With a short period of downtime between trips, I’ve been able to get back to some of my older collections and prep them for the photo archive. In this case, I tackled a bunch of my older Pacific Northwest galleries, ranging from early canoeing excursions in the Washington Park Arboretum in 2005, to Mt. Rainier National Park visits in 2009 and 2011, to my first birding forays into Skagit Valley in the winter of 2011-12. Also included are photos from our last two Snowy Owl irruptions in 2005/06 and 2011/12. There are a few others outings sprinkled throughout, but ultimately it was important to cull these older images (a lot of which I published in my early years, but which no longer meet standards), and combine them into a single gallery.
This era spanned my transition from a part-time photographer to full time. I always felt that it wasn’t until I became a full time professional (in 2010) that I finally started doing a better job of exploring local areas for wildlife. While it’s still not something I’ve done enough, I did make more and more discoveries around this time, beginning with the Skagit Valley and its winter raptors.
View the full photo gallery in the archive. Or start with the short preview below…
Beavers are often seen in and around the Washington Park Arboretum. Though it’s been many years since I’ve seen one in daytime (this one was photographed in 2005), more recently I’ve had them swimming and splashing near me when I’ve gone there for night photography.
A purple sea star is one of many treasures that can be found in tide pools on the Olympic Peninsula.
The winter of 2005-2006 marked my first time seeing wild Snowy Owls, while a few made an appearance near Ocean Shores, Washington.
During my brief visit to Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in the fall of 2011, I saw numerous mule deer.
Red foxes were a common sight around Paradise at Mt. Rainier back in 2011.
Our great mountain is a popular destination, but one I haven’t spent enough time with.
I first photographed these plants back in the film days. Even then I knew they were a good candidate for black and white imagery.
This (winter of 2011-12) was my second time photographing a Snowy Owl irruption in western Washington, and I’ve been waiting patiently for the next one ever since.
A male Northern Harrier swoops over the Skagit Valley (swans on the Puget Sound dot the background).
The winter of 2011-12 marked my first time photographing Short-eared Owls, which have since become one of my favorite avian subjects.
This may still be my favorite all-time owl picture.
Check out the full PNW Parks & Reserves 2005-2011 gallery (61 images).
