California Redwoods Photography

   Whenever I have an opportunity to visit the California Redwoods I do; and this trip to San Francisco was no exception. Ideally the optimum time to visit these parks would be in late may an early June. The classic shot that includes rhododendrons still eludes me to this point. I prefer the Northern Redwood forests especially the Lady Bird Johnson Grove near Crescent City as pictured here on a Colorless November day.

   On our return drive home from San Francisco we visited Muir Woods National Monument, named after famed conservationist John Muir. I was somewhat disappointed to the extent that there was so much under growth and that it is very confining to stay on the trails; some of the trails are actually wood planks. There is a $5.00 entrance fee and parking can be a real issue here as well.

   California Redwoods are some of the tallest living things on our planet. I was interested to learn that they can achieve heights of nearly 400 feet whereas the giant sequoias of Yellowstone won’t achieve quite that stature, topping out at around 310 feet. Giant Sequoias are however in terms of total volume the largest living plant on earth.

Many people including myself wonder about the lack of red color that traditionally has been associated with this species. Most images I have seen of these giants lack considerable color. The moisture content of the bark is really the key ingredient in bringing out the reddish tones. The longer it has been raining the more color will be seen.

   Photographing the redwoods is challenging and humbling, as settling on a good composition is tough. I try and look for an open area clear of undergrowth with several large trees. Also trying to give a sense of scale is hard as well. One of the finest images I’ve seen was from Landscape Photographer Floris Van Breugel titled
“ Life Among Giants “ not only is this image aesthetically pleasing and beautiful with Dogwoods in the foreground, a pair of deer in the lower left hand area give this photograph scale. My next trip down to this area I hope to visit Humboldt Redwoods State Park, which contains some of the tallest specimens around.

Shore Acres - Angry Ocean

There is an area on the Oregon coast where the oceans fury can really show her stuff, especially in the winter stormy months. Shore Acres State Park is just such an area. There is an iconic shot that I am after that has eluded me on previous trips to this area. Shore Acres can be accessed from the Coos Bay, North Bend Area Via the Cape Arago Hwy. As you travel west you will pass through the town of Charleston then You will have the opportunity to visit three state parks in succession; Sunset Bay State Park, Shore Acres, and finally Cape Arago State Park.

I was mainly concerned with visiting Shore Acres because I knew what I was after. There is a $5.00 parking fee here, but well worth it in my opinion. You get an added bonus at this park; the Botanical Gardens are truly beautiful during the spring and summer months. In the winter months the gardens are transformed into a holiday light spectacular; a tradition started by the Friends Of Shore Acres in 1987. Here is a link for detailed info on this event.

Now back to the photography. The seas were moderately angry and I did see potential for some good wave action. I proceeded to mount my Sigma 70-200 2.8 lens and secure it to the tripod before leaving the parking area. The skies were unstable and squalls were threatening to roll in overhead. The park has constructed a nice viewing structure when conditions get to stormy to stay outside, I did use it to dry off myself and equipment a couple of times. As I shot I knew I needed to stop the wave action with a fast shutter speed so I left off the polarizer and set my camera to fire in burst mode. I spent the next 45min shooting three shot bursts and waiting for the sun to show. Out of the 100 frames I took this is really the only shot I was marginally happy with, the waves can get twice as high under the right conditions. Another point I will make is lens selection. The 70-200 was the wrong lens for this shoot and my 16-20 would be to wide. Ideally a 24-70 would be perfect in my opinion. I will definitely shoot this area again. It is exhilarating watching the waves and trying to capture that perfect shot.

Bandon Oregon A Photographers Dream

   I’ve seen such beautiful photography come out of the Bandon, Oregon area; yet I’ve never accessed the beach the several times through the area until recently. Bandon is a very small community with only one public beach access sign from Hwy #101. What make Bandon’s beaches so photogenic are the numerous sea stacks that are tightly bunched in this one stretch of beach. As I approached the beach from Hwy #101 the first area I came to was called Oregon Islands; an area I had never heard of before. I didn’t recognize this area from photos I’ve seen during my research for this trip.

   It was getting late in the day and the wind was blowing hard at 50mph gusts. I scouted the area for a short while and then we called it a day and proceeded north to Coos Bay to stay the night. That next morning Laurie and I drove back to Bandon on a much calmer day, also there were patches of blue sky with fluffy clouds. I was getting somewhat hopeful for a good shoot. As we arrived at Oregon Islands once again we simply drove south on Beach Loop Dr. for ¼ mile and arrived at Face Rock State Park. I immediately recognized this area by the many sea stacks as the area I had seen, and wanted to shoot. I donned my extreme weather coveralls, rubber boots and wool hat; grabbed my tripod and camera bag and set off for some fun. There are so many compositions to be had here I could spend several days at sunrise and sunset staying very busy enjoying this area in the future.  I noticed some very nice rental homes overlooking the area and thought of a future 3-day weekend here would be great.

Mossbrae Falls The Complete Story

   For quite some time now I’ve wanted to visit Mossbrae Falls. Even though this is not an optimal time to visit California waterfalls I still could not pass up this opportunity. I knew we would be going through Dunsmuir on our way to San Francisco to visit our son, who has recently moved there after joining an accounting firm.
We left Portland at 4 PM and stopped to stay the night in the town of Weed, Ca. The next morning I had profiled 3 waterfalls I wanted to visit before we proceeded south. Since Dunsmuir is only 20 minutes south I thought this would be no problem. The first stop, Hedge Creek Falls

   are right off of I-5 on the corner of Dunsmuir Ave and the freeway off ramp. There is a large sign that denotes the trailhead here as well. The falls are found just a few hundred yards down 3 switchbacks. These are very different looking falls in that the rock formations are so rectangular it gives a modern look to the area if that makes sense. It also struck me that it looked like man placed large slabs of cut rock into the area and placed them next to the falls.

   Mossbrae Falls were next and less than 1 mile by car to the trailhead. Simply take Dunsmuir Ave south for .7 miles then make a very sharp right turn on Scarlett Way also signed as (Shasta Retreat). Drive over a small bridge and railroad tracks then try and find a parking spot.

   I often feel after reading accounts by other people that have visited areas before me that they are very light on giving details about what to expect, and this is a prime example. Let me paint a clearer picture of what to expect in this area. First off there are no signs for these falls nor are there any parking spots. As a matter of fact the railroad has clearly discouraged access to these falls by blocking the gravel parking areas next to the tracks with large concrete barricades. Also there are several no trespassing signs posted, additionally there is a sign that states no access to Mossbrae Falls. The instructions I had stated that I should walk upstream about 1.25 miles to the falls. I was under the impression that there is a trail that parallels the RR tracks, this is not the case at all. You will walk right on the 4-inch ballast rock and directly on the track itself at times…. There is no trail. I was very nervous a train would come through while I was on the narrowest parts of the track. I could hear the Sacramento River below as well as the sound of an active sawmill cutting would and would constantly think a train was bearing down on me. Also walking on that rock played havoc on my feet and ankles.

   After about 20 minutes of walking I finally caught a glimpse of the magnificent weeping walls of Mossbrae Falls and I started to get excited about the possibilities that awaited me. I also had the place to myself; if only I was here in late October it would have been that much nicer with the full glory of fall color. I got off a few shots but before too long a couple of decked out fly fisherman came right into my composition and proceeded to make casts right in front of me. At first I was a little miffed but then realized what a great image it would make to photograph these guys casting right in front of the falls.

   The third falls on my list was called Shasta Spring Falls and at the time I didn't realize that all I had to do was walk upstream an additional .3 miles from Mossbrae and I would have witnessed a beautiful 100 ft cascade. Unfortunately I will have to save that for my next time through this area.  I highly recommend Mossbrae Falls it looks different in every season and I can’t imagine not making the effort every time I come through this area.