My very first tripod, many years ago now, was a lightweight, aluminum set of legs with a mostly plastic pan and tilt head. It was better than nothing, but it didn’t take long to realize that it was not sturdy enough to let me get really sharp photos, especially when I used a telephoto lens. As budget allowed I upgraded, each time getting a bigger, heavier tripod, and trading the pan and tilt type head for a ballhead. At some [read more ...]
After months of gray skies and dreary weather, the sight of daffodils and tulips popping up in gardens, fields and farms is a delight here in the Pacific Northwest. The colorful flowers are fabulous for photography, and several of the biggest bulb growers in Washington and Oregon open their fields for photographers. Tulips start to show their color in March and the blossoming continues into May, with the big fields usually in their prime around the second and third weeks [read more ...]
It’s cherry blossom time and the trees are blooming all over the country. In Washington State, Seattle residents and visitors look forward each spring to the beautiful sight of big old cherry trees covered in delicate pink flowers on the University of Washington campus. The annual bloom is certainly an event for photography, and on a sunny, spring day there will be many people at the campus Quad, almost all with cameras, using everything from a cell phone to a [read more ...]
Washington State Parks – Images by Greg Vaughn Washington State Parks celebrate their centennial this year. Created in 1913, the system now includes over 100 state parks. Many of these parks are fantastic for nature and landscape photography. Among my favorites as photo destinations are Cape Disappointment, Steptoe Butte, Palouse Falls, Columbia Hills, Steamboat Rock and Deception Pass. As part of the centennial celebration, all Washington State Parks will have free admission on March 30th. There are also events scheduled [read more ...]
February 14 is not only Valentines Day, it is the anniversary of Oregon Statehood. Please enjoy some of my favorite images of this wonderful state, and let me know which are your favorites. To view this slide show in a slightly larger format, or to purchase prints or licensing rights, click on this Oregon Photo Gallery link.
It’s always great to have the cover of a magazine feature your photo, but even more so when that publication is one of your personal favorites and always a cover-to-cover read. So it is with the March 2013 issue of Backpacker Magazine, with my photo of hikers on the Sahale Arm Trail in Washington’s Cascade Mountains. Sahale Arm Trail is an extension of Cascade Pass Trail, one of the most popular trails in North Cascades National Park. If you’ve [read more ...]
The Maya calendar predicts not the end of the world, but the end of a cycle, which also means the beginning of a new one. Any culture that could build a complex such as this at Tulum, without the aid of modern machinery and technology, obviously knows a thing or two. Let us look forward to this new cycle with hope that this will become an era of peace, understanding, and caring for the natural environment.
Washington may be The Evergreen State, but it also has some wonderful deciduous trees with leaves that turn glorious shades of yellow, orange and red each autumn. Great fall color can be found in every region of the state, from the coast to the Idaho border and from the Columbia River Gorge to Canada. Here, in no particular order, is a selection of some of the best places to view and photograph fall foliage in Washington. 1. Washington Park Arboretum [read more ...]
I am very pleased to announce that I won both Bronze and Gold awards in the Society of American Travel Writers annual Bill Muster Photo Competition. The Muster Awards honor the very best in travel photography, and I’m happy to be a winner again this year. Laceleaf Maple tree in Autumn This photo of a Laceleaf Maple tree in brilliant fall color won the Gold Award in the Natural Scenic category of the Muster contest. The photograph was taken in [read more ...]
The University of Oregon is currently hosting three excellent exhibits of photography, each of which is well worth the time for Eugene residents and visitors to take in. Lone Eagle, Garibaldi, Oregon. © Rich Bergeman. Two of the shows are at the Museum of Natural and Cultural History, a small museum on the edge of campus that always has some great exhibits. What brought me to the museum most recently is the “Tidewaters” show of platinum/palladium prints by Corvallis photographer [read more ...]