Photographers submitted more than 2,100 stunning images from Washington trails to our annual Northwest Exposure Photo Contest last fall. We were blown away by the submissions and the rich stories behind each one. It was tough to choose, but we are so excited to share the winners with you.
Photography is one of the best ways we can share the stories and experiences of Washington's trails. Great photos inspire us to get outside and to protect the places and trails we love the most.
We asked the photographers what inspired them and how they captured their winning shots. Here's what they said:
Grand Prize: Kristin Elwell
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- Grand Prize winner. Upper Enchantments, just past Aasgard Pass. Photo by Kristin Elwell.
"My husband and I had just climbed Dragontail Peak after being thwarted by weather for a couple of days, and a little goat family was waiting at Aasgard Pass to congratulate us upon our return. I tried to snap a few pictures of them showing off their scrambling skills, and I happened to capture this fascinating moment."
Technique: "I love great lighting, I love my special lenses, and I love having time to capture just the right shot. However, I had none of these things when I took this picture. I simply grabbed my point and shoot, the only camera I had with me, and snapped away, hoping to capture even a snippet of what I was seeing."
1st Place, Flora and Fauna: Claire Giordano
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 1st Place in the Flora and Fauna category. Third Beach, Olympic National Park. Photo by Claire Giordano
"Third Beach is a magical place where the forest and the ocean meet, separated by a thin stretch on sand. On one special day, however, a unique forest unlike any I had ever seen appeared in the sand for a short time, inspiring me to capture a photograph of something I could only marvel at in wonder."
Technique: "I took this image as quickly as I could, as the delicate sand formations were close to the water’s edge, and I feared they would be washed away before I could pull out my camera. I also composed the picture to include a piece of seaweed to provide a sense of scale for the miniature forest."
2nd Place, Flora and Fauna: Johnathan Nguyen
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 2nd Place in the Flora and Fauna category. Marmot on the Pinnacle Peak Trail. Photo by Johnathan Nguyen.
"While hiking up toward Pinnacle Peak saddle, I saw the marmot grazing on lupine up a hillside. It was more interested in eating than being scared of hikers. I had my 300mm lens and took a dozen shots. I have never seen a wild marmot until that day."
Technique: "The shot would not be possible without a 300mm lens and a fast shutter speed."
3rd Place, Flora and Fauna: Harry Ableman
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 3rd Place in the Flora and Fauna category. White River Trail in Mount Rainier. Photo by Harry Ableman.
"While hiking in Mount Rainier National Park, for fall color along the White River, a row of fallen Vine Maple Leaves caught my eye."
Technique: "By lowering my point of view, using a wide angle lens and polarizing filter, I was able to prevent surface reflection and capture the sweeping motion of the river to draw the viewer into the composition."
1st Place, Trailscapes: Paul Vidal
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 1st Place in the Trailscapes category. Frenchman Coulee in Echo Basin. Photo by Paul Vidal.
"A stone circle someone made caught my eye, deciding the perfect spot for me. Distant windmills, sun rays washing into the foreground, and a couple climbers watching the sunset under immense rock formations against a blue sky … it just happened!"
Technique: "A graduated ND filter helped balance the foreground and sky exposure, and I stopped down to f16 for a defined sunstar. To process, I created a mild HDR (single raw) and layered it over the optimized original image to pull out just a few more low and highlights."
2nd Place in the Trailscapes Mike Gannon
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 2nd Place in the Trailscapes category. Aritst Point near Mount Baker. Photo by Michael Gannon.
"The silhouettes on the ridge plus the light of the sun coming thru some darker clouds just looked 'very cool'."
Technique: "Hand held but supported with ski poles."
3rd Place, Trailscapes: Chris Neibauer
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 3rd Place in the Trailscapes category. Green Mountain Lookout. Photo by Chris Neibauer.
"I was excited to bring our one-year-old daughter to the lookout and wanted to capture the moment to show her where she has gone when she grows older."
Technique: "I stitched six photos together to create one panoramic image."
1st Place, Families on Trail: Arnab Banerjee
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 1st Place Families. Big Four Ice Caves Snowshoe. Photo by Arnab Banerjee.
"As I took my 5-year-old son for his first ever snowshoeing adventure on a day before Christmas, the whole area was looking like a winter wonderland as a storm had passed by just a day ago. While coming back, the evening light was really glowing in the nearby mountains and I made this image with my son in the frame to capture the true essence of his experience that I hope will stay with him forever."
Technique: "Used gradual ND filter to tame the dynamic range of the scene. Shot with Nikon D800 and 24-70/2.8 lens."
2nd Place, Families on Trail: Tushar Sharma
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 2nd Place in the Families on Trail category. Artist Point Trail near Mount Baker. Photo by Tushar Sharma.
"Kids, and adults, love throwing stones in water. I was reminded that a small pond on a beautiful trail can be destination by itself, if only we take a moment to stop there on our way to wherever we are going."
3rd Place, Families on Trail: Andrew Monks
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 3rd Place in the Families on Trail category. Beach 4 in Olympic National Park. Photo by Andrew Monks.
"I captured this while walking along Beach 4 in Olympic National Park with my wife and three young kids. It's proof that Washington has something to offer the outdoors family with children of any age (my youngest was 3) and during any season (this was on a clear January morning)."
Technique: "Often in outdoor photography, we go to great lengths to achieve a good composition. Other times composition just happens, and I was lucky enough to have my camera handy while my family was wandering ahead of me on the beach."
1st Place, Hikers in Action: Megan Adams
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 1st Place in the Hikers in Action category. Wonderland Trail near Cougar Rock Campground, Mount Rainier National Park. Photo by Megan Adams.
"I am really inspired by night photography—so when I was by the Nisqually River and had both my tripod and headlamp, I knew I wanted to capture some sort of hiker action at night."
Technique: "When taking all night photos, I try to always use a tripod. Then, I set my shutter speed to about 30 seconds."
2nd Place Hikers in Action: Damon D. Edwards
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 2nd Place in the Hikers in Action category. High Ridge Loop Trail, Olympic National Park. Photo by Damon Edwards.
"This was my son's first true solo outing hiking and sledding in the snow and when I saw him bounding down the trail with his trekking pole, it inspired the shot—he was definitely having a lot of fun!"
Technique: "A low, hand-held angle at knee level with an UWA lens."
3rd Place, Hikers in Action: Eric Mickelson
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 3rd Place in the Hikers in Action category. Hidden Lake Peak, North Cascades. Photo by Eric Mickelson.
"The views from the Hidden Lake Peaks lookout and the saddle below are spectacular in every direction - inspiration abounds! This photo shows my wife leaping to a rocky perch from which to view what turned out to be a stunning sunset behind Mt Baker to the west."
Technique: "This was a handheld shot, so it didn't involve any special techniques. However, I did try to find an angle that conveyed both the scale of the surrounding mountains and the excitement of being out in such an amazing place. I wanted to show a small person in a big landscape, so I looked for a spot with an expansive view that still allowed a tiny figure to stand out from the background. After that, it was just a matter of anticipating the right moment to capture the image. I liked the way my wife was framed by the snowfield behind her and I could see that there was a small gap that she’d be jumping across, so I waited until mid-leap to click the shutter."
1st Place, Offbeat Outdoors: Joyce A. Zeigen
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 1st Place, Offbeat Outdoors. Damon Point. Photo by Joyce Zeigen
"My husband and I heard the snowy owls were there, so we hiked the beach route and around to find them. I had never seen a snowy owl and also wanted the visual memories of a great day."
Technique: "I spent time adjusting settings on my Nikon SLR camera and getting some good shots, and then switched to the programmed modes of 'sports' and 'close-up' to see the differences. I can’t remember which setting I caught this particular image with, yet I think it was close-up."
2nd Offbeat Outdoors: Terri Hoselton
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 2nd Place, Offbeat Outdoors. Mount Townsend Trail, Olympic National Forest. Photo by Terri Hoselton
"Much of this day was spent with our heads in the clouds/fog. It was difficult to see someone 50 feet away. So I thought it was a good day to work on macro and super macro images."
Technique: "This photo was taken using either the macro or super macro setting on my little pocket point and shoot that I try to always carry. No special techniques, just a little cropping. Nature did it all for me, right time, right place, right lighting."
3rd Offbeat Outdoors: Shannon Huffman Polson
2013 NW Exposure photo contest winner -- 3rd Place, Offbeat Outdoors. Lake Ann, North Cascades. Photo by Shannon Huffman Polson
"I saw the scene in my backpack mirror, how we'd be able to capture our whole family—and couldn't resist. I'm a writer (my memoir North of Hope about a trip in Arctic Alaska came out in 2013) and I enjoy framing an experience creatively in any medium."
Technique: "I just used the iPhone and tried to keep my hand mostly out of the photo, letting the beauty of the surroundings be subject and frame for the reflection of our family in the baby backpack mirror."
Want to submit to the 2014 contest?
Take these tips out on Washington's trail this year and submit your best to the 2014 Northwest Exposure contest starting Aug. 18.
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