Skagit Valley Tulips 2015 – Best Images

Posted on April 18, 2015 by Andy Porter

I went to the tulip and daffodil fields often this year.

Daffodils, Morning Light

Eighteen times to be precise.

Yellow Tulips and a Smile

A new record for visits in one year.

Backlighting, my favorite

The Daffodils started in February.

Stars!

As of today, April 17, the tulips are done.

Beheading

Finished, kaput.

Pink River

Maximus

I am not sorry, I’m relieved.

Tulip Selfie

My Tulip Goal for this year was two-fold: to get an image of a huge double rainbow directly over the blazing tulip fields AND to somehow capture an image of dark skies over the tulips being ripped asunder by searing bolts of lightning.

Converging

The Barn

Mud

Pinks

I failed miserably on both of these counts.

MUD!

All of these image, and many more, are for sale as fine art prints as well as Canvas Wrapped Prints. Here is the place to view and buy!

Love the back lit scene

Reflection

Water in the rows

Loner

Isolation Lake, Enchantments Alpine Lakes Wilderness

Posted on April 16, 2015 by Andy Porter

Isolation Lake is the first or last lake you visit on your trip into the Enchantment Basin, depending upon which direction you are hiking the loop.

Campers along Isolation’s shore

If you managed to hike up Aasgard Pass (more than 2,000 ft. elevation gain in less that a mile) than its your first.

Camped at Isolation Lake, Enchantments, Alpine Lakes Wilderness

Isolation Lake Panorama

If took the long route past Snowy Lake, then Isolation will be your last lake in the high country before heading down and out.
But either way, its a fantastic place.

Isolation Lake

High above timber line it is a world of rocks and ice.

Isolation Lake, Enchantments

Blue, gray and white are the colors here.
The air is crisp, sharp, clean.
A meadow is nearby with a small copse of larch hiding the toilet.

Isolation Lake

Sunset brings new colors, reds and orange, magenta and violet.

Isolation Lake

Later the stars appear.

Prints are available here!

Camped at Isolation

Dome in a moon scape

Isolation is a world of wonder.

Tulip Photo Tours

Posted on April 4, 2015 by Andy Porter

Last night I was out conducting a photo tour of the tulip fields and encountered this lovely lady with a very photogenic umbrella. The conditions were favorable for a very nice image.

Stormy Skies, Sun ad an Umbrella

Tulip Tour Info is Here.

Palouse Falls State Park

Posted on March 31, 2015 by Andy Porter

I made a trip last weekend to Palouse Falls State Park.
Caught the sunset.

Palouse Falls State Park – Sunset

Espied a few Yellow Bellied Marmots.

Yellow Bellied Marmot

Camped the night.

Palouse Falls State Park Campground

Captured a nice image of the falls in the moonlight.

Palouse Falls State Park Moonlight

and got this last parting shot of the sunrise.

Palouse Falls State Park Morning Light

Evening Photo Shoot at Skagit Tulip Fields

Posted on March 23, 2015 by Andy Porter

This last Saturday the rains hit, a real deluge…windy and storms, a day to stay indoors!

Late afternoon arrives and there was a hit of blue peaking out of the gray.

It’s hard to predict if the dark skies will win the battle or if there will be a late-day clearing, but I decided to make the gamble and head out to the tulips field all abloom in La Conner.

The mud was slick and deep, the sun and clouds perfectly in harmony and the colors! The colors were to die for.

I spent a few hours here, until the sun set.

Andy Porter Guided Tulip Festival Photography Tours

Skagit Valley is located in NW Washington State and is home of some of the most stunning scenery anywhere. Spring brings amazing colors to the low lands, giant fields of tulips and daffodils create a patchwork of heaven. The Tulips have just gotten started this year, if you’d like to come for a visit and have a Tulip Photo Tour, we still have openings for Sunrise and Sunset tours this spring, have a look here.

Skagit Valley Tulips 2015

Posted on March 13, 2015 by Andy Porter

This year has been especially warm here in Western Washington and our spring has come early. The ski areas have closed and today was more than 65 F.

That translates to early bloom dates for tulips!

Skagit Valley Tulips

In early February we saw the arrival of daffodils and today I made a sunrise visit to the first tulip field that has popped open!

Skagit Tulip Festival 2015

The workers were arriving, getting their bearings and starting to head out into the fields.

The day turned out so warm! And the sky is still filled with wondrous clouds…I hope they last until sunset!

Skagit Valley Tulips 2015

If you would like to come for a sunrise or sunset Tulip Tour, now is the time to get registered!

Skagit Valley Tulip Tours

Living here in Skagit Valley not far from Tulip Heaven I am able to visit the tulip fields every day. As tulip season gets started I head out to scout the new year’s tulip and daffodil field locations and plan where are the best spots (and times, mornings or evenings) for capturing fabulous images.

The best time of day to visit the tulip fields is early morning or late afternoon. The low light and clouds offer some incredible back drops for the flowers.

Skagit Valley Tulips 2015

The best days to visit are Monday through Friday to avoid the throngs of people. On Tulip Festival Weekends after 10am, the entire tulip area is mired in a horrible traffic snarl. Weekends between 9am and 5pm are times to avoid the tulip fields, unless you enjoy traffic!

Evening – Sunset Tulip Tour

This tour is available Monday through Friday, every week that the flowers are blooming. The tour starts at 3pm and ends at 10pm. (Note: the times and itinerary are always up for change, depending on your preferences!)

Itinerary:

3:00 – Meet at Skagit Food Coop, relax, discuss photo techniques.

3:30 – Begin our photo tour at either of the two main Tulip Tourist centers (Optional)

5:00 – Drive out to several of the year’s best locations to get great evening shots of the flowers at sunset.

8:30/9:00 – Head out for a bite to eat and a review of images and tips on editing.

Cost: $150 per person Note: Each tour is limited to no more than 5 people

Skagit Valley Tulips 2015

Early Morning – Sunrise Tulip Tour

This tour is available every day, 7 days a week, every week that the flowers are blooming. The tour starts at 5am and ends at 10am. (Note: the times and itinerary are always up for change, depending on your preferences!)

Itinerary:

5:00 am – Meet at Starbucks for coffee/tea and to discuss photo techniques.

6:00 am – Drive to several of the year’s best locations to get great morning shots of the flowers at sunrise.

9:00 am – Head out for a bite to eat and a review of images and tips on editing.

Cost: $150 per person Note: Each tour is limited to no more than 5 people

Tulip Festival Photography Tours Planning

Weather

Skagit Valley Weather in the spring is…unpredictable. We can have snow, rain and sun, all in the same afternoon! Some days are gray and overcast, others with totally blue skies, but most often we will have a mix, throughout the day of clouds and sky. Rain is common. I have often seen days where it rained hard all day long, and in the late afternoon partially cleared into the most fantastic skies.

Skagit Valley Tulips 2015

Copper Ridge

Posted on March 12, 2015 by Andy Porter

Copper Ridge

Start of the Copper Ridge trail

Recently I received a photo request from a magazine looking for images of Copper Ridge in North Cascades National Park.

When I receive a photo request for a location I’ve visited and have decent images, I go and review the folders and choose the shots that I feel best fit my idea of what the publication is looking for.

I will have a look at the original images and their edited versions, trying to decide if I may have learned any new Photoshop skills since my last editing session, and if so, I open the original raw files and start the editing process over, from the beginning, on each shot that I feel holds promise.

Ruth Mountain and Mount Shuksan

I have no idea whether any of the images will be chosen for publication, in fact the chances are against me, but its fun to revisit these fantastic places and relive my short visit to their majesty.

These images are all a part of that process. You can view these images, and more North Cascades Vistas in my gallery where they can be purchased as canvas prints and fine art prints.

North Cascades National Park, in Washington State, is one of the most rugged and least accessible National Parks in the lower 48. Lots of rain and thick flora make the mountains a sheer hell to bushwhack through. So, most travel in the back country is along trails. The northern section of the park has few trails really, there are large sections of mountain fastness that people very rarely visit.

Evening light at Copper Ridge

One very popular trail is along Copper Ridge. The trail starts at the Hannegan Trail head and crosses over Hannegan Pass and then heads up Copper Ridge. There is a campsite atop the ridge, Silesia Camp. Its small, only two or three tent pads. But the views are spectacular. From here you can see Mount Shuksan, and Ruth Mountain, straight across the valley and, a little to the west, Easy Ridge and Whatcom Peak in front of Mount Challenger, draped with glaciers, and just south of this massif, the needles of the fabled Picket Range jut skyward.

Its a cool campsite!

Silesia Camp

Just below the camp is small Egg Lake, with a few more tent pads. The trail heads northerly from here, to the top and the Copper Ridge Lookout. Rangers man the lookout through the summer and this is the highest point on the trail, at almost 7,000 feet.

From here the path descends down to the shore of aqua blue Copper Lake. This is the next spot where you can camp, but the views are lacking. Its a great place to stop for lunch and a swim!

The ridge hike follows the contours through forests and meadows, now and again popping out into the open for more jaw dropping vistas until, finally reaching its end, you plunge steeply down more than 4,500 feet to a ford of the Chilliwack River.

If you make the trip in early August you may be lucky enough to find yourself fording the river full of spawning salmon!

Whatcom Peak and Easy Ridge from Copper Ridge

Mount Shuksan from Copper Ridge Lookout

Sunset at Copper Ridge

Hiking along Copper Ridge

Silesia Camp Sunset

Copper Ridge Trail

Capturing sunset

Copper Ridge Panorama

Copper Ridge Lookout

Copper Lake

These last two images are from the end of the Copper Ridge trail, at the Chilliwack River and its confluence with Indian Creek. Here is where yo may have a salmon encounter!

Indian Creek

Indian Creek Salmon

New Photo Classes in Burlington

Posted on March 8, 2015 by Andy Porter

Evening Light

Here is the new flyer for the classes scheduled in March and April here in Burlington.

There are 3 classes on How to Use Your DSLR: This class is for anyone who wants to become more creative and capture better images.

And then there are two classes about Photo Composition and Editing. This is a two-day class and is for anyone who would like to learn the secrets of taking image taking to a higher level.

Here is the link to the form.

Point of the Arches – Olympic National Park

Posted on February 23, 2015 by Andy Porter

Olympic National Park in Northwestern Washington State contains several distinctly different wonderlands.

The rain forest, glaciated peaks

Mount Olympus, Olympic Wilderness

and the Pacific coast.

The Olympic beaches are some of the wildest most rugged beaches in the lower 48. I have visited and slept on these beaches many times. There is something truly magical about the ocean.

Last week I spied a window of nice weather forecast for the coast and headed over. I was not disappointed!

Evening light

Lines in the sand

Sunset through the Arch

Arch aglow

Point of the Arches

Evening Light

Point of the Arches Sunrise

Washington State Ferry Ride: Sunrise

Posted on February 20, 2015 by Andy Porter

I recently embarked on a trip from my home in Sedro Woolley to my favorite coastal hike and camping spot at Point of the Arches, in Olympic National Park. It’s a long way, maybe 9 hours from start to camp site, and one of the beautiful legs of the sojourn is a ferry ride from Coupeville to Port Townsend. I booked my spot on the Ferry and arrived just as the sunrise was happening.