Shop Of The Week at Violets Buds!

Solace In The North has been graciously featured as "Shop Of The Week" by the blog Violet's Buds. These weekly features bring exposure to the smaller shops on Etsy that need as much publicity as they can get - Solace In The North being one of them! And so I'd like to give a big northwestern "thank you" to the owner of Violets Buds for featuring my shop this week! It really is a big deal, no matter how many or how few views and sales it draws in. It's enough just to have my work appreciated!

You can read the post here:
http://violetsbuds.blogspot.com/2012/09/featured-shop-of-week-solace-in-north

Short And Sweet: My Mt. Rainier Trip

You can see some photos from my very first Mt. Rainier photo trip by reading my Heading Back To Rainier post. Take a look!

Available for purchase at my Solace In The North shop.

Busy, busy, busy. Since Saturday, I've been perfecting the editing on the photos I took at Mt. Rainier. Browsing for the best shots, dodging, burning, saturating. It's taking up a large portion of time, but I'm sure I must overcompensate on post-processing. I only spent what seemed like a quick few minutes at the mountain, due to the fact that it was a family trip and everyone wanted to head back home early. We didn't even stop at any waterfalls on the way up. But in a way it was good, I suppose. Being put into the position to savor my solitary exploration made it all that more special, you know? And savor it, I did.

Scenery near the Skyline Trail.

My last "visit" was in need of redemption. The roads were so bad that they required chains; something we weren't expecting when we arrived at the entrance to Mt. Rainier National Park. This time, the weather was different! Not even two minutes into my hike up to the Skyline Trail, sweat was soaking my brows. The sun was out without a cloud in the sky, the entire trail led up a steep incline, and I was carrying my camera gear and tripod on my back. My god, the ascent was tough on my body; I worked a hard 5 a.m. shift that morning which already wore me out. However, I was so mesmerized by a Mt. Rainier I'd never seen before, that I didn't feel anything until I got back to the car.

Red, yellow, white, and blue wildflowers transformed grassy meadows into colorful works of abstract art. And oh, the smell of them all! The breeze carried the scent over the entire National Park. It was something reminiscent of jasmine. I've never experienced Mt. Rainier with all of those wildflowers before. I knew I had to utilize my opportunity to photograph them - to have them front and center as the focus of my trip.

My spectacular view of the Tatoosh Mountain Range!

When you look south from Paradise, there lies the Tatoosh Mountain Range. Everyone who visits Paradise has seen them, as the view is incredibly photogenic. However, there's something not a lot of people get to see as you ascend the mountain: over the Tatoosh Range, another mountain peeks it's head up and makes an appearance across such a large distance. I overheard two hikers say that it's either Mt. Adams or Mt. Hood! That's incredible to me. We were so high up in elevation that a mountain in an entire different state was visible! So even though I was sweating out all the water I drank, I was thankful the sun was out to grant me that view.

Available for purchase at my Solace In The North shop.

After I had my fill of beautiful scenery, I made the descent. Everyone was tired, as I mentioned, so they decided to pack it up and head out. I didn't want to leave. Someday, when the idea is reasonable for my budget, I'd like to spend a few nights at the lodge there in Paradise. Several days of nonstop photography, day and night. That's what I want.


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Heading Back To Rainier!

Yep, this friday I'll be making the journey back to my favorite place on Earth:
Mt. Rainier National Park! It always seems like I go there either in late August or late December - that pattern's emerged over the past couple of years... But this year will be different; I'm beginning to plan a possible autumn photo trip!

So before I get caught up in talking about my admiration of Rainier (and before I run out of things to mention after my journey this friday), let me show you some photographs from my very first Mt. Rainier photo trip in 2010! Subject matter, editing, everything - they were what developed the meaning of "solace in the north." I feel that these photos represent that name wholly, by giving a sense of peaceful solitude, quiet introspection, and indifference of nature. All of those things are felt when the following images are viewed; it's how I've found solace in the north.

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