Sometimes, photography is like hunting for game. You never know when you’ll get the shot. I set out today in the Coast Range, on a long winding road that runs diagonally from the Eugene area to Reedsport. It’s definitely a slow road, much of it is spent going about 25 mph. Endless Douglas fir and poplar trees, alder and bracken fern, mosses and lichens everywhere. Today’s light was completely flat, so the day was even more monotonous. I took a handful of images of various things that caught my eye, but nothing felt like it had the potential to be “post-worthy.”

Around 4:30 I decided to head back home. In the waning light I drove the return route, climbing from the valley bottom up and over a high ridgeline. Approaching the top, in gaps between trees I caught glimpses of low clouds off the edge of the road. I pulled over, and found a spot that had a good view—from the center of the road. Fortunately, today this road held maybe one car every hour or two.

I love these two images, if you look closely you can see that they overlap slightly, at different scales. And they were taken a few minutes apart from one another. And lastly, I varied the processing slightly to achieve the mood I was hoping for.

A few minutes later, and the whole valley filled with mist, and the daylight dropped away as well.

Layers 1

Layers 2