Photo of the Day: Sunset at Three Arch Rocks

As some of you may know, my friend Sarah came to visit again recently. This time I took her for an adventure along the northern Oregon Coast. We were lucky enough to see this sunset from the porch of our cabin in Oceanside.

Photo of the Day: Making Friends

My family met this little guy at Bonneville Fish Hatchery yesterday.




I guess you can say we had him eating out of the palm of our hand.

Photo of the Day: Tulum Beach

Oh baby! It's cold outside. Snow is in the forecast, the east wind is blowing, and everyone has been pulling out the hat and gloves to bundle up now that winter has finally arrived in the Pacific Northwest!

In an attempt to warm everyone up, here's a image captured on my honeymoon to Mexico. The beach in Tulum was warm, the palm trees were swaying, and as I recall I was clamoring for shade as I took this picture.

Feeling warm yet?

Photo of the Day: Ladybug in the Hand

A ladybug in the hand is worth how many in the bush?
My oldest daughter captured this one in the gardens behind the Gorge White House near Hood River, Oregon. She wanted to bring it home as a pet, but I told her she had to fly away and take care of her children, who were surely missing her!!

Photo of the Day: Strutting Pelicans

These pelicans were certainly strutting their stuff. Captured on the beach near Pacific City, Oregon. What song do you think they were hearing in their heads? I am thinking something from the Bee Gees...

Why I...

...take pictures.

I suppose you could say "Why I am a photographer." Regardless of what people tell me, sometimes I am a little insecure about my abilities. "Photographer" seems like a term to be only used by professionals -- people that do it as their job and depend on the income they receive from practicing their craft. While I sell a print here and there, I don't consider myself a "professional" by any means. As someone that is completely self taught, there are so many things I still have to learn. Every once and a while, however, I get lucky and capture something that amazes even me.

So why do I take pictures?

I take pictures to share the beautiful things I see when hiking the trails of the Columbia River Gorge and Mount Hood National Forest because there are people that will never be lucky enough to see the part of the world I am lucky enough to live in and photograph, but I can show it to them through my camera lens:

To make a record of the adventures experienced with my family on one of our crazy road trips around my beautiful state of Oregon and beyond, so we can remember them together at a later date:

So when my two sweet little girls become surly teenagers, I can remember their smiles when they thought mommy was the coolest person in the world:

Last, but not least, simply because I like it. It brings me joy and peace as I literally bring the world before me into focus:

My favorite capture!

That is why I take pictures!!

This post is part of my friend Sarah Bee's blog carnival today. To check out the posts of others participating, head over to her blog www.myownbeeswax.com

P.S. She also makes pretty awesome soap and candles. Check out her wares at http://sarahbeecreations.com/

Photo of the Day: Frozen Horsetail Falls

When the east winds blow (also known as Hurricane Columbia Gorge) blow, they freeze everything in their path. Waterfalls are not immune to this.

Horsetail Falls is both easily viewed and accessed from the Historic Columbia River Gorge Highway. In fact, is sits so close to the highway, the winds blow the freezing mist on to the roadway. This image was captured last winter on an excursion to view the frozen waterfalls during an especially prolonged cold snap.