Browsing through the archives, my eye spotted this interesting composition. This particular scene was a sunset in the rugged Olympic coastline in Washington state. What drew my eye was how nature (represented by the tree) managed to survive the unrelenting vagaries of weather that this region experiences, especially during the winter rains. The tree also acts as a kind of focal point, drawing attention away from the harshness of the rest of the scene.
Olympic National Park
WA USA
The showstealer for fall in the PNW northwest is undoubtedly the golden larches. That is probably why I try to squeeze one trip every calendar year. This year was the only exception. Between travel, work, and recovery from a knee surgery, backpacking to the higher slopes of the Cascades during the one weekend of peak color was just out of the question.
Thankfully I had plenty of archival content from prior years that I could utilize for my 2025 calendar, which I feel would be incomplete without a landscape featuring larches. This specific photo caught my eye due to the elegant framing provided by the backlit larches, which, in my opinion, is one of the best ways to capture fall foliage. See this large in my 2025 calendar, available for purchase at this link.
Okanogan National Forest
WA USA
Plunging temperatures and low sunlight heralds the arrival of winter in Iceland. And it arrives early this far north, with cold, windy and dry conditions taking over from the blissful and wet summer.
Signs of these changes were everywhere. Waterfalls had an aura of winter all around, puddles and streams on trails became icy, while lakes in the highlands had already started freezing. These conditions make outdoor adventures in Iceland challenging, but offers unique conditions and compositions. This is one of the multitude of falls showcasing its winter sheen.
Kvernufoss
Iceland
Its the time of the year that I start working on the photography calendar. I have had plenty of adventures this year yielding many keepers, despite the fact that I was bedridden for about half the year. That said, I had to revisit the archives to get a bit of variety.
That opened up the choices quite a bit more, and I had to make many difficult decisions to keep some and discard others. This was one of those that I had to discard from the 2025 calendar. I still like the image for what it captures: a slice of the fall in the mountains in the North Cascades. Clumps of short blueberry add vibrant reds and oranges to the subalpine meadows in this fragile landscape dominated by glaciated mountain peaks. It lasts but for a very short time, but it leaves an impression like no other.
North Cascades National Park
WA USA
It didn't look like much on the map. And even the short walk from the parking lot didn't inspire confidence. But once I got to the wooden bridge straddling the river downstream of the falls, I was taken aback. It wasn't the typical Icelandic waterfall, featuring a tall column of water descending from the lip of hard basalt that you see everywhere. Instead, it was a diffuse waterfall, spreading along a long ledge over which a multitude of streams pour over. Perhaps what was most fascinating was the tiny canyon barely 3m tall and a meter wide that cut its way into the face of the waterfall.
I spent an hour admiring every single detail of the waterfall, from the columnar basalt in the foreground, the faded clumps of orange grass that contrasted with the deep blue water, and the roaring sound of the gushing river.
Bruarfoss
Iceland
I missed out the Larch Madness of 2024, for the reason that I was in a completely different continent at the peak of the larch season. Larch madness, so named for the precise and synchronous change of color by the Western larches, whose needles take on a amber hue as the temperatures start to dip in early October. Walking in a larch forest at this time is a surreal experience, with backlit trees exhibiting a golden hue. And since they grow in large clusters, the color is very pronounced both up close and from a distance.
This is one such larch grove at one of my favorite destinations for the larches. I happened to arrive at the right time to capture beautiful reflections at this golden lake in the eastern eaves of the Cascade range.
Okanogan Wenatchee National Forest
WA USA
Watching the delicate dance of water as it winds its way down moss-clad rocks, or arc over a ledge in a beautiful waterfall, or spread into a million droplets of refreshing mist, is perhaps the surest sign of spring. The cool air was alive with the scent of damp earth and wildflowers, a fragrant reminder that life persists even in the hidden corner of the forest. It hearkens back to an era of unspoilt nature far away from civilization.
Here are a few scenes from the Columbia River Gorge, noted for its amazing variety of wildflowers which tumble down the steep slopes of the Gorge
Columbia River Gorge
OR USA
Balsamroot in full bloom stretch towards the horizon where the first light of day hits Mt Hood. Framed against the pink sky, the scene was a a perfect reminder of the beauty of spring in the Pacific Northwest, which encapsulates everything from the vivid tulip blossoms in Skagit Valley, the vibrant flowers in neighborhood gardens to vast blooms like this one.
I used the blur of the windswept blooms to highlight the gusty conditions that morning. While I attempted a few shots at a higher shutter speed to freeze the motion, I found that the blurred flowers worked equally well for this scene.
Columbia Hills Historic State Park
WA USA
The wild and unpredictable weather of California may have impacted the superbloom that was expected after the wet winter. While the colors may be more muted in most of California compared to the color explosion last year, Death Valley is experiencing a resurgence of colors after a perfectly wet winter. It remains to be seen if the other drier regions of the state experience a similar floral bloom.
Here are some of the blooms captured in the various wilderness areas in Southern California
CA USA
In the red sandstone canyons of the Navajo Nation, there lies one replete with mysterious curves that bend and reflect the light in strange ways. Even mid-day sometimes never makes it down the canyon, but it highlights the striations that wind along the sinuous walls. Its a delightful photographic journey to walk down the canyon and immersing in the beautiful creation of water.
Navajo Nation
AZ USA
