Winter is a difficult time for me as a photographer. When the weather doesn’t tend to cooperate, and finding ways to use my camera become scarce, I tend to lose a lot of my motivation to get out there and shoot. Near the beginning of 2009 (last year) this sluggish feeling hit me really hard, and I did not enjoy it one bit. So for this year, I have remained determined to find ways to shoot the things I love. And in this case, I love shooting bright and colorful lights!

My good friends Haven, Káli, Matt, and Karri agreed to challenge the cold night with me and meet up to spin some fun LED toys while I took lots of pictures. The biggest challenge for us was figuring out a location. Then I remembered the fantastic wedding I shot this past summer, where the bride and groom introduced me to Tanner Springs Park, a very unique block-sized park in downtown Portland, with many incredible features. The main feature being a wavy wall of steel I-beams, rusted and of varying heights, shooting out of the ground to create the most amazing background element.

After we took a few shots in front of the wall, I was happy to see how well the lines of the I-beams, as well as the boardwalk beneath, complimented the curves and patterns created by the LED hoops and staffs these incredible performers were wielding.  We were lucky enough to have custom built LED toys for this shoot by Karri and Mark, the creative minds behind SpinStyle!  I am so pleased with how the shots turned out, I just can’t get enough of this kind of shooting.

We then moved on to the Eastbank Esplanade across the river, so we could get some photos with downtown Portland as the background. I just love the view of our city from just north of the Hawthorne Bridge and have always wanted to shoot performers there. I think I’ll set up a fire spinning shoot there next. It’s especially handy since the fire department is literally right next to where we were shooting.

We wrapped up the day on a somewhat sad note, as this was to be Káli’s last shoot for me for a while. She is off to South Korea to study and begin a new adventure in life. We’ll miss you girl! Thank you for all the amazing performances you allowed me to shoot!

Lots more pics in the full gallery, organized by performer!

Recently, I wandered just out my front door and up Mt. Tabor to capture a panorama of Portland at sunset.  However, the panorama was not the only shot I brought home.  In going along with my goal this year to try and capture as much of the Fall colors as I can, I tried to get as many different shots from that location.  The colors were still shining brightly, even though all around town the leaves are piling up along the roadsides and in people’s yards, leaving the trees bare.  I knew this may be my last chance to get the full effect of Autumn sunlight in Portland.

The full gallery includes some grand views of the city, HDR shots to capture the full range of light, details of the colors, and even some impressionistic shots throughout the park.  Check it out!

For the past year, I’ve kicked myself for not taking the time to photograph all the beautiful foliage last Fall. With Autumn being my favorite time of the year, I guess I feel it is my duty to capture the incredible color and light that the month of October brings to us in the Pacific Northwest. Not just that, but if I could, I would freeze the world in an Autumnal state. The only way I know how to do that for real is with my camera. So after a year of feeling frustrated and disappointed, I wasn’t about to let this time of year pass by without a few images making their permanent homes within my photo archives.

Timing is everything when it comes to Fall colors.  Within a week, or two at the most, the leaves go from brilliantly colorful to quickly becoming damp and on the ground.  Leaves on the ground rarely lend themselves to great photographs.  I watched and I waited as the days and weeks went by, seeing more and more change come to the trees around Portland.  I debated on a few simple photo walks throughout town, as there are many neighborhoods in Portland that simply come alive with color this time of year. But I really wanted to get deep in the forests to satisfy this craving. As I felt I was witnessing the peak of the beautiful colors, I decided to spend the day in Silver Falls State Park.

Waterfalls are incredibly satisfying to shoot, and Silver Falls State Park has plenty of them.  Ten, in fact, along the Trail of Ten Falls.  My plan was to hit up all of them, as  I trek along the 8.5 mile trail throughout the day.  Hiking with the purpose to take photographs is very different for me than when I’m just hiking to hike.  I spend much more time per mile along the trail, usually stopping several times to unpack my tripod and other gear in order to get a specific shot, and shoot it right.  Most of the time this means spending a lot of time getting my feet wet, literally.  The best shots are usually from right within the creek or river, which means that waterproof hiking boots are a must-have.

Also a must-have for me is my Lowepro DryZone Rover pack.  This fantastic camera bag both carries and protects my gear, while providing a hydration pack along the way.  It does this with a hefty waterproof compartment that holds my lenses, memory cards, and other gear highly sensitive to water and simple moisture.  While hiking, I use heavy duty straps to clip my Canon 5D directly to the shoulder straps, distributing its weight along with the rest of my gear.  The straps keep my camera safe when I need to stabilize myself with my hands and arms while navigating difficult terrain, but it is still accessible to take hand-held photos anytime.  My carbon-fiber tripod is held snugly by the integrated tripod compartment, making it easy to take it along wherever my hike takes me. Unfortunately, having all my gear neatly tucked away and secure means that it does take a fair amount of time to stop and set up for a shot, so when I hike and shoot, the going is slow.  But that’s just fine with me, the end results are almost always worth it.

Silver Falls State Park was glowing with color this day, and I was so thankful to be there within 90 minutes of my home in Portland.  I tried to add some variety with my shots, exploring more attempts at impressionism photography using the colors of Autumn.   Other more realistic shots really benefitted from the use of my circular polarizer, cutting through the reflections on the water, the rocks, and most importantly, the leaves themselves, bringing out their rich color.

There is a gallery of 29 photos from my hike available, with more highlights below.