Third post of monochrome compositions from the Portland Japanese Garden.
For the best viewing experience, click on an image to see the high resolution version. To see more monochrome compositions visit my Portland Japanese Garden gallery.
Cheers,
C. S.
Around 2001, I decided to build a Japanese water garden in my backyard. I studied and planned for almost a year. I learned as much as I could about the traditional Japanese garden, how to use plants, water and rock to reflect the natural world. Over the years my knowledge and appreciation of Japanese culture has grown. As such, a top destination during the family vacation to Oregon last summer was the Portland Japanese Garden.
For the best viewing experience, click on an image to view a high resolution version.
Cheers,
C. S.
Indian Beach is the northern of two day-use access areas with nearby parking. From the parking area, the access trail begins with a wooden staircase leading down to a path covered by a dense Salal shrub ‘tunnel’. The tunnel ends with access to a transitional area of smooth lava rock and Sitka spruce driftwood, adjacent to the sandy beach.
The broad beach landscape offers a photographer so many wonderful subjects and composition opportunities. Facing the Pacific is Indian Point to the right, and Bald Point to the left. Indian Beach is also a popular spot for surfers and paddle-boarders. My Tamron 15mm – 30mm lens was used for the majority of these compositions.
The Sitka spruce driftwood and stream composition below, was one of my favorites from my visit to Indian Beach.
Season’s Greetings to my WordPress colleagues around the world!
For the best viewing experience, click on an image to view a high resolution version.
Cheers!
C. S.
Just north of Cannon Beach, Ecola State Park was the last stop on our family exploration last August of the Oregon Coast. We visited the northern Indian Beach section of the park, easily accessible from the parking lot. The lush Sitka spruce forest and sandstone bluffs ascend to a vast beach area with driftwood, smooth volcanic rocks, small sea stacks and quite spectacular view of the ocean. It was photographer paradise!
For the best viewing experience, click on an image to see a high resolution version.
Cheers!
C. S.
Additional landscape compositions from Lava Lands in the Newberry National Volcanic Monument near Bend, Oregon
For the best viewing experience, click on an image to view a high resolution version.
Cheers,
C. S.
Additional compositions of the Oregon coast from my visit last August.
I appreciate you taking time to visit my photo blog. For the best viewing experience, click an image to see a high resolution version. Or click here to see my Arcadia Beach gallery.
Cheers,
C. S.
On the last leg of our Oregon Coast visit, our last stop before heading east to Portland was the Arcadia Beach State Recreational Area. This area is just south of the Cannon Beach and features sandstone bluffs and rock formations, and accessible tide pools.
Thank you for stopping by, and have a great week! For the best viewing experience, click on an image to view a high resolution version. Or, for more compositions of the magnificent Oregon Coast, visit my Cape Kiwanda, Oceanside and Cape Meares, and Yaquina Head Marine Garden galleries.
Cheers,
C. S.
Araucaria araucana, or monkey puzzle tree, is native to the south-central Andes of Chile and Argentina. The leaves of this confer are thick and appear as triangular scales encircling the tentacle like branch, the pattern similar in structure to a pine cone. While the leaves last on average 24 years, the tree can live as long as 1000 years.
Its English name was derived during its early cultivation in Britain in the mid-1800s. While visiting an estate in Cornwall, a lawyer noted his friend’s specimen tree “would puzzle a monkey to climb that”.
The round globes are the female cones. Indigenous people in Chile and Argentina continue to harvest the edible seeds. Our Airbnb in Portland was named after this specimen. I am impressed on how striking this tree works as a monochrome composition.
Thanks for stopping by today. To appreciate the character of this tree, click on an image to view a high resolution version.
Cheers!
C. S.
