Winding Light: My Journey With Photography

Whip Man, Tamkaliks Pow Wow

2009-07-30T14:52:00.001-07:00

The "Whip Man" takes to the arbor floor during final ceremonies of the Tamkaliks Pow Wow and Friendship Feast of 2009. This celebration, which takes place in the historic Wallowa Valley of Eastern Oregon, is the annual homecoming pow wow hosted by descendants of Chief Joseph's family and Wallowa Band (Niimipu) members of the Nez Perce Tribe. The Tamkaliks Pow Wow, the Nez Perce Tribal Fisheries instrumental involvement in building healthy Salmon populations in Wallowa County, and local land grants and park developments involving the Nez Perce Tribe all represent a long awaited homecoming as well as the dying wish of Chief Joseph for his people to return to their homeland. Until the end of his days Joseph worked and pleaded with the U.S. Government to return his people to their beloved Wallowa (Land Of Winding Waters) beneath the mountains. Now finally, they have come home.

Honored Veterans

2009-07-30T14:52:00.000-07:00

The sun drops as the Veteran's Dance begins on opening night of Tamkaliks, 2009. Veterans are an important and respected part of the Native community. Native Americans have the highest percentage of military enrollment per capita out of any ethnic group in The United States. This almost seems ironic, but really when you think about it who better to defend this beautiful land?

Honoring The Veterans

2009-07-30T02:49:00.000-07:00

A dancer in his regalia watches the Elder Veterans take to the arbor floor during the Veteran's Dance on opening night of Tamkaliks.

Chicken Dance

2009-07-30T02:48:00.000-07:00

A young dancer performs the Chicken Dance on the final night of the Tamkaliks Pow Wow, 2009.

Eagle Chief

2009-07-30T02:47:00.000-07:00

Niimipu Eagle Chief Steve Reubens takes to the arbor floor during the Tamkaliks Pow Wow of 2009.

Veteran's Dance

2009-07-30T02:44:00.000-07:00

A Nez Perce Elder participates in the Veteran's Dance. Tamkaliks Pow Wow, 2009.

Faces of The Niimipu

2009-07-30T02:42:00.000-07:00

Wallowa Band (Niimipu) Nez Perce tribal members dance in their homeland once again.

Among Friends

2009-07-30T02:39:00.000-07:00

Nez Perce Eagle Chief Steve Reubens greets a friend during the Tamkaliks Pow Wow and Friendship Feast of 2009. It is a happy homecoming weekend filled with smiles, old friends, good food, and lots of traditional dancing, drumming, and singing.

Homecoming

2009-07-30T02:36:00.000-07:00

A young Niimipu dancer stands with Paul Howard, great grandson of General O.O. Howard, the general tasked with evicting Chief Joseph and his people from the beautiful Wallowa Valley of Eastern Oregon. Years ago Paul showed up at the Tamkaliks Homecoming Pow Wow and Friendship Feast with long hair just like this, and asked to have it cut off in a ceremony of atonement for the tragic eviction his ancestor executed. (The cutting of hair is considered a thing of sacrifice and grief in many tribal cultures.) Paul has been returning to Tamkaliks ever since, and his hair is now fully re-grown.

River Traditions

2009-07-30T02:22:00.000-07:00

Traditional Nez Perce fisherman Levi Carson uses his net pole to guide him out into the rushing Imnaha River, finding the underwater pathways traveled by Salmon returning to their spawning grounds. The Nez Perce have been fishing this river for thousands of years just like this. The knowledge of how, when, and where they run is passed down from generation to generation.

Levi Fishes

2009-07-30T02:00:00.000-07:00

Nez Perce fisherman Levi Carson casts his net into the Imnaha River that flows out of the Wallowa Mountains and into the mighty Snake River. The Nez Perce have fished Salmon from this river for generations upon generations, and have passed down the knowledge of where exactly in the river the Salmon will swim on their way home to their mountain spawning grounds. These nets used to be made from leather as opposed to nylon, otherwise this process is the same as it was a thousand years ago. In present day, the Nez Perce Tribal Fisheries has been instrumental in restoring a healthy Salmon run to the rivers of Eastern Oregon's Wallowa County. Now once again their children are fed with fresh Wallowa Mountain Salmon.

On The Way To Echo Lake

2009-07-30T01:56:00.000-07:00

This was on a pack load trail run up towards Echo Lake in the Eagle Cap Wilderness this Summer. There were many fallen trees across the trail from last winter, which certainly made for a challenging trail run! (Not too mention that trail is viciously steep in some spots.) The soft light pouring across this lush cascade was enough to make me pause and get lost in the forest for a moment...

Miss Shirley's Buckleshiners

2009-07-30T01:55:00.000-07:00

My friend Matt Bell playing some of his good ol' timey Jazz tunes at the Terminal Gravity Brew Pub in Enterprise, Oregon, home of the famous TG IPA and some pretty good food as well!

Independence Day at Wallowa Lake

2009-07-30T01:50:00.000-07:00

A shot of the annual fireworks over Wallowa Lake with a full Moon on the Fourth of July this year. Hundreds of people gather on the beach to watch, and many more around the lake.

The Sun Arrives

2009-07-30T01:38:00.000-07:00

The sun finally rises above Ruby Peak after a long cold night of "survival practice".

Carrying nothing but our day hiking gear, my friend Justin Sullivan and I traversed Ruby Peak in the Wallowa Mountain Range and made a shelter on its South Ridge and spent the night. This kind of camping is fun if the weather is friendly, and good practice for an unplanned or emergency stay in the wilderness.

The Sun Approaches

2009-07-30T01:37:00.000-07:00

Rich color seeping over the horizon and into the Eastern sky is often a welcome and awaited event after a cold night in the wilderness.

Not Too Dark On Ruby Peak

2009-07-30T01:34:00.000-07:00

Piercing through a dappled veil of clouds, moonlight washes over the mountainside. An occasional moth flutters toward our headlamps, while a cool night breeze carries up the scents and sounds of the darkened woods below.

In The Dark

2009-07-30T01:33:00.000-07:00

A fire burns on the mountain, providing warmth and comfort to wanderers in the forest on a dark night. One hesitates to venture out past it's protective glow...

Night Falls On Ruby Peak

2009-07-30T01:31:00.000-07:00

A darkened forest falls quiet with the arrival of night...yet soon reborn with the first twinkling of the stars in the clear mountain sky. New life, found in the glimmers and shadows of rocks and limbs, will awaken, roused by the sprawling Milky Way above and the bright Moon beside it...

Night Falls On Ruby Peak II

2009-07-30T01:28:00.000-07:00

Night arrives in splendid color on the Western slopes of Ruby Peak.

Night Falls On Ruby Peak III

2009-07-30T01:27:00.000-07:00

The Western ridges of the Wallowa Mountain Range stretch toward the setting sun and the distant valley as night settles on the forest.

Heading For Shelter

2009-07-30T01:24:00.000-07:00

Heading down towards the treeline to construct a survival shelter and make a stand against the approaching night.

Ruby Peak Survival Exercise

2009-07-30T01:18:00.000-07:00

Justin looking off the South Ridge of Ruby Peak during our traverse over it to make a "survival camp" near the treeline at about 8,000 feet elevation.

Sometimes we will go out with only the supplies you would normally take on a short day hike and spend the night in the wilderness for fun, and practice in case the situation ever arises unplanned. Usually supplies consist of a couple bottles of water, some snacks, matches-lighters, assorted warm clothes, 1 folded pocket sized rain parka and 2 folded pocket sized heat reflective emergency "space blankets" (which can both be found anywhere camping gear is sold, and cost a couple dollars), a pack, rubber bands or duct tape, a knife, and of course my camera. These are things I never go hiking without, for any amount of time. They are also things I can make a sufficient enough camp to survive at least one night in almost any kind of conditions. I have had to test these tools unplanned on more than one occasion. (I will say that the planned "practice" exercises interestingly enough usually take place when the weather forecast is good!)

Monday Afternoon

2009-07-30T01:16:00.000-07:00

Heavy June clouds dapple the Wallowa Valley with ever changing shadow, filtering afternoon sunlight into grand pools of color and warmth, then drifting over the land to shed their life giving waters on earth and field.

Wallowa Valley Afternoon

2009-07-30T01:15:00.000-07:00

Warm light breaks through valley mist that hovers beside the Wallowa Mountains and water laden clouds sail away to share their payload with the landscape.

Clouds On The Valley

2009-07-30T01:14:00.000-07:00

Dark clouds roll over The Wallowa Valley of Eastern Oregon, painting the hillsides with their shadows and dampening the warm dirt that eagerly waits between the grasses.

Afternoon Thunderstorm

2009-07-30T01:05:00.000-07:00

thunder breaks hot silence of the day
bringing torrential salvation
released from a dark fortress in the sky
that was quietly built
on the weighted shoulders of afternoon

A Delicious Pear

2009-07-30T01:03:00.000-07:00

I've never really done still lifes, and this probably isn't much of one. However I was just struck by the shape of this Pear with its single leaf in my kitchen window. (It was quite delicious as well.)

Saturday Morning

2009-07-30T01:02:00.000-07:00

One morning last May after working all night, I decided to drive up the Alder Slope road near my home to try and get a sunrise photograph over the Wallowa Valley. Driving fast up the gravel road towards the foothills of the Wallowa Mountains, I was having a hard time finding a scene that I felt would capture the "glory" of a Wallowa Valley sunrise in the Spring. One of those typical nature photography moments where the light is changing fast, and you can feel the "shot" slipping away as you search for content and composition that captures the essence of the moment. I just wasn't finding it. Scanning my rearview mirror as I raced up the road chased by the fading color of the morning light, I was struck by the abstract beauty of the dew dripping down my window against the morning sun. Realizing that perhaps my expectation of a "glorious" mountain sunrise was limiting my vision, I stopped the car and focused my camera a little closer than I had originally planned. Another lesson learned in my ongoing journey with light and photography. I don't want to "pre-visualize" things to the point that it limits my vision and I miss the shot altogether.

Aspen Sunset

2009-07-30T01:01:00.000-07:00

The sun slips below the Aspen lined horizon in a meadow near my home in the Wallowa Valley of Eastern Oregon last Spring (2009).

Aspen and Spring Fields

2009-07-30T00:56:00.000-07:00

I always stare at this stand of Aspens when I drive past them, drawn in by the texture, color, and depth of the trees and meadow... Finally I stopped and took a couple photographs one Spring evening as the days' light drifted off behind the Western horizon.

Senior Portrait

2009-07-30T00:55:00.002-07:00

Senior Portrait

2009-07-30T00:55:00.001-07:00

Heading Home

2009-07-30T00:55:00.000-07:00

My friend Justin Sullivan heading back to the trailhead after a snow camping trip in The Eagle Cap Wilderness last March (2009). About a foot of powder dumped on our camp the night before.

Cold Morning

2009-07-30T00:53:00.000-07:00

My Great Pyrenees/Akbash dog Kira looking in the tent after a cold night snow camping in The Eagle Cap Wilderness last March. She makes a great camp guard, even in 4 feet of snow!

My Window 14

2009-07-29T16:16:00.000-07:00

Sometimes just staring out my window can fill me with inspiration and passion for the outdoor world. I have felt at times like the walls of my house are blocking me in some way or another. In a metaphorical sense, having to do with perceived "failures" in life, or unhappiness with a present situation. Or just in a physical sense, in that when I am not out exploring and photographing the wild outdoors and embracing my passion for being there and a part of it, I am thinking about the next time I will be, or remembering fondly past experiences. So occasionally, (ok frequently), I'll just stare out my window and daydream of wilderness adventures and travel, and making plans for future time spent in nature or on the road...

One day I realized that I didn't need to feel trapped by those walls. My passion, and my memory and imagination, freed me. That love for all things wild and beautiful lives inside of me. I realized that the beauty of the natural world extends past the wilderness boundary and comes home with us in our hearts. So gazing out my window, it was all there. Vibrant and alive right there with me at home. I decided to challenge myself to see past those walls and find that wild beauty wherever I was. I am starting with this photo series, which will go on indefinitely I think. It may end up being a lifetime project.

This is sort of an artistic challenge to myself to see if I can create a series of unique images that are all taken through a window in my living room. I want to learn to see something mundane like the same window I look out every day, differently every time I look at it. Now that would be cool! I'm not saying that I will be able to do it, but it will be fun trying! Hopefully in working towards that I can grow as a photographer, embrace further my passion for the wild outdoors, and learn to not be hindered by the walls put before me in life.

My Window 13

2009-07-29T16:14:00.000-07:00

My Window 12

2009-07-29T16:13:00.001-07:00

My Window 11

2009-07-29T16:13:00.000-07:00

My Window 10

2009-07-29T16:10:00.000-07:00

My Window 9

2009-07-29T16:08:00.000-07:00

My Window 8

2009-07-29T16:07:00.000-07:00

My Window 7

2009-07-29T16:05:00.000-07:00

My Window 6

2009-07-29T16:04:00.000-07:00

My Window 5

2009-07-29T16:03:00.000-07:00

My Window 4

2009-07-29T16:02:00.000-07:00

My Window 3

2009-07-29T16:00:00.000-07:00

My Window 2

2009-07-29T15:57:00.000-07:00

My Window

2009-07-29T15:56:00.000-07:00

This is sort of an artistic challenge to myself to see if I can create a series of unique images that are all taken through a window in my living room. I want to learn to see something mundane like the same window I look out every day, differently every time I look at it. Now that would be cool! I'm not saying that I will be able to do it, but it should be fun trying!

Wallowa Lake

2009-07-29T15:54:00.000-07:00

Walking along the shore of Wallowa Lake last January I was taken with the abstract shapes and lines in the pressure cracked ice. The Lake had a good freeze last year. It doesn't always freeze completely over now. In years past it was annually, and I have heard tales of log trucks driving across it back in the Seventies.

Pond In Morning Fog

2009-07-29T15:42:00.001-07:00

I went driving looking for a photograph on the country roads near my house one morning last December after taking Mia to school. The low hanging valley fog was breaking up and the sun was beginning to burn through in places, so I knew a photograph was going to happen somewhere. I just had to go find it! I snapped a few along the way until I drove past this pond and saw that this was going to be the spot. I spent about a half hour in that area watching the fog and light change and taking pictures. These two were my favorites.

Pond In Morning Fog II

2009-07-29T15:33:00.000-07:00

Just another one of those beautiful jewels lying alongside a Wallowa County road on a foggy December morning.

Moon Over East Peak

2009-07-29T11:47:00.000-07:00

The moon rising on a descent from East Peak. I suppose this photo is one of the payoffs of hiking out in the dark. (Of course I forgot my headlamp, and I'm quite certain we were followed down the trail by a Cougar on this hike. So if I had been mauled in the dark I may not have thought the payoff was quite so good! As it was we survived with a couple stumbles and scrapes, but no Cougar bites!)

Here Kitty Kitty...

2009-07-29T11:46:00.000-07:00

This is a rather large, and fresh Cougar (Mountain Lion) track Sol and I came across on our descent from East Peak. It was shortly before dark, and we were just about to drop down onto the East Fork trail and hike out about 5 miles in the dark. Hiking in the dark is never the most easy feeling when there is a large Cougar lurking about, probably trailing you. The fact is that in the Wallowas there are so many Cougars that you are likely being trailed by one at least 5 out of 10 times you hike there. That's without even finding a fresh track like that. They will often follow you out of curiosity, without hunting intent. However they are also great opportunists! Oregon and California have the highest populations of Cougar in the United States. Cougars are native to the United States. Wallowa County has one of the highest cougar populations in Oregon. So, I think it would be safe to say that Wallowa County has one of the highest cougar populations in the world! I have had two come through my yard, and a friend of mine right in the middle of town had one on his back porch. Yet I don't know anyone who has been attacked by one. Since getting my dog Kira, a hundred pound Great Pyrenees that was bred to defend from predators, I don't worry as much about it. However she was not with us on this trip. Nor did we remember the headlamp. We stumbled down the trail using fading cell phone light as our guide to the sharp rocks in the middle of the trail, often turning to look for the green glow of Cougar eyes following us through the dark. The thought of those eyes back there will certainly keep your feet moving on a night like that! They will generally only attack if they have the element of surprise, like from a tree or rock above you, or run at you from the side or behind. So it doesn't hurt to have your hiking buddy walk behind you. (Tell him it's because you want to make sure he doesn't trip on any of the rocks in the trail.)

Descending East Peak

2009-07-29T11:43:00.000-07:00

Descending into Aneroid Basin from the summit of East Peak with my friend Sol, who had recently returned from Iraq. We left the summit of The Wallowa Lake Tramway and traversed over East Peak and down into Aneroid Canyon, coming out at The Wallowa Lake Trailhead. It's a great hike, and a quick way to get up and spend some time at elevation. You can also traverse Hidden Peak and Aneroid Mountain before you drop down if you have enough time. We didn't on this trip. (We actually hiked out in the dark once again. (Imagine that!) Got a late start.

Descending Sacajawea

2009-07-29T11:40:00.000-07:00

This is my favorite high mountain meadow. It is a lush interlude on the descent of the West face of Mt. Sacajawea. One of the great beauties of the mountains I think is the balance between serene beautiful moments in nature, with the constant awareness of your own mortality, and the simplest things required to live; like breathing, drinking, eating, and not succumbing to gravity in one form or another! The moments in the mountains that require all your skill and attention to maintain your existence, just to do a simple thing like move five feet, provide clarity to the blissful moments when you realize you are completely enveloped in the beauty of nature and this incredible planet! That balance makes it all the more beautiful in my opinion.

Descending Sacajawea

2009-07-29T11:39:00.000-07:00

It's best to slow down a bit when you get into big jagged loose rocks like this. You don't want to knock one of these loose and have it come crashing down moments later and shatter your leg, or skull!

Descending Sacajawea

2009-07-29T11:35:00.000-07:00

Scree skiing off the face of Mt. Sacajawea. This can be a very fun way to descend a mountain. However you must be careful not to start too big of a rock slide, and watch for boulders and rocks you knock loose as you pass by, which can then bounce down onto you. You should also go in shifts when you're with a climbing partner and the path is not wide enough to descend side by side, making sure to clear out of the rock fall path before the person above you descends, as they can knock rocks down onto you. When you find a nice soft flute of small rocks, gravel and sand that just carries you, it can be like surfing down the mountain. So much fun!

On The Summit of Sacajawea

2009-07-29T11:30:00.000-07:00

Staring off the summit of Mt. Sacajawea after climbing it via The Dragon's Tail, the ridge coming along the right side of this photo. We descend from the summit by running or "scree skiing" down the shale and scree slope on the right and into the hanging basin below. After that we will follow old goat trails down into the canyon. (One should be careful following goat trails if you don't know where they go by the way! Sometimes they deposit you on a cliff face!)

The Dragon's Tail

2009-07-29T11:29:00.000-07:00

Mount Sacajawea in the Eagle Cap Wilderness. I love this mountain. And I love climbing it by this route, which follows the ridge pictured here, "The Dragon's Tail", to the summit above. It is a classic mountain ridge ascent with all characteristics of such. A beautiful approach, a very steep gain to the top of the ridge while still in the trees, and then a long narrow back which at times requires some moderately technical scrambling, and provides over a thousand feet of vertical exposure in some spots. The type of view you look down on and vertigo pulls you towards it, almost as if you feel gravity reaching up from the ground far below and grabbing you by the shirt collar, pulling you down like a drowning man. Best not to stare too long at times like that! Just keep climbing. Look at where you put your hands and feet instead! However this route doesn't require you to navigate up those exposures. It follows along the top of them instead, and sometimes around large outcrops along the ridge line, breaking across the tops of long scree slopes. That's the beauty of a classic ridge ascent. It carries you to the top while revealing the beauty of the mountain in all it's splendor. So far this is my favorite mountain I have climbed. I continue to go back and climb it, and photograph it. Drawn there like a moth to flame.

Climbing The Dragon's Tail

2009-07-29T11:16:00.000-07:00

Looking down on the "Sketchy Spot", where you first break the treeline climbing Mt. Sacajawea via the Dragon's Tail route. This is at the top of a 25 foot dihedral in loose feathery limestone that you must free climb. After which you must balance or scoot across a 6 foot knife edge with 200 feet of exposure on one side, and several hundred on the other. It's one of those places in the wilderness that reminds you of your own mortality, and the fact that it is peering over your shoulder watching every move you make.

Ruby Peak Sunset

2009-07-29T11:12:00.000-07:00

Thick forest fire haze clouds the mountain skyline and turns the sun to a glowing red orb in the sky.

Ruby Peak Sunset II

2009-07-29T11:07:00.000-07:00

On my mountain adventures I often find myself hiking out in the dark. This day was no exception to that probability. There are many reasons for this tendency I think, not the least of which would be my aptitude for being late, which includes late to leave the trailhead. Then there is the fact that I am loathe to leave the sanctity and peaceful beauty of a high mountain summit, or any pristine wilderness destination. After working so hard to get to that moment of rest and appreciation for what you have accomplished and the beauty that surrounds you, it's difficult to get up and leave to go back to the "real world". (Although if you ask me those high mountain summits are the "real world", and this crazy chaotic mass of social humanity we immerse our lives in is the escapist reality.) I consider my adventures into the wilderness my escape TO reality! So I hate heading back, and that is another reason I linger and end up hiking out in the dark. One more reason would be that as any nature photographer knows, right before sunset is the best light to shoot in, when the late sunlight finally reveals the true beauty of the landscape in all it's glory. These are the moments we wait for as photographers, and they come right before dark. This is why I so often find myself stumbling down the trail in darkness, albeit with a heart full of fond memories and a camera full of photos to accompany them. Yet there can be a price to pay. Usually in the form of scrapes and bruises from sticks or rocks hiding in the dark, or stumbling on unseen obstacles. However on this particular instance, I almost paid by being mauled by an angry mother bear.

The delicious little purple Huckleberry treats I spent so much time picking and eating on the way up, which also contributed to my "lateness", should have been my first warning... the fresh bear scat full of berry seeds I stepped over hurriedly just before dark should have been my second warning. But in my distraction, and then my hurry to exit the darkened woods, I paid them no heed. One more wilderness lesson learned. Storming down the steep trail in late twilight just light enough not to put your headlamp on as it will ruin your night vision, I heard a hissing snorting noise and the scrambling of an animal scurrying up a tree to the right and in front of me about 50 feet. Looking towards the dark stand of trees it came from I saw nothing. Judging from the sound I knew it wasn't too large, perhaps maybe a Raccoon or Porcupine, both which will hiss when scared. My dog Kira who was still just a puppy, began growling and barking at the stand of trees. That's when I heard a much larger animal stomping around under the tree. In my gut I already knew what it was, but my mind wanted to tell me briefly that maybe it was an Elk under the tree, and a Porcupine in the tree! That still makes me laugh. Hoping against odds I guess... anyhow I began yelling at the noise loudly telling it to "get out of here"!!!! No sounds of running away in response, as would have certainly been the case if it were an Elk. Mustering a heart pounding effort to walk past the stand of trees and peer on the other side to ascertain what it was, I walked gently down the trail to look. As I was able to see around the stand of trees I saw it's back broadside to me, about chest high. The light just enough to make out the reddish brown tufts of hair along her back and shoulders. I watched as the large Cinnamon Black Bear turned towards me. About 50 feet away, I knew I had no time to grab my knife or light, or anything inside my pack. Fighting the urge to run, I began yelling and banging my trekking poles together as hard as I could, standing my ground with Kira cowering behind me. Turning to protect her cub that had scrambled up the tree, she began bouncing up and down and back and forth on her feet and pawing at the ground in front of her. I heard a deep kind of snorting, and will always remember those shoulders in the dim twilight moving back and forth with powerful intimidation. I also remember a brief foretelling flash in my head, picturing myself actually fighting with that bear, stabbing at it or in it's mouth with my trekking poles, or trying to grab at it's jaws and keep them away from me or pull them apart... all flashing through my brain in a brief moment of true potential reality, like that feeling when your car skids off the road. Maybe it was the confusion of human and dog smell, combined with inherent poor eyesight and falling darkness, but she did not charge. After a moment it became apparent that it was just posturing and fearful bluffing on either end, both of us waiting to see what the other would do. I gently began side stepping down the trail, watching her dark shape for movement in my direction as I disappeared into the woods. Once out of view I wasted no time exiting those woods, although I was much louder in doing so, banging my trekking poles and singing or making loud grunts and noises as I walked. Mindful of the thicker berry patches I had encountered farther down the trail and the potential for another encounter.

One year later as I write this I am thinking about those delicious Huckleberries popping out along the trail up there, and my dog is much bigger now, and it's not THAT late yet today...

Wallowa Valley Sunset

2009-07-12T03:43:00.000-07:00

I love where I live.

Three Birds On A Wire

2009-07-12T03:42:00.000-07:00

This just caught my eye as I was driving out of the Imnaha Canyon.

Ranch Seco Recreation Park, CA

2009-07-12T03:40:00.000-07:00

I know, kinda freaky right? This is at a public swimming and recreation area on the grounds of the now defunct Rancho Seco Nuclear Power Station near Sacramento, CA. It is proclaimed to be completely safe, and much of it converted to a park that hosts thousands of swimmers per year, and many events including triathlons and public ceremonies. Ironic. Hopefully they are right about the "safety' of those waters! (One dip was enough for me!)

Late At The Lake

2009-07-12T03:37:00.000-07:00

Moonlight dances across the water, embracing the happy heart of an old soul smiling in a new world.

(A nice moment with Mia on the dock at Wallowa Lake after I finished a late night photo shoot last summer.)

Senior Portrait

2009-07-12T03:36:00.003-07:00

Portrait shoot at my house.

Engagement

2009-07-12T03:36:00.002-07:00

Portrait shoot.

Musician Portrait

2009-07-12T03:36:00.001-07:00

Musician Matthew Morris.

Musician Portrait

2009-07-12T03:36:00.000-07:00

Musician Matthew Morris.

Calderas Restaurant

2009-07-12T03:35:00.000-07:00

Commercial shoot.

Calderas Restaurant/Carman Beef

2009-07-12T03:28:00.000-07:00

Commercial shoot.

Carman Ranch

2009-07-12T03:25:00.000-07:00

These are from a commercial shoot I really enjoyed doing for Carman Natural Grass Fed Beef. What a beautiful ranch and family! Great people, beautiful ranch, and delicious steak to boot!

Carman Ranch

2009-07-12T03:23:00.000-07:00

Commercial shoot.

Carman Ranch

2009-07-12T03:22:00.000-07:00

Commercial shoot.

Carman Ranch

2009-07-12T03:19:00.000-07:00

Commercial shoot.

Carman Ranch

2009-07-12T03:12:00.000-07:00

Commercial shoot.

Carman Ranch

2009-07-12T02:59:00.000-07:00

Commercial shoot.

Aspen

2009-07-12T02:57:00.001-07:00

Deeply inhaled mountain breath guides me up the aspen lined trail. My spirit embraces the whisper of heart shaped leaves dancing in the afternoon air as it rises from the ground to meet the evening sky. Craggy peaks watch in loud silence as my small earthly form drifts through tree and rock below, reminding my foot to fall lightly, and remember my steps that they may guide me back to their watchful gaze once again...

Sawtooth Mountain

2009-05-25T10:20:00.000-07:00

When I was 6 years old my mom took my 12 year old brother and I backpacking in the wilderness behind this mountain. This was my first backpacking trip. On our second day up there we climbed the peak from the backside of the direction you see it from in this picture. That was the first mountain I ever climbed. On our way back down my brother ran ahead of us exploring the mountain slopes. Suddenly my mother and I heard a terrified scream. We ran to see what had happened and discovered Larry at the bottom of a glacial slope with a severely sprained ankle. He had decided it would be a good idea to slide down the snowy slope by what is known as "glissading", or skiing on your feet. Not seeing the 16 foot drop at the bottom of the slope when he started, he was unable to stop when he got to it and flew off the ice into some jagged rocks. It could have been much worse. However he could not walk.

My 5'1" mother managed to carry him about a 20 yards before she realized the task ahead of her was impossible. So we stopped and prepared a little spot to hole up. We were about 3 miles from our tent and camp, and did not have sleeping gear or cold weather equipment. After giving us all the snacks and water we brought along, my mother then reassured us that she would return soon, and began the 6-7 mile trek out to get help. I remember being scared, and my older brother moaning in pain most of the time. I was able to distract myself and play with a small parachute army man toy I brought for awhile, but when darkness came I just cuddled up to my brother and waited fearfully through the night, convinced that every rustle in the bushes was a bear or mountain lion. Somewhere in the wee hours of the morning we heard shouts and whistles calling for us coming up the mountain. We both began shouting at the top of our lungs as help came running in. My mother had hiked all the way back to the trailhead and car, before realizing that her keys were still in our original camp, which she had hurriedly bypassed. She was forced to walk another 3 miles to the closest house and call for help. A group of good friends and avid outdoorsmen, one of whom several years later became my stepdad, flew out of bed at the news and raced up that mountain with flashlights and emergency equipment to retrieve us. This was my introduction to camping in the wilderness at six years old. And it began a life-long addiction to wilderness adventure and mountain climbing. I think partly realizing the awesome respect that is commanded by the mountains, but also facing my fear and surviving adversity and danger in that environment, burned into me a passion for the natural world and our place in it. I've been going back ever since. Thanks mom.

Twin Peaks

2009-05-25T03:32:00.000-07:00

Afternoon sun dropping behind Twin Peaks late winter of 2007-08. Just noticed this driving home after picking Mia up from school one day. She got some great shots as well. They say Twin Peaks used to be two equal peaks, but the top of one was blasted off by lightning.

Winter Texture

2009-05-21T02:47:00.000-07:00

I was just struck by the color and texture in this scene while driving down Hurricane Creek Highway one day.

Aspen Lovers

2009-05-21T02:42:00.000-07:00

This always made me think of two lovers embracing.

Moonrise Over Sacjawea

2009-05-21T02:38:00.000-07:00

I love this mountain.

Moonrise Over Sacjawea

2009-05-21T02:36:00.000-07:00

Once again my favorite mountain. The way it and the mountains around it lay create thermals that cause incredible cloud formations to drift over it quite frequently.

Moonrise Over Prairie Creek

2009-05-21T02:33:00.000-07:00

I actually used a tri-pod in these last two shots! That's unlike me these days.

Winding Waters

2009-05-21T02:32:00.000-07:00

The name Wallowa Valley comes from the Nez Perce word for it, Wallowa (Wah-low-ah), which translates to "Land of Winding Waters". This is where the famous Chief Joseph and his band were from, and so cruelly driven out of so I can live here now and take pictures like this. Hmmm. Funny how things are never just black and white in life. Many people live in this valley who are deeply moved by the tragedy that took place here just over a hundred years ago. Yet what if "justice" had been done, and the original inhabitants of this land were allowed the same property rights that I and my neighbors enjoy now? I certainly wouldn't be enjoying those rights on this land that's for sure! I could never justify someone's beloved homeland being torn from them, and then have them forced under inhumane conditions from it into a desperate life of poverty! Yet I would fight just as fiercely as they did to keep MY home on that very land... How do we reconcile these things as Americans? I certainly don't claim to have the answer. But I think it's a question worth asking. If nothing else that question can motivate us to find a more balanced way of progressing as a Nation than we have in the past. We must not turn our mistakes into patterns of repetition, but use them to grow as a people and a Country. (Leave it to me to take a simple landscape photograph and turn it into a political diatribe!)

Sacajawea Sentinel

2009-05-17T17:01:00.000-07:00

Got lucky and saw this big Mountain Goat Billy pose for me as I came over the crest of Dragon's Tail Ridge while summiting Mt. Sacajawea one Fall. He just sat there and stared at me long enough to grab my camera, change my lens, and fire off about 8 frames. Then he turned and walked off into space. The way they always do. It's like they don't have to obey the laws of Gravity.

Call Of The Wild

2009-05-16T17:57:00.000-07:00

My friend Teysha lit up by Aplenglow coming off the summit of Ruby Peak at sunset. Her name literally means "Wolf Friend" in my tribal language, Caddo. (I am an enrolled member of the Caddo Indian Tribe of Oklahoma, although I was born and raised in Oregon.) Teysha was one quarter wolf, like I am one quarter Caddo. She was shot by an unfriendly rancher while visiting his dogs one night because she truly did have the "Call Of The Wild" in her genes, and she loved to roam and explore. And make new friends. Just like me. I miss her.

Heading Down Late

2009-05-16T17:35:00.000-07:00

This is a problem I consistently have, no matter what time I leave to go up. Maybe partly because the best light is always at high altitude right before sunset. There is no other kind of light that compares to "Alpenglow". So it's nearly impossible to put the camera down and start moving! Plus, I just don't like to leave a summit. Standing alone on top of a 10,000 foot peak in the hidden back country somewhere is true peace. There is no other feeling like it. And I wont try to express it with words because I can't. I am always loathe to leave that feeling of wholeness and well being that I have in those situations. But everything has it's due. And spending the night on a cliff somewhere because you messed around too long, can be one of those dues. And I don't recommend down-climbing in the dark unnecessarily to anyone, wether in familiar or unfamiliar surroundings. I spent a night on these slopes, which are supposed to be "familiar" to me, because it is always better safe than sorry when hiking alone in the wilderness. And huddling by a fire and not sleeping for a night so that you can find a safe route through loose rock cliffs, is better than lying with a broken leg or neck off trail somewhere until you die or someone finds you. But before you do any of those things, just leave the summit in time to get back by dark!

Midnight Solace

2009-05-15T15:23:00.000-07:00

Trying to stay warm during an unexpected overnight stay in The Eagle Cap Wilderness. (Got caught up in some cliffs after dark and had to wait out the night huddled by this fire until it was light enough to see my way down. It's always better to be safe than sorry when you're hiking solo in the wilderness. At least I had my camera!)

Long Night

2009-05-15T15:17:00.000-07:00

This is the fire that kept the cougars from eating me and the Hypothermia at bay after an emergency overnight stay high in the cliffs of The Eagle Cap Wilderness.

Sunrise Over The Wallowa Valley

2009-05-15T15:09:00.000-07:00

A much welcomed sight after a long, uncomfortable, cold, unexpected night surviving in the Eagle Cap Wilderness.

Rubber Boa

2009-05-15T14:59:00.000-07:00

A new friend we made on a hike up to Slick Rock Falls one day.

Vintage Fashion

2009-05-15T03:07:00.001-07:00

This series is from a shoot I did for a vintage clothing store. The building we used is a homestead in the remote Oregon back country abandoned in the 1950's.

Vintage Fashion

2009-05-15T03:03:00.000-07:00

Fashion series for vintage clothing store.

Vintage Fashion

2009-05-15T03:00:00.000-07:00

Fashion series for vintage clothing store.

Vintage Fashion

2009-05-15T02:56:00.000-07:00

From a series I did for a vintage clothing store.

Vintage Fashion

2009-05-15T02:52:00.000-07:00

Ok we're back on track chronologically. This is from a series of fashion shots I did for a vintage clothing store.