The Taylor River

I hiked the Taylor River trail as far as Big Creek Falls with these two lovely ladies a few weeks ago.



I had hiked the same trail in November before the snow started, and ended up with this shot of Otter Falls. The lake that it pours into is Lipsy Lake. I had wanted to return in spring to get some shots of the falls in higher flow, and also for the spring foliage and wild flowers.
On the first trip, the sky was overcast and the quality of the light was very soft and diffused. It made waterfall photography very easy. The second time, the weather was great for hiking; the sky was clear and blue. The light was harsher though, so it wasn't as good for waterfall photography the second time around.
So instead I photographed mainly wildflowers and my companions. :)
Here is a trillium:

I photographed this with my 105mm VR micro lens with a Nikon 2x teleconverter. I used my RRS focusing rail, and a reflector to balance the light out a bit.

I am not sure what this berry is, but I liked its look and the background.

And this is Otter Falls in spring, photographed with my Sigma DP-1.

Even when the falls are not in full flow, they can make for beautiful photographs. This is an image of Lipsy Lake, and the trickle flowing down the rock face in the background is the 1800 foot high Otter Falls. There was a lot less flow than any of us had expected, and the lake was suprisingly small, but still very peaceful. It isn't even a particularly difficult trip, as long as you reach the trailhead; the forest service road leading to the trailhead is pretty rough, and Snoqualmie Pass has been getting a lot of snow lately.