Sunrise Moonset from Hurricane Ridge

Sunrise Moonset from Hurricane Ridge, originally uploaded by Jeff Sullivan.

I knew the nearly full moon would be setting shortly after sunrise this morning, and the forecast for the coast was for more overcast skies, so last night after Second Beach I headed to Hurricane Ridge in Olympic National Park. The only challenge was the drive after my twilight shots yesterday, putting me in this area at close to 1am for my alarm at 4:15am!

The flowers were good on the ridge, but they were even better down the access road a few turns.
I like the results better when I use layers in Photoshop to merge in an adjacent exposure optimixed for the moon rather than using HDR software. More complicated photos may be a different story.

Second Beach is #1 in my Book

Dinner on Second Beach, originally uploaded by Jeff Sullivan.

Second beach may be my new favorite shooting location! It's smaller than Yosemite, but the potential for stunning shots is very high under the right weather conditions. Unfortunately the weather and lighting conditions weren't all that good when I visited, but that just means that I have to return soon! I can't complain though... it wasn't raining.

Knowing I'd light a fire on the beach for photos anyway, I stopped by the grocery store in Forks and picked up hot dogs and buns on the way to the beach. It's hard to beat food cooked directly over coals. Next time I'll bring steaks & s'mores!

My reaction to this beach can best be summed up as, "Second to what?"

Sea stack reflection on Second Beach

Temperate Rain Forest

Tree of Light, originally uploaded by Jeff Sullivan.

The last light of day lights up club moss covering a tree in the Hoh Rain Forest in Olympic National Park, Washington.

An elk in the rain forest near the town of Queets.



I need to re-edit this one for white balance (color accuracy), but I like the motion blur...



The overhanging forest coanopy on the way to Rialto Beach.

Rialto Beach

Rialto Beach, originally uploaded by Jeff Sullivan.

for sunset I decided to try Rialto Beach. This site requires only a 20 minute walk, but it's an interesting scramble across a rock breakwater topped with storm debris logs, especially on the way back as it's getting dark!

Ruby Beach

Ruby Beach, originally uploaded by Jeff Sullivan.

Ruby Beach in Olympic National Park, Washington.

A sea stack reflects on the wet sand at Ruby Beach. Even without the colorful sunrise that I had hoped for, it was great to be out before the beach was overrun with visitors, and I still shot about 8GB of photos on this morning!







More later... I'm off to take more pictures!