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Archive for the ‘Washington’ Category

The Painter in Skagit Valley, Washington

Tuesday, March 30th, 2010

the painter, originally uploaded by Dean Forbes.

Photographer Dean Forbes tells us about this artistic March 20, 2010 image: I was shooting around a daffodil field when I saw the painter on the side of the road set up in a ditch between the road and a fence. I asked him whether I could photograph him working and he consented. I took several images using a wide-angle lens.

Rows and Rows in Skagit Valley, Washington

Tuesday, March 30th, 2010

rows and rows, originally uploaded by Dean Forbes.

Photographer Dean Forbes tells us about this mellow yellow image: The image was taken in the Skagit Valley of Washington state on March 20. I don’t know the name of the variety. I used a 80-200mm telephoto zoom lens set at 80mm and cropped the image to eliminate an obvious horizon to help give the “endless” effect.

The area farms grow daffodils and tulips for the cut flower industry and are a major tourist draw. The valley is about an hour north of Seattle.

Here is information about the Skagit Valley blooms, from our website Daffodil Festivals Fields and Gardens 2010, with a link to the Skagit Valley Bulb Festival hotline.

Here is information about the Daffodil Festival in Washington State, from our website Daffodil Festivals Fields and Gardens 2010.

Daffodil Fields in La Conner, Washington

Sunday, March 28th, 2010

Overview of some Daffodil fields, originally uploaded by Ursula Haigh.

Photographer Ursula Haigh tells us about this March 18, 2010 image, which is geotagged on the flickr page: It’s hard to tell the type, since this photo was taken from Best Road on our way to La Conner, WA, but the unmistakable colour is proof that these are the beginning of many more daffodils & narcissus that will fill the Skagit Valley bulb fields prior to the arrival of the tulips later this month!

According to the Skagit Valley Bulb Festival hotline, the Daffodils are about a month ahead of schedule due to the unseasonably warm weather. They said the tulips are up and should be in colour at the end of March. If you plan to attend ~ don’t delay the beauty in these lovely fields is fleeting!

Here’s a photo set posted by Ursula Haigh titled “Road Trip to Skagit Valley”, if you would like to see more photos of the daffodil fields and the La Conner area.

Here is information about the Skagit Valley blooms, from our website Daffodil Festivals Fields and Gardens 2010, with a link to the Skagit Valley Bulb Festival hotline.

Here is information about the Daffodil Festival in Washington State, from our website Daffodil Festivals Fields and Gardens 2010.

Daffodils Chasing Butterfly in Lacey, Washington

Saturday, March 27th, 2010

Daffodils Chasing Butterfly, originally uploaded by terrijane01.

Photographer terrijane01 tells us about this lively image taken on March 17, 2010: The daffodil photos were taken at St. Placid’s Priory in Lacey, Washington. St. Placid’s is a Benedictine Monastery for nuns. I am not a nun, but I was taking a retreat there.

These daffodils were growing in the garden that the nuns keep. The last time I was here, the garden was overflowing with vivid summer colors. I was not expecting to see the beautiful yellows of the daffodils when I went there on a retreat in mid-March. Most of the garden was barren.

Kites Eye View in Skagit Valley, Washington

Saturday, March 20th, 2010

IMG_0610 Daffodils and Road, with Irrigation Canal, originally uploaded by cookinghamus.

Photographer cookinghamus tells us about this March 6, 2010 image and his technique using a kite and camera: This photo was taken via camera lofted by a kite, this technique is called Kite Aerial Photography, or KAP. The technique is this: You launch a kite (some kites are much better for this than others). When the kite reaches a stable height, you attach a camera to the kite string by means of a device called a picavet cross. The camera attaches to a harness located beneath the picavet cross, and stays relatively stable, and pointed in the same direction. Then you simply let out more string, and the camera gains altitude. I have modified the camera I shoot with, I’ve caused it to take photos at 5 second intervals. The day I shot that, I had the camera in the air for approximately an hour and a half, with a total of about 590 images. The technical details on the kite and camera are listed in the description of the image. (“Rok” is short for Rokkaku, a kind of Japanese fighting kite: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rokkaku_dako )

The image was taken on Saturday, March 6, in the Skagit Valley. The nearest town is Mt Vernon, although this particular shot may very well have been closer to La Conner. The tulip field was on the corner of McLean and Best Roads, the map is here: maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=best+and+mclean+road,+mt+vernon+wa&sll=47.60621,-122.332071&sspn=0.812012,1.237335&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Best+Rd+%26+McLean+Rd,+Mt+Vernon,+Skagit,+Washington+98273&ll=48.420344,-122.443485&spn=0.024978,0.038667&z=15

The field also appears on this map: www.tulips.com/bloommap.cfm It was field #11. I know relatively little about daffodil varieties, according to that website, the daffodils planted are Dutch Master and Flower Carpet. I have no idea which of those I photographed.

I have been doing Kite Aerial Photography for about a year, the skagit valley daffodils and tulips were the reason I first decided to attempt KAP. You may be interested in the other photos I took that day, which can be found here:

www.flickr.com/photos/cookinghamus/4411739507/in/photostream/

www.flickr.com/photos/cookinghamus/4412508068/in/photostream/

If you’re curious about KAP, my other KAP work can be found here: www.flickr.com/photos/cookinghamus/sets/72157622373376607/ (including shots of the same general area from last year, which included daffodils and, in a separate shot, tulips).

Wow.

Click here to see the original size image.

Skagit Valley Daffodils in Washington State

Thursday, March 18th, 2010

Skagit Valley Daffodils 007, originally uploaded by mizjane225.

Photographer mizjane225 tells us about this March 8, 2010 image: The photo was taken in the Skagit Valley just west of Mt. Vernon, Washington one morning last week. The valley is famous for huge fields of bulbs both daffodils and tulips. The flowers are grown by commercial bulb farmers. These photos on my stream were taken in the early morning when ground fog was still present. In this photo the ground fog blocked out any detail in the background therefore allowing for a very simple picture of just daffodils.

Click here for the Skagit Valley page on our website, daffodilfestivals.com.

Daffodils in Living Color in Skagit Valley, Washington

Tuesday, March 16th, 2010

Skagit Daffodils, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Here is a lovely image by photographer roswellsgirl, taken of the Skagit Valley daffodils in bloom on March 6, 2010.

See “First Daffodils” in Skagit Valley in this photo by roswellsgirl posted in January .

Here is information about the Daffodil Festival in Washington State, from our website Daffodil Festivals Fields and Gardens 2010.

One lone daffodil — to this, in Skagit Valley, Washington

Sunday, March 14th, 2010

_MG_3070, originally uploaded by roseannadana.

In our second of the two-part series, we post this February 27, 2010 image. Photographer roseannadana tells us: The area the fields were taken in has a zip code of 98273 for Mount Vernon, Washington. The fields are located on Best Road near Christianson’s Nursery. I was attending a workshop at LaConner Flats and left early so I could take pictures of the fields.

It was a beautiful grey rainy day and the lighting on the yellow fields was gorgeous! I shot it with my Canon Rebel XTi at 1/125; f5.6 and ISO 200 with my 17-55 wide angle lens. This was taken at 4:01p.m.

The surrounding area is a hub for tourists and the Tulip Festival follows here in a little over 2 weeks. Tourists come from all over the world to the area of La Conner, Anacortes and Mt. Vernon to see the Daffodils and primarily the Tulips of Skagit County, WA.

“Everything” here bloomed early – Spring came very early. We could still get a freeze here in March.

Click here for our Daffodil Festivals website page on Skagit Valley.

Additional note: Photographer roseannadana has announced a new website gallery for her photographs. Click here for the website.

The Real First Daffodil in Skagit Valley, Washington (one month ago)

Sunday, March 14th, 2010

_MG_2348, originally uploaded by roseannadana.

We love this photo. It makes a great first of two series with our next post by the same photographer, roseannadana. This image was taken on Februrary 14, 2010, and roseannadana tells us: This lone daffodil I captured in Mount Vernon, Skagit County, Washington. The harvesters had arrived to top the daffodils, I expect to use as cut flowers. It was the first daffodil I saw in bloom in the fields in our area.

Click here for our Daffodil Festivals website page on Skagit Valley.

Additional note: Photographer roseannadana has announced a new website gallery for her photographs. Click here for the website.

A Touch of Yellow on Cape Disappointment, Washington

Sunday, March 7th, 2010

a touch of yellow, originally uploaded by dylans mom.

Photographer dylans mom tells us about this bright image taken February 28, 2010: Daffodils bloom in March in the yard of the light keepers house at Cape Disappointment in Washington State. See light house pictures in this set. The beach below where Lewis and Clark first saw the Pacific Ocean.

Pike Place Daffodils in Seattle, Washington

Saturday, March 6th, 2010

IMG_8505, originally uploaded by adaenn.

Photographer adaenn tells us about this image of a Seattle daffodils landmark: “The photo was taken here in Seattle on Feb 21 this year. We are having an early spring, and daffodils were opening as early as the beginning of February. The daffodils in the picture are adorning Pike Place Market, the Seattle landmark, outdoor produce, flower, meat/fish and imported goods.”

Daffodil Harvest in the Skagit Valley

Monday, February 22nd, 2010

Daffodil Harvest, originally uploaded by hawgwildterry.

Photographer hawgwildterry tells us about this February 16, 2010 image: The photo was taken in what is known as the Skagit Valley which is located in Skagit County, Washington. The location of the valley is west of the town of Mt. Vernon.

This area is a large daffodil and tulip growing area and features a yearly Tulip Festival which I will provide a link to for this year.

www.tulipfestival.org/

The location of this shot was 17949 Beaver Marsh Road, Mt. Vernon WA 98273. If you have Microsoft Streets and Trips or any other mapping program you see the location. Better yet, if you have Google Earth you can see the satellite photo of the area and see the valley and all the farms.

For more information on the photo you can click on the link located on the right side of the photo page ‘Additional Information’ and then the ‘More Properties’ link.

Addendum on February 22, 2010: Wife and I went up again yesterday and the daffodils are really starting to show their color. Irises are getting close and the tulips are about 6″ out of the ground. We still have a chance of a March cold snap and snow. Could get interesting around the valley if that happens.


More harvesting photos are posted on hawkwildterry’s photostream.

You can see our Skagit Valley listing on daffodilfestivals.com here.

First Daffodils at the University of Washington

Sunday, February 14th, 2010

More Early Signs of Spring

More Early Signs of Spring, originally uploaded by Reid Wolcott

Photographer Reid Wolcott tells us about this February 11, 2010 image: It was taken on the University of Washington campus in Seattle, WA. It was just outside the Suzzallo Library.

Pierce Transit’s Daffodil Bus in Federal Way, Washington

Sunday, February 14th, 2010

Pierce Transit’s Daffodil bus, originally uploaded by Atomic Taco.

Photographer Atomic Taco explains this February 7, 2010 image: The image was taken in Federal Way, Washington at the Federal Way Transit Center. The bus belongs to Pierce Transit of Pierce County, Washington. Per Busdude, the coach itself is all white, and has been wrapped in different livery.

Click here for a larger image.

The Daffodil Festival shown on the bus takes place during March and April. Here is information about the Daffodil Festival.

First Daffodils in Washington, D.C.

Sunday, February 7th, 2010

Daffodils in the snow, Washington, D.C., outside the National Air & Space Museum, originally uploaded by xoxoxoe.

Photographer xoxoxoe tells us about this wintry February 1, 2010 photograph: It was taken outside the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum in Washington DC after our first big snowstorm. We just had a February blizzard, so I haven’t had a chance to get back since the storm and see how they’re faring.

We’ll watch for the daffodils once the snow melts in D.C.

For more snow photos and commentary, here is xoxoxoe’s witty blog.

First Daffodils in Skagit Valley, Washington

Monday, January 18th, 2010

DailyShoot #ds61 Daffodils, originally uploaded by roswellsgirl.

Photographer roswellsgirl tells us about this January 15, 2010 photo: The photo was taken in Mount Vernon, Wa. This is a large bulb growing area. We have a Tulip Festival in April. Washington Bulb is the biggest bulb producer in our area. Here are other photos I’ve taken of Daffodils in our area.

Here is information about the Daffodil Festival in Washington State. This information is on our daffodil festivals, fields, and gardens resource website, daffodilfestivals.com.

Old and New in Auburn, Washington

Sunday, January 17th, 2010

241-365 Out with the old, in with the new. . , originally uploaded by belladoja.

Photographer belladoja comments on this photograph (on flickr): Can you believe it? Jaunary and the daffodil bulbs are pushing up–right through the autumn leaves.

belldoja tells us more about this January 12, 2010 photograph: It was taken in Auburn, Washington–just north of Tacoma–about half way between Tacoma and Seattle–we have a daffodil festival in Tacoma every year. I was surprised to see the daffodils coming up so soon.

Here is information about the Daffodil Festival in Washington State. This information is on our daffodil festivals, fields, and gardens resource website, daffodilfestivals.com.

Daffodils at Pike Place, Seattle

Friday, May 8th, 2009

Daffodils at Pike Place, originally uploaded by thebermans.

Photographer thebermans tells us about this April 5, 2009 photo: It was taken at Pike Place Market in Seattle, Washington. The market rooftops are lined with daffodils in the spring.

We are excited to find this image because it is an artistically interesting and terrific composition of the daffodils at Pike Place Market (a challenging setup for daffodils photo composition).

Daffodils and Barn in Skagit Valley, Washington

Saturday, April 25th, 2009

More daffodils, originally uploaded by wendyb1214.

This is a cool Skagit photo. Photographer wendyb1214 tells us: This was taken in Mount Vernon, Washington – an area of Washington state known as the Skagit Valley. There are many farms here growing both flowers – daffodils, tulips, and iris – and vegetables. Each spring, the area bursts into colorful bloom, it’s really magical. Unfortunately, i don’t know anything about the daffodils themselves. Oh, and the photo was taken on April 14, 2009.

Here is the Skagit Valley page on daffodilfestivals.com.

Getting a Little Perspective in Skagit Valley

Thursday, April 23rd, 2009

getting a little perspective, originally uploaded by t-squared.

Photographer t-squared tells us about this April 19, 2009 image: I took the photo last Sunday in the Skagit Valley north of Seattle. We were there for the tulips (Skagit Valley Tulip Festival) but were drawn to this lovely field of daffodils. I also try to do something beyond the cliche so I dropped my camera down to water level in the row between the flowers. It was a great day.

For additional perspective on things besides daffodils, here is t-squared’s imagekind gallery.

Daffies and Trees in Skagit Valley

Saturday, April 18th, 2009

Daffies and Trees, originally uploaded by catsbow.

Photographer catsbow tells us about this April 3, 2009 image: The photo was taking in Mount Vernon, Washington State. There are numerous fields planted in the Skagit Valley as a pre-viewing for the Tulip Festival, which happens during the month of April.

Skagit Valley Daffodils

Friday, April 17th, 2009

Skagit Valley Daffodils, originally uploaded by Ron Hanko.

Photographer Ron Hanko tells us about this cool Skagit Valley image taken on April 3, 2009: The photo was taken near Mount Vernon, Washington (it is geotagged). Near Mount Vernon there are extensive fields of tulips and daffodils that are grown commercially mainly for the spring bulb market, although there is also a large cut flower market for daffodils. The daffodils themselves are primarily the plain yellow variety and later the multiflowered “narcissus” type.

Ron has created a set of photos called “Skagit Valley Tulips” here.

Yellow & White Daffodils in Washington

Sunday, April 12th, 2009

Yellow & White Daffodils, originally uploaded by hawgwildterry.

This lovely photograph was taken on April 4, 2009 by photographer hawgwildterry, who tells us: They were taken in Mt. Vernon, Washington along Memorial Highway in Skagit County. This is the time of year for the annual Tulip Festival and the Daffodils are the first to show. The reason for the Tulip Festival is that there is a very large Dutch community that settled the area.

See also: daffodilfestivals.com page for the Skagit Valley daffodils.

Fields of dreams in Skagit Valley, Washington

Saturday, April 11th, 2009

Fields of dreams, originally uploaded by Shahid Durrani.

Photographer Shahid Durrani tells us about this April 4, 2009 photo: The photos were taken in La Conner, Washington (State), where every spring (April) the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival is held. Daffodils, the tulips and finally irises are on show, and enjoying the daffodils is the perfect way to get rid of the winter blues.

We love the mountains in the distance.

See also: daffodilfestivals.com page about the Skagit Valley daffodils.

Soon I Will Be Something Beautiful in Seattle, Washington

Sunday, February 15th, 2009

soon I will be something beautiful, originally uploaded by A Girl And Her Camera.

We so love the title of this February 8, 2009 photo “soon I will be something beautiful”. The photographer A Girl And Her Camera tells us: It was taken in Seattle, WA, down by the Seattle waterfront. That is by the piers, right next to the Seattle Aquarium. There is a park there, called the waterfront park. and I knew these were going to be daffodils, because I took a picture of them last year when they were in bloom.


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