Tag Archives: Photography In The National Parks

November 22, 2022 · 4:56 am

Photography In The National Parks: Getting Great Smartphone Shots – Part 2

It’s #TriviaTuesday folks! If you visit Lassen Volcanic National Park in California, you’ll have the opportunity to see all four types of volcano: plug dome (aka lava dome), cinder cone, shield, and strato (aka composite). And you can hike up to each of these, too. Lassen Peak is one of the world’s largest plug domes, Prospect Peak is a shield volcano, Brokeoff Mountain is an eroded part of stratovolcano Mount Tehama, and, well, Cinder Cone is a cinder cone. You can even hike up to and then down into Cinder Cone, pictured here.

This shot was captured with my iPhone. And speaking of iPhones, and smartphones in general, my latest photo column has been published in the National Parks Traveler: Getting Great Smartphone Shots – Part 2.

To read the article, click on the image above

I’m an SLR gal, but I readily admit the smartphone camera is an amazing piece of technology and smartphone cameras can get some pretty cool shots. I used mine when I neglected to bring along a particular wide-angle lens for my other camera during my own hike up to Cinder Cone. And I wanted to prove, not only to myself, but to you also, that you can get some very nice images with your smartphone.

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Tagged as California, fun facts, geology, iPhone, Lassen Volcanic National Park, National Parks Traveler, photography, Photography In The National Parks, smartphone, smartphone camera, Trivia Tuesday, volcano, Volcanoes, where the trails take you

October 25, 2022 · 3:37 am

Photography And Trivia Tuesday

It’s #TriviaTuesday *and* my latest photo column has been published in today’s edition of the National Parks Traveler!

How many of you have ever heard of, or seen, columnar jointing? It’s a pretty cool geological formation that usually occurs with basaltic lava (as opposed to other lavas, although it’s happened with other mixes before). When lava begins to cool, it contracts, and when it contracts, it causes fracturing. This fracturing begins at the top and bottom and moves inward toward the center. Turns out (long story short) that the hexagonal pattern is the most efficient way for heat to be released when cooling. Columnar jointing occurs perpendicular to the original lava flow.

You can see really cool columnar jointing (aka columnar basalts) at places like Devils Postpile and Devils Tower national monuments. You can also see all sorts of columnar jointing along the Columbia River and in other parts of eastern Washington State, like at Drumheller Channels National Natural Landmark along the Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail. And that’s what today’s photo column is all about: photography and exploration at Drumheller Channels.

Click on either the image above or the image below to read more and see more pics.

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Tagged as columnar basalt, Drumheller Channels National Natural Landmark, eastern Washington, geology, Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail, National Parks Traveler, Pacific Northwest, photography, Photography In The National Parks, travel, Trivia Tuesday, Washington State

September 20, 2022 · 5:47 am

Photography In The National Parks: An Exploration Of The Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail – Part 2

*A view of Echo Basin from the South Alcove of Frenchman Coulee, Channeled Scablands, Eastern Washington*

September is a two-for-one month regarding photo columns published in the National Parks Traveler. The first article was about smartphone photography. This article is about a photographic visit to Frenchman Coulee in Eastern Washington, a feature of the Channeled Scablands along the Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail.

To read this article, click on the image above.

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Tagged as Channeled Scablands, eastern Washington, geology, Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail, National Parks Traveler, photography, Photography In The National Parks, Washington State, where the trails take you

September 13, 2022 · 4:11 am

Photography In The National Parks: Getting Great Smartphone Shots – Part 1

I admit to being an SLR-kind of gal, but I also admit that the smartphone camera is an amazing piece of technology and people are getting all sorts of really cool shots with their smartphones.

So in today’s edition of the National Parks Traveler is my article about getting great smartphone (well, iPhone) shots using the photos I captured with my iPhone during the 3.5-mile hike of the Naches Peak Loop Trail at Mount Rainier National Park in Washington state.

To read this article, click on the image above.

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Tagged as #pacific northwest, iPhone, iphone photos, Mount Rainier, Mount Rainier National Park, Mt. Rainier, Mt. Rainier National Park, National Park, National Parks Traveler, photography, Photography In The National Parks, smartphone, Washington State

July 19, 2022 · 3:10 am

Photography In The National Parks: My Favorite Parks For Photography – Part 1

*Painted Hills Unit Landscape Color, John Day Fossil Beds National Monument (Oregon)*

In my lifetime, I’ve visited over 30 units of the National Park System. This includes national parks, national monuments, and national historic sites. This also includes a national historic trail, a national natural landmark, and a national geologic trail. Some of these places were visited B.D.C. (Before Digital Camera), which means I have no images of them (like Mammoth Cave, which I did photograph with a film camera but no longer have the prints or the film strips, unfortunately).

Most photographers will tell you they have no specific favorite park for anything. Well, while I love every single one of these units I’ve visited, I do have favorites for specific photography categories. You probably do too, although you may not have thought about it much. For instance, what are your favorite parks for photographing color? No, not autumn color, but landscape color. What is/are your favorite park(s) for photographing a sunrise or a sunset? What is/are your favorite park(s) for photographing mountains?

Today’s edition of the National Parks Traveler has published my latest Photography in the National Parks column. In this Part 1, I list my favorite parks (of the ones visited and photographed) for specific categories (sunrise/sunset, landscape color, mountainous landscape, wildlife, etc.). I don’t include the recent visits to sights along national historic or geologic trails, or the national natural landmark. So, there’s the caveat to my favorites. Future national park unit visits may change the order of my favorites. We’ll see.

For now, check out the article by clicking on the image above.

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Tagged as color, favorite parks, landscape, mountains, National Park, national parks, National Parks Traveler, night skies, photography, Photography In The National Parks, scenery, where the trails take you

June 21, 2022 · 4:01 am

Photography In The National Parks: Exploration Along The Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail

The National Parks Traveler has published my latest photo column. This month, it’s all about my day trip to Eastern Washington’s Dry Falls and Channeled Scablands landscape along the Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail.

To read the article, click on the image above.

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Tagged as Channeled Scablands, coulee, Dry Falls, eastern Washington, Glacial Lake Missoula, Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail, landscape, National Parks Traveler, photography, Photography In The National Parks, scenery, vista, Washington State, where the trails take you

April 19, 2022 · 2:37 am

Photography In The National Parks: The Lewis And Clark National Historic Trail Part 3

*Crashing Waves At Cape Disappointment Along The Lewis And Clark National Historic Trail*

It’s National Park Week and Trivia Tuesday! Wanna know what a king tide is and where to see one? Then check out my latest photography article published in the National Parks Traveler to find out the answers, in addition to tips and techniques for photographing king tides and other sights you’ll see if you travel along the Washington state portion of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail.

To read the article, click on the image above.

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Tagged as Cape Disappointment, Cape Disappointment State Park, Columbia River, king tide, king tides, Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, national historic trail, National Park, National Park Week, Olympic Peninsula, photogaphy tips, photography, Photography In The National Parks, Waikiki Beach, Washington, Washington State

March 22, 2022 · 4:25 am

Trivia Tuesday And Photography In The National Parks: Traveling Along The Lewis And Clark National Historic Trail – Part 2

*Going up the switchbacks on the Beacon Rock Trail*

*Savoring a view of the Columbia River landscape while hiking up Beacon Rock*

It’s #TriviaTuesday ! How many of you have ever hiked up Beacon Rock at Beacon Rock State Park in Washington state? It’s a park found right along the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail on the Washington side of the Columbia River. The park is centered around an eroded volcanic plug of a volcano that erupted about 57,000 years ago and where Captain William Clark first noticed the tidal influence of the Pacific Ocean (although it’s not really very noticeable now).

Beacon Rock and what you can see and photograph is the subject of my continuing photo column about traveling the Washington side of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, which has been published in today’s edition of the National Parks Traveler.

To read the article, click on any one of the images above.

I never thought I’d be writing and photographing something for the Traveler about this state park because – well – state vs. national park, right? But I should know better. State parks work together with national parks quite often. Just think about Redwood National and State Parks in California.

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Tagged as Beacon Rock, Beacon Rock State Park, eroded volcano, hiking, Hiking Trail, Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, national historic trail, National Parks Traveler, photography, Photography In The National Parks, switchbacks, volcano, Washington, Washington State, where the trails take you

March 17, 2022 · 3:29 am

Photography In The National Parks: Yellowstone In Winter

*Paw Prints On The Shallow Terrace Surface At Midway Basin, Yellowstone National Park*

The National Parks Traveler has published my latest photo column. It’s all about photographing Yellowstone National Park in winter. If you are planning a winter trip to this national park, yourself and are taking your camera, or if you just want to look at pretty winter photos of this park, then click on the image above to be taken to the article.

As for this image here, it was taken during a snowcoach tour with four other people. Our first stop was at Midway Geyser Basin (where Grand Prismatic is located) and we had the entire place to ourselves. It was wonderful! During our walk along the snowy, mainly ice-encrusted boardwalk, we saw different hoof and paw prints on the milky white surface of the shallow terraces. This wide-angle shot shows a set of clearly-defined paw prints on the terrace and the steamy landscape in the distance. It’s actually one of my favorite shots from the entire trip.

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February 23, 2022 · 5:53 am

Photography In The National Parks: Following In The Footsteps Of Lewis And Clark

*A View Down The Columbia River Toward Horsethief Butte (center right}*

In all the hustle and bustle upon my return from Yellowstone National Park, I’d forgotten until now that the National Parks Traveler published my latest photography column. This month’s column is all about traveling along the Washington state portion of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail. It’s a three-part photo column and this Part 1 is about visiting and photographing Horsethief Butte and a portion of Columbia Hills Historical State Park. You’ll learn some photography tips and techniques and a little bit of history about Lewis and Clark, too.

To read the article, click on the image above.

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