side of the Olympic Range. Today's shot is literally a couple yards off the road and you can find MANY such locations as you drive around Crescent Lake. Do pay it a visit if you are out this way! This is what the camera captured. Lake Bound Nikon D300sl 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 400; 1/40 sec @ f / 8.

02 Sep 21 Three goals for the trip to Yellowstone: 1) obviously color; 2) MOOSE; and 3) museums and the like. During the visit this past spring we met an individual who told us where to go to see moose. Tried following directions but failed in that effort. Hope to change things this time around. May even bring a sleeping bag and camp out in the car where I'm told they are in abundance. Time will tell but I'm giving it serious thought. One morning several years ago on our first visit to Mesa Falls we were driving along enjoying the color when some movement caught my eye. A big bull moose it was. Stopped the vehicle, got out, and followed him into the woods on the opposite side of the road. Got several shots but none I felt worthy of sharing at the time. Technologies change, experience helps, and a little practice have shown me how to salvage those shots of 7 years ago so for today we'll take a look at the ol' boy as he wanders into the forest. He was a handsome guy and I think this time around I've done him justice! This is what the sensor captured but I didn't know how to exploit same back when I got the shot! Walkin' Away Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 320; 1/50 sec @ f / 8.

22 Sep 21 We're still at the Mt Baker area looking today downstream from where we were the last two days. This shot was taken from a position just out of view from the top center of the image I shared both Monday and Tuesday. Now you can get a better idea for the name of the trail as you can see how the little stream connects the lakes with the trail paralleling it. I'm not aware of the little lakes having names but I suppose if one were to dig deep enough one might find that they have been named at some point in time by some conservation group. Names or not, the trail is a most delightful one, easy to hike - you can see portions of it on both side of the stream, and always providing something beautiful beyond each bend. If you ever visit the area, and you would like to spend some time taking a leisurely hike/walk, this is one trail I can highly recommend! This is what the camera recorded save for a wee bit of dodging and burning. Looking Downstream Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 200; 1/640 sec @ f / 6.3.

21 Sep 21 A month ago I wrote some about my belief that one must have a very good color image if one intends to convert it to a good black and white. Taking yesterday's shot from Chain Lakes Trail, I've converted it for Black & White Tuesday to just that. Since you already know the colors that are being represented by the various shades of gray, you can now decide for yourselves if my proposition is a correct one. For those of you who happen to like B & W to begin with this might not come as a surprise; for those of you who are relatively ambivalent about B & W this set might convince you. If you kept the color version if might be fun to layer them and then turn one off and on quickly to get a different feel for the two versions. Same as yesterday save for the conversion to B & W using the nik plug-in Silver Efex Pro 2. Ansel-Like Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 200; 1/250 sec @ f / 6.3.

20 Sep 21 To quote Burns - “The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men. Gang aft a-gley”. As was ours with respect to the trip to Yellowstone. So we are still here for the time being; maybe a trip later in October. I-5 N to Bellingham, WA will get you to the exit for the Mt Baker Scenic Highway. If you follow it to the end you will wind up either at Picture Lake or Artist's Point, depending on the time of year you visit. While the road as far as Picture Lake is open year round, the last couple of miles up to Artist's point closes generally at the end of October and remains so until late spring. The cause is snow pack and lots of it. In between Picture Lake and Artists point there is a Ranger Station of sorts proving information about the area and in particular the trails available for hiking. My favorite is called the Chain Lakes Trail and it is readily accessible from that station parking lot save for the initial 100 feet or so which requires you scrambling down a shale like section of rock at about a 60 degree angle. After that it is a gentle walking trail. The trail takes you along side a small gently running stream that connects several very small lakes, some might even consider them ponds. The trail runs along both side of the water in many places and both sides offer an equally lovely walk. The stream isn't very deep, I'd estimate it to be less than 2 feet deep at its deepest points, but I've only walked the trail in Autumn; it probably is a bit deeper and moving faster during the spring runoff. The colors in the fall are breath taking and are provided solely by the ground cover; reds, oranges, yellows, and light greens predominate. Thinking a day trip may be in the offering sometime in the next several days; all dependent on weather and color. This six frame pano is basically what the camera recorded save for some cropping of the pano to correct for my lousy camera handling and enhancing the sky to match the surroundings. Happy Trail Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 200; 1/ 250 sec @ f / 6.3.

24 Sep 21 For this Friday's macro/close-up we are going to focus our attention on just the proximal ends of a couple of the petals on a large dahlia blossom. Using the 105mm macro, my intent was to capture what I think a pollinating insect might be seeing as it approaches a flower with the intent of slipping its proboscis down a tube for a bit of nectar. While this is obviously nothing but conjecture, the image isn't, and by focusing on just a small portion of the flower, any flower for that matter but dahlias make it easy, one can come up with some interesting results. The central portion of this dahlia was a deep yellow, the petals not quite so, and each petal edged in red. While they are still rolled up looking tube like you can create many different looks. This was done in the field and the wind had its hand in creating the look along with the sun which provided the proper lighting. Each year Jan's garden grows with new plants as well as increasing varieties of the existing ones. Pretty soon I'll not need to leave the property to have all the material I could ever desire. In the meantime I have two commercial nurseries, a native garden, a neighbor's flower farm and two open to the public dahlia displays where I'm welcome to shoot anytime so I shan't soon run out of opportunities. This is straight from the camera. Tunnel Vision Nikon D300s; 105mm micro nikkor; ISO 200; 1/8000 sec @ f / 3.5.

07 Sep 21 Today we leave from south central MT and travel to nw WA, a short jaunt of about 875 miles, to visit Olympic National Park. This park is roughly 40% the size of YNP, but features a vastly greater diversity with its four regions: the Pacific coastline, alpine areas, the west-side temperate rainforest (three of them), and the forests of the drier east side. Here you will find deer, elk, sheep, and there used to be goats until they were removed a couple years back after one individual had a fatal encounter with one animal. Among the favorite locations in the park - there are MANY - is Hurricane Ridge, an area of the park where you are face to face with the mountains. They are small by WA standards reaching generally under 11,000 feet, but none the less still rather impressive for our right coast folks. The ridge got its name from the weather which features winds frequently gusting to 75 mph and an annual snowfall of 30 - 35 feet who's weight challenges trees and its persistence maintains open meadows. The park features lots of wild life encounters, many trails to walk, and in the winter skiing (cross country and downhill), snowboarding, and snow shoeing activities aplenty. I've shared a few shots from the park area over the last several years mostly from the winter visits. Today we are looking at the park from a different perspective, that of early fall and, instead of a view from the visitor's center at the top, we are looking about mid way up the 17 mile two lane drive back towards Port Angeles and Canada in the far distance. Unlike YNP, ONP isn't a single species forest and you can clearly make out several different varieties of trees in the picture. This is the view you will get as you traverse the park but for the most part the visitors seem to be far more intent on either reaching the summit or returning to the town to stop and really take in this lovely location. This is straight from the camera but with a wee bit of contrast enhancement to bring out the trees and some cropping for composition. Long & Winding Road Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 200; 1/640 sec @ f /13.

23 Sep 21 Back to Beaver Pond / Creek for today's submission. This location is just a few yards north from where I've shared most of the previous images over the past several years. You can see Hwy-287 1/3 of the way down from the top right hand edge of the shot heading towards the Madison River at Hebgen Dam. The creek wends its way a bit around the bend wherein it becomes a hangout for grizzly bear. There are several warning signs in the area and although I go there on occasion looking for them we have yet to encounter one even at a great distance, or so I think. Don't know if one or more have been watching us from a secure location but thinking it unlikely as I generally have Maggie roaming along with me and she has never responded to anything that might make me think we had company. Still . . . . This is pretty much how the area looks at peak autumn color but it will obviously get more yellow when the rest of the leaves turn. It would seem that the stream should have fish in it but I've never seen a single one nor have I seen any fishermen working it, so perhaps not. It is a great place to just throw down a nice blanket and have a thoroughly relaxing meal while listening to the babbling of the creek and the sounds of the birds. Should you be of the more adventuresome type, grab some bear spray and walk downstream a ways to see what might be there. Other than a wee bit of work on the sky to balance it with the landscape, this is what the camera recorded. Autumn on Beaver Creek Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 640; 1/200 sec @ f / 7.1.

06 Sep 21 Back to the bend in the Madison River just below Hebgen Dam for today's offering. This shot was taken at peak fall color for the little grouping of willows on that small island that sits at the bend. Most of the time I pass it there are several folks out fishing, often with their dogs, and on this particular September evening there were two of them sans dogs. It seems to me that this is a very challenging place to fish in that while there are lots of individuals fishing it is infrequent that I see any fish actually caught. I'm thinking it is perhaps only 20% of the time that I see either a trout on the line or in the net. But considering the location, I could spend all day there in the water, pole and/or fish or not, and still be perfectly content. With a bit of luck, this is what I hope to experience in a couple more weeks. The year being a bit drier than it was the fall I shot this we'll have to see if it has any effect. Other than a small amount of cropping to remove a small section of blah sky, this is what the sensor recorded. Two Fishermen Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 640; 1/60 sec @ f / 7.1.

27 Sep 21 Although Yellowstone has many lovely waterfalls, they are all a bit deceiving in that there is not a lot of water in the associated rivers. Now at the height of Spring runoff things may be different - been there many times in the late April early May time frame and haven't noticed such however - in general you can easily wade across virtually any of the rivers. Not to say there isn't a deep hole here and there, just that most of them are considerably wider then they are deep. It is an interesting illusion but if you take the time to go to the edge of any of these rivers, you can see the bottom easily. I've share several shots of the Firehole Falls over the years and today is another, but this time it is of the river and not the falls. Zoom in and take a close look at the water. You can see how very shallow it is. The rocky river bed, combined with all the twists and turns in its course, makes it look like there is a large volume of water flowing between the banks, but if you were to follow the river perhaps another70 yards downstream - to the right of this spot - the water is flowing calming and you can find fishermen casting their lines in hopes of hooking a feisty trout. This is straight from the camera save for a little dodging and burning. Deceiving Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 400; 1 /400 sec @ f / 8.

28 Sep 21 After writing what I did about the volume of water in the rivers in YNP, I thought I'd share a view from downstream of where yesterday's picture was taken and another of the falls. Together they would demonstrate the water's relative small volume contrasted with what the falls impression would suggest. Couldn't find a downstream shot that I thought worth sharing so substituting instead one from above the falls. Same river so same amount of water either way as there are no contributing sources save for runoff between the two locations. We'll do the upstream for today and the falls for hump day. This shot was taken about 100 yards upstream from the falls proper. The fisherman had been working a hole just under a fallen old dead tree about 30 yards to the left of the shot - notice his waders are wet higher up than is the water in which he is currently wading - and apparently not having encountered any of the locals enjoying that spot, had decided to call it quits for the day, or at least for the location. Or it perhaps could have been our disturbing his solitude by just being there that caused him to quit. He didn't say. The point of this shot however is not the fisherman, but rather showing how shallow the river really is. The bottom half of the shot clearly demonstrates the shallowness by clearly displaying the rocks in the riverbed. Were it not for the reflection of the individual on the surface of the water you would also be able to see his feet. Based on the small canister attached to the top right of his vest, I'd say he was no stranger to the area. Other than removing some very distracting glare from the photo, this is what the camera captured. Calling it Quits Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 400; 1 /160 sec @ f / 8.

14 Sep 21 The road from Canyon Junction to Tower is probably the most spectacular in the park and also the one open for the shortest amount of time due to traversing Dunraven Pass at 8,859 feet and rubbing up against Mt Washburn at 10,243 feet. Snow is the culprit keeping it closed and its opening is generally during the few snow free months. This is THE area in the park to easily find Big Horn Sheep, although like everything else animal-wise in the park, nothing is guaranteed. Cresting the summit a few years back we passed a parking area where one individual had "parked" his high end sports car upside down in a large depression at the back of the parking lot; apparently not paying attention to what he was doing. We slowed to look, then began to accelerate again, only to come upon a group of about a half dozen ewes just enjoying a late afternoon meal. Parked the vehicle and got out and mingled with them for perhaps 15 minutes while taking their portraits. None of them wanted to pose and for all intents and purposes just kept their heads down munching away. Although their heads were down, they were keeping a watchful eye on me. Never did get the shot I wanted but this is one of the better ones. Other than some cropping for composure and the removal of some distracting grasses, this is what the camera recorded. Dinner Time Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 250; 1/320 sec @ f / 5.6.

08 Sep 21 I've written several times about viewing the Grand Tetons from the back side while visiting in the Ashton, ID area, so I won't ramble on about this shot. It was taken on HWY-47 in ID which parallels Hwy-20 for a short distance in that location. This was taken in late September so all the crops, mostly hay, had already been harvested leaving the ground bare. As such I've cropped out most of the foreground and then for balance done the same with the sky. On the evening of the shot the sky was virtually cloudless and VERY blah so I've added a more typical sky, the kind I generally encounter, just didn't this one particular evening. Most all of the photos you see published of the Tetons are taken from Grand Teton National Park on the other side of the range. That is a spectacular view, but the one - this one - from the other side, often referred to as the back side, can be equally impressive. This is what the camera recorded save for the cropping, conversion to B & W, and the sky replacement. Anselish Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 200; 1/640 sec @ f /10.

09 Sep 21 Going with something quite different for this Theatrical Thursday offering. I was introduced to a cross platform plug-in (Linux based) a few weeks back called G'MIC which provides for over 500 creative effects for your image. It is priced just right at $0.00 and I think I'm going to spend some more time with it exploring ALL it's features. The effect I'm using for this image incorporates the default setting but I'm thinking I might be able to tease out a lot more. The conversion dropped out a fantastic sky of deep blue and clouds. This is a shot of part of the grounds of the Yellowstone Association Headquarters and maybe 4 of you on this mailing list may recognize the location of the image. It is a roadside shot in the Lamar Valley and in a location where lots of Aspens are to be found. In fact, I think this may be the greatest concentration of Aspens in the park but don't hold me to that. The colors of the trees vary from year to year, always yellow of course, but sometimes it is a very deep yellow and other times a light yellow. Always fun to see how they will look. In this shot they are a deep yellow! Other than the conversion, this is straight from the camera. Hard Sketch Nikon D300s; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 200; 1/800 sec @ f / 8.

01 Sep 21 Having not done any traveling this year save for that spring trip to Yellowstone, I've decided to comb through previous year's materials and select something new for the remaining time until I leave for Yellowstone. A while back, when visiting a neighbor's property that has a clean view of Puget Sound and the Cascades beyond to shoot a moon series, I was treated to the kind of nighttime sky activity I went to Iceland to see, only it was in magenta and not green. Nonetheless it was truly beautiful and I spent a bit of time trying to get the perfect shot. That didn't happen but I did get a number of them I really liked. I never got exactly what I wanted in that there remained a small amount of brilliant yellow light on the horizon while the magenta clouds were dancing across the sky. The blues/black and magenta/pinks were in constant flux and the dynamics of their color changes provided for a most interesting show that evening. Although the colors were wrong, and it was actually clouds that I was watching, it brought back memories of a child sitting on my front porch watching the Northern Lights prancing about in the late summer months. Other than a little distraction removal, this is what the camera recorded. Almost A Sailor's Delight Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 400; 1/200 sec @ f / 4.5.

29 Sep 21 Today we'll complete the set of 3 images from the Firehole River, this time concentrating on the falls proper. Looking at them one would presume there is a large amount of water pouring over those rocks but even without the two previous images you can see just how little water there actually is by looking at the bottom corner of the falls. If it were possible to remove all that air from the turbulence, thereby leaving the water falling over the rocks clear, it would be immediately obvious how thin that layer of water actually is. But then, who would want to go see something as blah as all that. The sound of course adds a lot and without it the spectacle of the water smoothly flowing some rocks would likely not attract many spectators. This shot is lacking a kayak and onboard daredevil but there would scarcely be room for even one although I thought about putting just such in for grins. 😂 This set of three shots might make for an interesting conversational triptych. This is what the camera recorded. Lacking a Kayaker Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 320; 1/1,600 sec @ f / 9.

03 Sep 21 With an acre or more of flowers just down the street (c 1/3 mile) combined with a set of 5 hives each 6 layers high, finding a bee on a flower has become much easier! Now the only real challenge is finding a time when the wind isn't blowing and, as this farm is on the edge of a high bluff overlooking Puget Sound, the chances of a no wind day are slim to none. So it is always a dance of sorts trying to keep the subject in sharp focus long enough to press the shutter and get the exposure. Of course, with the shooting field so close, I can always keep going back over and over again until I get a decent shot. STILL haven't got that perfect shot but as I've only been trying for 20+ years I still have time. Today's submission is closing in on it but still has room for improvement. This young lady was a great model and stayed in position to get the shot but I really needed multiple exposures to get everything in sharp focus and she wasn't interested in posing for that length of time. This is what the camera captured save for some serious cropping for composition. Meal Time Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 320; 1/640 sec @ f / 9.

17 Sep 21 With this Friday's macro / close-up submission we conclude the mailings for September. We leave early Monday morning next for Yellowstone so this is the last mailing until we return in October. A view you don't generally see of dahlias is one taken from behind the flower. It provides for a very different look and one I really like. The stem, and therefore the base, sets the flower off nicely and often the bright green of that portion of the plant compliments the flower color richly. With this particular blossom the green bleeds into the yellow which then bleeds into the white of the blossom. You don't get this kind of look from any other perspective and if you've never availed yourself of a rear view of these lovely flowers I highly encourage you to give it a try. This is what the camera captured. Looking Back Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture priority; ISO 500; 1/125 sec @ f / 9.

10 Sep 21 Something I don't believe I've shared before for this Friday's macro/close-up submission. Over the years we've begun to really appreciate the many species of ornamental grasses found in many nurseries. We have two kinds in the landscape, one bush like with deep green blades turning to a lovely yellow in the fall that stays somewhat low but spreads easily, and the other a very tall grass with a lovely arching seed head that for me is its primary attraction that tends to stay where it is put. Each time we visit a nursery I look at the grasses available thinking we should get some more. So far we haven't, but I do like to photograph the ones I find appealing. The shot for today's close-up is of one such grass called millet. It comes in two varieties of which I'm aware, one with green blades like this one; the other variety sporting deep purplish blades. Either way it is a very attractive plant and I may just have to grab a couple of them. The brilliant yellow and red aspect I'm sure is for the fall show and probably not present in the spring but the shape is something likely present year round. I'll find out for certain if we purchase some. Both of our current ornamental grasses die off at the end of fall and grow again each spring but larger than the previous year. Maybe millet will behave similarly. This is straight from the camera save for a bit of cropping for composition and the removal of an non-essential bright spot. Arching Over Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 200; 1/320 sec @ f / 9.

30 Sep 21 For this Theatrical Thursday's submission something creative, but not by me. With fall all around us the trees are shedding both leaves and needles everywhere and that of course includes our roads. Autumn made her appearance by bringing us wind and rain, and lots of both. This a.m, as we were walking her majesty, we noticed that the needles had been gathered together in pole-like arrangements separated by an equal distance from one another such that they looked like tire tread marks, only raised as opposed to depressed. They were on both sides of the road for perhaps a 60 foot length. They started, ran the distance, then stopped. I'm standing in the road looking away from it and into the woods. I thought it made for an interesting composition; your mileage may vary. This is straight from the camera. Tracks Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 800; 1/125 sec @ f / 9.