I try not to glorify my photos but if I were, this one definitely takes the cake. A bit of a novel here but feel free to read below if you're interested in the story behind the shot.
For those who are unfamiliar with the Enchantments, it's an area located in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness in Washington State near Leavenworth. Overnight permits are very difficult to get as there's an online lottery and is one of, if not THE, most popular hiking/backpacking area in the state.
I was lucky enough to get a permit for this past October which is a great time to see the changing colors of the larches. It's also a pretty sketch time for weather as fall is starting to transition into winter at these high elevations. I originally planned on a group of 6 people including myself for the trip, which ultimately dwindled down to just myself and one other buddy at the last minute.
With not so great weather in the forecast, we chose to take the slightly longer route in (roughly 13 miles or so?) thinking that it might be too sketch to take the steeper Asgard Pass route - a decision that I think I'd change if I make another trip back. We ended up staying 3 nights up there and were pretty much barraged with rain and winds that likely reached up to 50-60mph the entire time there. Not exactly ideal for taking photos... My tent blew away at one point and probably would have lost it all together had one of the stake loops not coincidentally gotten caught on a small tree. Rain would transition to snow during the night and we were lucky if we got a small break in the morning.
All in all, I think we spent more time in our tents taking cover from the weather rather than exploring and taking photos. That's sometimes the case with landscape photography but it was a bit shitty considering the allure of the area and energy spent hiking up with 50lb+ packs with all our gear and photo equipment. This particular shot was on the 2nd and only morning that we had decent conditions. I was drawn to this area below Gnome Tarn that had this small frozen pond but also showcased the beautiful larches and granite rocks.
Admittedly this photo is heavily processed. My attempt to salvage a couple photos out of my otherwise unproductive 4 day photo trip haha. Below are additional details on the shot. If you're interested in more photos from throughout the Pacific Northwest, feel free to follow me on Instagram or check out my Website where I also have information on prints, workshops and private instruction.
Cheers!
Shot Info:
Canon 5DIV, Canon 16-35mm 2.8L III, Induro Stealth CLT104 tripod
ISO100, 19mm, F8.0, 1/20s
Shot in RAW, Processed with Adobe Lightroom & Photoshop
![image showing Golden fall larches collecting first light below Prusik Peak in The Enchantments, WA [OC] [2000x1310]](6ec7e3b4-9ea5-5867-aa2c-3b09a199151a.jpg)
steveschwindt on November 15th, 2017 at 15:02 UTC »
I try not to glorify my photos but if I were, this one definitely takes the cake. A bit of a novel here but feel free to read below if you're interested in the story behind the shot.
For those who are unfamiliar with the Enchantments, it's an area located in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness in Washington State near Leavenworth. Overnight permits are very difficult to get as there's an online lottery and is one of, if not THE, most popular hiking/backpacking area in the state.
I was lucky enough to get a permit for this past October which is a great time to see the changing colors of the larches. It's also a pretty sketch time for weather as fall is starting to transition into winter at these high elevations. I originally planned on a group of 6 people including myself for the trip, which ultimately dwindled down to just myself and one other buddy at the last minute.
With not so great weather in the forecast, we chose to take the slightly longer route in (roughly 13 miles or so?) thinking that it might be too sketch to take the steeper Asgard Pass route - a decision that I think I'd change if I make another trip back. We ended up staying 3 nights up there and were pretty much barraged with rain and winds that likely reached up to 50-60mph the entire time there. Not exactly ideal for taking photos... My tent blew away at one point and probably would have lost it all together had one of the stake loops not coincidentally gotten caught on a small tree. Rain would transition to snow during the night and we were lucky if we got a small break in the morning.
All in all, I think we spent more time in our tents taking cover from the weather rather than exploring and taking photos. That's sometimes the case with landscape photography but it was a bit shitty considering the allure of the area and energy spent hiking up with 50lb+ packs with all our gear and photo equipment. This particular shot was on the 2nd and only morning that we had decent conditions. I was drawn to this area below Gnome Tarn that had this small frozen pond but also showcased the beautiful larches and granite rocks.
Admittedly this photo is heavily processed. My attempt to salvage a couple photos out of my otherwise unproductive 4 day photo trip haha. Below are additional details on the shot. If you're interested in more photos from throughout the Pacific Northwest, feel free to follow me on Instagram or check out my Website where I also have information on prints, workshops and private instruction.
Cheers!
Shot Info:
Canon 5DIV, Canon 16-35mm 2.8L III, Induro Stealth CLT104 tripod
ISO100, 19mm, F8.0, 1/20s
Shot in RAW, Processed with Adobe Lightroom & Photoshop
*edit: words
mfhaze on November 15th, 2017 at 17:26 UTC »
Dick Swigger called and wants his picture back.
astrue on November 15th, 2017 at 19:25 UTC »
"THE LARCH"