Brassworks Gallery Photos

Liquid Mirror

A small creek in McMinnville, dappled by sunlight and reflecting shadows from the trees lining the banks. This was one of my earliest photos ever taken with a DSLR camera.

Sunset behind the Trees

From the top of a barren hill on top of San Juan Island, the sun sets through ocean fog behind madrone and fir trees. The heat from the setting sun was slowly blown away by the gentle breeze rustling through the madrone leaves.

Moonrise over Lime Kiln Lighthouse

The lighthouse and the moon made for an interesting subject while paddling in a kayak around San Juan island. Kayaking along the west side of San Juan Island with the sun setting behind me, the lighthouse at the edge of the water was brilliantly reflective on the water. This lighthouse once guided ships in to harbor at the lime quarry, where they would pick up the stones, and transport them to another section of the island where the material was further processed. Now open to the public as a tourist attraction, this small lighthouse now operates as a historical museum and gift shop.

Sourwood Blossoms in Japanese Garden

The bright tones of the bell-shaped flowers against the dark sheen of the Sourwood leaves made for a great contrast in this B&W photo.

Foggy Dock

A small boat dock on Diamond Lake is surrounded by fog before the rising sun gradually burns it away. The fog was lifting off the center of the lake and a gentle wind was blowing it past the dock, obscuring the far side of the lake, but allowing the sounds of early morning fishermen to echo through.

Oneota Creek

Recently melted snow turns into a rushing creek in the Columbia Gorge, a sign of its power from the logs and stones that it has pushed down the creek. This is an area that burned in one of the summer wildfires in Oregon, and has yet to be opened again to hikers. I imagine the creek will be the same, but the lush green moss covered stones and trees will probably take a lifetime to return.

Mount Hood in Summer over Timothy Lake

After hiking around the entirety of Timothy Lake, some 12-odd miles, my wife and I managed to make it to this spot just before sunset with a great view of Mount Hood. The angle of the sun made for striking shadows across the dense forested hillsides, while still lighting up the snowcapped peak of Mount Hood. This is still one of my favorite images that I think is very iconic of Oregon.

Sailing Under the Mountain

A family enjoys a summer evening on Timothy Lake, with the setting sun casting shadows over the wilderness and Mount Hood. After hiking around the entirety of Timothy Lake, some 12-odd miles, my wife and I managed to make it to this spot just before sunset with a great view of Mount Hood. The angle of the sun made for great shadows across the dense forested hillsides, while still lighting up the snowcapped peak of Mount Hood. This is still one of my favorite images that I think is very iconic of Oregon.

Portland at Night

Taken from the opposite side of the Willamette River from downtown Portland, the variety of light colors painted a pretty reflection off of the water.

Valley of Painted Hills

Having hiked up to the highest plateau around, I could look back down into the valley at the Painted Hills in eastern Oregon. I did some selective black and white editing, making the vividness of the hills stand apart even more.

Yaquina Head Lighthouse III

One of the more iconic lighthouses along the Oregon Coast, The Yaquina Head Lighthouse is still in service today, its light warning boats of the shallow rocks along the shoreline. This was taken with a camera set on a tripod with an extremely long exposure, creating the effects of the clouds streaking overhead and the waves becoming a frosted glass pane.

Haystack Rock Black and White

Another long exposure photograph that washes out the clouds and waves into a watercolor painting. The large stone monoliths stand in stark contrast to the motion of the sky and waves, and stand as markers of past erosion. Millions of years ago, these rocks would have been part of the actual coastline, and only through eons of winter storms and waves, they softer stones has been eroded away, leaving behind these remnants.

Abiqua Falls

At the end of a no-name logging road, down a steep muddy embankment with a belaying rope, up a narrow river-cut gorge, Abiqua Falls waits for those willing to leave the easy path (and cell coverage). Part of the same geologic structure that makes up Silver Falls State Park in Oregon, this waterfall is too remote to be part of the normal hiking trail system, and remains hard to find on unmarked rutted gravel logging roads.

Tulip Farm Sunrise

One of the most popular spring photo locations in Oregon has to be the Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm. Open to the public during the blooming season and with view of Mount Hood, hoards of photo enthusiasts and instagrammers flock to the flower fields looking to see what photos they can get. I lucked out and found a morning with a decent sunrise, and positioned myself to get the flowers, the little windmill, and the mountain all in the same image.

Forgotten Machine

Left alone atop a barren hill in Central Oregon, this flywheel stands as a monument to a time that this valley looked very different. This machine was actually part of a much larger hydro dam electric generator, which has since been decommissioned and removed. This gear system would have been used to control the amount of water running through the dam, but now stands alone above the valley.

Tygh Valley Morning

During an early morning photoshoot at a small waterfall just outside of Tygh Valley Oregon, I kept trying to find a position that would make for the best angle of the waterfall. I climbed a small hill, looking for a slightly higher vantage point, turned around, and discovered this instead. Sometimes you might be searching for one answer and stumble upon something much more exhilarating.

Cape Falcon Lookout

Waves and foam crash against Cape Falcon, named for the birds and the nests that line the cliff edges. Cormorants and gulls use the cliff walls to roost and raise chicks away from predators, and falcons and other predatory birds will wait in ambush, hovering in the winds above the hillside.

Pup Creek Waterfall II

Fed by snowmelt from the Cascade Range in Oregon, this waterfall pushes a constant cooling mist down the gulch, causing a misty breeze to sway through the maples and Salmonberries. Hidden miles into the forest on a trail along the Clackamas River, if you want to get away from the crowds on the more popular and shorter waterfall hikes, this is the trail to find.

Cattle Point Sunset

At the edge of San Juan Island, a small lighthouse stands guard to warn boaters away from Cattle Point. With the tidal currents around the point, depending on the time of day and the position of the sun and moon, the tides can flow like a river past this point, causing dangerous conditions for small watercraft and kayakers alike. In the distance you can see the Olympics Mountain Range, seemingly floating.

Aerial Acrobat

This hummingbird has a vivid reflective throat patch to warn away other hummingbirds and to attract mates.