I finally had a chance this morning to wander around part of Capitol Hill and take photos of some of the amazing houses and gardens there. It was overcast, so light was flat; and my time was limited. I was only able to walk around four blocks or so. I'll have to do another shoot there, sometime.

I've been wanting to practice photographing winter scenes for several years, and had thought I might try snowshoeing, but never got around to it. Well, this year suddenly there is more snow in the city than I think I've ever seen - enough to prohibit me from getting to work this morning - so I spent most of the day hiking around the lake with my camera. I only wish the light were not quite so flat for some of these shots.

Happy Holidays to all

For those who don't know, Bumbershoot is another word for 'umbrella.' It's also a three-day music & arts festival that happens every labor day weekend at Seattle Center.

For the first time in many years, I spent the whole weekend enjoying music, theater and comedy - including:
Vicci Martinez
Barcelona
Ian Moore
Blood Squad: Slasher Film Improv
Satiristas (with Marc Maron and Janeane Garofalo)
Band of Horses
Beck
Lushy
Tyrone Wells
Apocalypse in Coney Island: A Bumberlesque Cabaret
MySpace Show
Jakob Dylan
Stone Temple Pilots
Joe Goode Performance Group
Strange Fruit
Vert Ramp (skateboarding exhibition)
Scary Kids Scaring Kids
Death Cab For Cutie

I didn't think to take my camera until the second day, and didn't think to use it until that evening. Distance from the stage, low light, and lack of tripod contributed to the impressionistic results - an effect I rather like, and hope you won't mind.

So, I finally did what I've been meaning to do for a couple months: I took my camera and went for a hike around my city.

Seattle is a pretty great place - beautiful waterfront, attractive skyline, interesting architecture...not to mention Pike Place Market. In a single day I wandered through the Sculpture Garden, then to Belltown, along the waterfront to Pioneer Square, and through downtown to the Market. I finished off my last roll with a few shots of Lake Union from the Aurora/99 bridge, and a stop at Gasworks park.

There's lots more that I didn't have time for. I'll definitely get out hiking downtown again, sometime - a different route. And maybe I'll spend some time one day on Capitol Hill, aiming my camera at some of the wonderful residences near Volunteer Park. I haven't done much urban photography and I'm sure could use more practice!

Coming soon, I hope I'll have some good shots from Bumbershoot (music/arts festival) to share.

Just a few additions from an aborted vacation to Olympic National Park, and a hike to Wallace Falls earlier this year.

I had intended to stay a full week in the Olympics, but came back after three days feeling restless and homesick. But it was a nice time while I was there - spent a day in the Hoh Rainforest, a day at Ruby beach, and a couple evenings at Rialto beach.

The photo lab was kind enough to print about a dozen enlargements of my best shots at a discounted rate.