Sunday, February 15, 2009

Skagit valley farms

Skagit valley farm
Equipment: Canon 20D, Canon 100-400mm
Image details: 250mm, f/9.0, 1/250sec, ISO 100

Skagit valley is one of the most picturesque areas around Seattle. It's about an hours drive from Seattle. Acres and acres of beautiful farmland set in the foreground of the majestic Cascades. The weather tends to be better than Seattle - sunrises and sunsets are beautiful and vibrant!

Spring is the best time to visit this area - when there is snow in the mountains. The famous Seattle based photographer Art Wolfe has also said that this area is one of his favorite areas for photography around the Seattle area. It is not hard to see why!

My recommendation would be to take a few hours and randomly drive around this area. Pick a clear day and you will enjoy some great views of Mount Baker. I personally enjoy shooting landscapes of the small farms that dot this area. The numerous barns in this area also provide lots of interesting composition opportunities.
Sunset over skagit river, Skagit valley
Equipment: Canon 20D, Canon 100-400mm
Image details: 135mm, f/20.0, 1/20sec, ISO 100

This area is also a birders paradise. For more information about this refer to the this post. The spring Tulip festival is in Skagit valley as well - refer to this post for more information on that.

Here is the official website of the area.







The area is also very interesting for fall colors. The surrounding hills turn yellow and are usually covered with fog in the early morning.

Fall colors, Skagit valley, WA
Equipment: Canon 20D, Canon 100-400mm
Image details: 160mm, f/22.0, 1/100sec, ISO 400

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