Best Laid Plans . . .

It was shaping up to be the perfect image. I could see it all in my mind. Sunlight streaming over the hillside, lighting the flowers at my feet maybe a little sun-star effect to enhance the composition. But you know what they say, best laid plans of mice and men.

My buddy Ed & I arrived early to Dalles Mountain Ranch in the Columbia River Gorge. I knew the flowers were blooming and had really hoped I could convince him that heading to Columbia Hills State Park would be a good idea. Dalles Mountain in Washington is less well known than the over-crowded Rowena Plateau on the Oregon side of the gorge. We had photographed at Rowena the morning before - Ed really wanted that classic image of wildflowers at sunrise with the river in the background. And the flowers at Rowena were less than spectacular, in comparison to previous visits.

It was more Ed's trip than mine so I didn't push too much, until we woke up the next morning . . . with rain falling on our tents. We decided to get up anyway, because you never know what will happen in the gorge as my previous trip had proven. We got out of tents, saw a break in the clouds near Dalles Mountain and we sped off to our hoped for amazing images.

Thirty minutes later, we were traipsing through the flower-filled meadows on the side of the mountains. Raindrops still clung to the leaves and grasses, dowsing our boots as we looked for our vantage points. As I meandered, I looked at the hillside to the east and saw a notch that I really liked. Then I found the perfect batch of purple lupine for my foreground.

I was getting more excited as I saw my image come together. I started lining up my composition and saw the ridge just beyond my lupine lined with bright yellow balsamroot.

Yes! This was going to be perfect! The sun would peak at my flowers just to the right of the notch. The aperture of my lens was scrunched down as tight as it would go to make a nice sunstar. And as the sun crested the hill it would also cast light onto the lupine and balsamroot beyond.

I was down-right giddy.

I waited as the sun crept closer to the rim of  the hill. Then I noticed clouds inching their way towards the sun. I willed the sun to rise a little faster. And then just as it hit the lip of the hill to cast light on my perfect image the stupid cloud passed in between us.

NOOO! Stupid *&$%#@ cloud!

I probably shouldn't have called it a bad word, for just after my outburst I was hit with the clouds outburst of rain. I made a few exposures to salvage the morning and returned to the car and Ed, who had called it quits just before I did.

But I like this image and a cup of coffee and an omelette were perfect right afterward.

No Tripod? No Problem!

Ever head out on a simple hike or walk through the park and come across a scene that makes you stop and pull out your camera? Then you find that the scene is too dark for a fast enough shutter speed to hand hold? You may have even contemplated heading home for tripod, but were afraid to lose the light?

I think we've all been there.

I know I have. As in the image above.

I was able to stay at NatureBridge a couple of  weekends ago with several friends as we headed out to the Washington Coast for the April beach cleanup. A few of us decided to take a walk around Barnes Point where the learning center is located. I grabbed my camera, just in case I saw something to photograph along the way - but not the tripod.

And well, just a few yards down the trail I saw this scene. It's a classic scene of the Olympic Peninsula - moss draped trees, bushy ferns, green forest floor with a criss-cross of fallen trees also covered in moss and a trail luring you farther into the forest.

I had to capture this image. but a quick check of my settings and I knew I'd never be able to hand-hold the camera for a steady image. Glancing around, I saw a tree right next to the trail, so I pressed my camera against the tree and rattled off a few exposures.

I have on occasion used a stump, a rock, a log and even a hiking buddy's shoulder.

Most often when you are caught with a longer than desirable shutter speed, all you need for a steady image is something steady to rest the camera on. And maybe a continuous shutter, so you're not moving the camera with each shutter release.

So next time you're out and see the perfect image but it's a little too dark, find something to brace your camera against.

And then the clouds parted . . .

What do you do to prepare your photographic eye prior to a day's photo trip, or a week's photo voyage? What are your sources for research? Do you pour over guidebooks? Read descriptions on travel blogs? Look at other photographers' works?

Admittedly, I will do all three. Not to copy the work of those before but to understand what to look for as I'm there. How does the light hit certain landmarks during different times of the day? If I know I want to be here at sunrise and there at sunset then I don't have to spend too much time trying to find the places I want to be. And if I'm travelling to photo excursion for just the day, I don't waste precious time finding the image with the light.

So, on a recent trip to Beacon Rock State Park on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge, I flipped through images on google. I had been to Beacon Rock a few times before and climbed to the top of the famed rock. (A little history, the rock was named by Lewis & Clark on their journey west. The rocky thumb sticking up from the river's edge helped guide them along the river.) But I had never seen the rock from the water side of the park. Looking at the images on google, I realized that the river view would be amazing both in the morning light and again in the evening.

So the morning after I got to the park (after midnight, no more camping spots, slept in my car right next to the train tracks - oh yeah, I forgot about the trains), I hopped out of the car and looked eastward towards the lightening sky and saw along the horizon building clouds. Sigh.

Now would you go home after the research, the drive and the train disturbed sleep in your car? I hope your answer is, Heck No! And a good thing too. The weather report said partly cloudy and clouds blow in and out. So maybe, hopefully, all the stars will align and a break in the clouds will let the sun shine though and light the face of Beacon Rock.

I set up my camera on the mooring dock and waited. Talked to another photographer, and waited. Chatted with the fishermen waiting for their friends, and waited. Finally my bladder couldn't wait any longer and I walked back to the shore. Did my business. My dog Zillah did hers. Then we meandered over to the boat launching dock.

And as we got to the end of the dock . . . the clouds parted.