Last week, my man and I decided to take an impromptu trip to Yosemite. He was craving the sight of snow, and despite living in California my entire life, I had never been. So off we went. 
Nature has always brought me peace and moved me deeply. I grew up surrounded by it, and would take any opportunity to experience it– the sights, sounds, and scents. As a creative, I have always felt the urge to capture moments in places like these, unparalleled moments that convey the magnitude and wildness of nature. Capturing some of these moments in Yosemite was my creative goal for the weekend.
I was so gratified to see everything dusted with a layer of snow. Not only has it been years since I’ve actually been in snow, but it added a new dimension to my photography of the place.
The thing about shooting nature in winter is that it’s often cloudy as well, so I tried to get a balance of light and dark and various textures in each shot so the photos wouldn’t skew too heavily in one direction.
Having a subject always helps with scale and focus in nature photos too. Doesn’t he look like he’s about to chop down a tree? 🙂
I don’t show my face around here much, so hello! Alex snapped this when we found an overlook where you could see straight down the valley.
A photo I shot standing in that exact spot. Nature kills me, it really does. And I was happy to have the street sign and photographer for scale. Half dome was actually hiding behind all those clouds on our first day– luckily, it peeked out on the second.
This is actually one of my favorite shots of the weekend. All the different elements, and the movement of fog and branches, begins to convey the power of this place. Needless to say, I fell completely in love with Yosemite. If you have a chance, please run out into nature this weekend. It’ll only do you good.
If you’re craving some more immediate gratification, I highly recommend The Golden Spruce by John Valliant (see here for my review) or Alexandra Taylor’s Instagram.
xo,
T
1 Comment
Lovely!!!!!