Tolmie State Park

Tolmie State Park is another one of my favorite places to go to when I just need to wind down… I visited this beautiful little park the same day as as my previous post about the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge. The sun was shining, and I spent the day clearing my mind by looking at the world through my lens for the day. It is therapeutic for me, and always sets my soul at ease.

On this day I was lucky enough to have a Great Blue Heron grace me with his presence. These magnificent birds have always been one of my favorites. They remind me of when my dad used to take me fishing as a child…

He kept close for quite some time, not seeming to mind my lens pointing at him most of the time I was there!

You can almost hear the seagulls…

A beautiful end to a wonderful day!

Nisqually Wildlife Refuge

I think I can say with confidence that anyone that lives near Olympia, WA and enjoys taking photos with any type of camera has been to the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge. The miles of boardwalk through the marshy portion of the reserve adds a fantastic element to the greenery that surrounds you on your relaxed stroll.

I love bringing clients here for portrait shoots. The atmosphere is perfect for helping people feel at ease and have that beautiful, natural smile for my camera lens!

On this particular day, It was only me, my camera, and my 70-200 2.8 Canon lens. The sun came out after a long, dreary stretch of western Washington weather, and I had the itch to get out and shoot something…

I love the old barns on the refuge…

This little guy seemed to think I had a treat for him!

A sweet couple on the boardwalk saw my “big fancy camera” and pointed out this lovely bird to me. They figured I would love to get a picture of her… They figured right!

And then just as I was getting close to the end of my stroll, there was a huge flock of Canadian Geese right in my path!

Needless to say, as always, The Nisqually Wildlife Refuge once again proved to be as beautiful and relaxing as always…

 

True Love

Since the summer of 1989 there hasn’t been one day of my life that I haven’t owned a horse. I had no outside influence to inspire my love for these magnificent creatures, and neither of my parents had ever owned one, or even knew anything about them. My parents saw a young girl’s passion and surprised me with my first pony, after the previous owners had trained me to ride and tought me everything they knew about horses.

At 12 years old I told my mom I wanted a horse to train all by myself. Once again, my parents supported my passion. With virtually no budget and me teaching myself everything horses thru library books I took a wild, 2 1/2 year old Arabian filly and turned her into my best friend.

Growing up and gaining more responsibilities took my attention away from my horses, and I was only able to spend limited time with them. But even with that time restraint, I always owned them and they were always available to me on those days where nothing else but their spirit could calm my soul.

Now I am going thru another transition in my life, and I have had to make the decision to find new homes for the two horses I own now. It’s heartbreaking, but I know it is just a phase in my life, and I must be fair to not only myself, but my equine friends. I know they will be in my life again when we can benefit each other in life, and not be a financial burden and be ignored.

Horses have always been my best friends, my faithful companions, and my one true love.

A horse is the projection of peoples’ dreams about themselves – strong, powerful, beautiful – and it has the capability of giving us escape from our mundane existence.  ~Pam Brown

Downtown Olympia

I had the pleasure a few months ago to go shooting with a photog friend in downtown Olympia. I’ve lived in the area for over 6 years now, and have never actually walked around downtown before. How sad is that?

I think the best part of going out shooting with friends is seeing each other’s work after the event. I love how two people can stand in the same spot, with the same camera body in hand, and the same lens fixed to the body, and capture two entirely different images. I love how two people shooting together will inspire each other, and how you can feed off of the other’s ideas and views. I love looking over my shoulder and seeing a friend pointing their lens in a direction I may never have looked if I were on my own. These are the days that inspire me the most!

It was a perfect day for shooting in downtown Olympia, complete with graffiti alleys, fun restaurants, a port filled with moored sailboats, and even a parade!

The Port of Olympia is beautiful no matter how you look at it…

The #1 way to travel in Olympia… it’s a very green city!

My friend lovin’ the graffiti! (and so was I!)

Italian is good no matter what way you look at it!

I love this statue….

Looking forward to spring time and taking another walk around downtown Olympia! I’m so lucky to live in such a photograph-able area! 🙂