WWW.VALLEYRECORD.COM Snoqualmie Valley Record • April 2, 2014 • 9

ReadeR Contest

Vantage pointsShutterbugs find new ways to see the Valley’s scenic beauty

As caretaker of the Snoqualmie Falls Forest Theater, Brian Scott has a special vantage point on Snoqualmie Falls and the surrounding Valley.

“From the scenic to wildlife to the yearly productions the theater puts on,” he says, “having a camera on hand opens the eye to see what it might not normally.”

From the small hill behind his house, he snapped the winning photo in this year’s Amateur Photo Contest—a view of winter color on Snoqualmie Falls (See it on page 1).

“The mist from the falls had froze to the cliff face, changing the browns and greens to a contrast of light and dark,” Scott told the Record in an e-mail. “But what really sets this photo off is the reflection of the late afternoon sunset on the windows of the lodge and on Mount Si.”

“Like most photographers, this medium has been a lifelong interest of mine,” says Scott. “Unlike painters or musicians who have the ability to create great works out of nothing, the photographer’s art is to capture something that already exists; a moment in time. And in missing that moment comes a truth that re-do’s just do not happen. Whether it is a face on the street, the shuddering of a leaf under fall’s first bite or the dreariness of an unending rain pounding away at the intense green of moss and fern; all invoke an emotion that keeps me chained to a hobby that all of the family must endure.”

Scott and his wife Jodi work in ministry and take care of the theater. Along with their camp dog, Dixie, they are responsible for 85 acres of preserved forest land and 10 acres of park and camp facilities that host dramas, musicals and other special events.

“There are unexpected run-ins with the bear, lynx and cougar that make one pucker, but after the heart settles down, they move on,” says Scott. “Both of the positions we hold are a labor of love and we wouldn’t want it any other way, it is a very full and rewarding life. The camera, though, adds an extra dimension of wonder and there is nothing to take its place.”

Fly fishersA photo hobbyist and grandmother who enjoys making images, Connie Som captured an

image of flyfishers below the Fall City Bridge. She won second place in the scenic category.“I headed out with my camera on a rather gray Saturday morning last autumn,” Som

recalled. “I have always enjoyed driving through Fall City, with its small town ambiance and thought that one day I would like to photograph the trees that line the river. On this particular day, I noticed several anglers down at the river, so went to take a look.

“I was a bit shy, not wanting to disturb their endeavors, but set my tripod up on the rocks and made a few images, including this one of the gentlemen in silhouette. The fly casting was great fun to watch—a graceful art as well as a sport.”

She took the image using a medium-format camera, which creates six-by-seven-inch film negatives.

“I don’t use it often (it is heavy), but the large negatives are great,” states Som. “Most of my images are taken with a 35mm camera and are of family—usually grandchildren.”

A North Bend resident for the past 10 years, she learned to take a good photo while living overseas.

“I love the way black and white images capture your ‘moment in time’. They communicate the shape and tonality of the subject in a dramatic and honest way,” says Som.

Clockwise from top left, Connie Som won second place for her shot of fly-fishers under the Fall City Bridge; Jane Bower’s vision captured sunlight through the trees at the Cedar River Watershed Education Center near North Bend; Clara Leonard shows Mount Si in winter season; Jenn Collins documents a summer evening at Rattlesnake Lake.

WWW.VALLEYRECORD.COM10 • April 2, 2014 • Snoqualmie Valley Record

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ReadeR ContestCapturing memories

Winners reflect on people photographyFall City native Cathy Harris won first place in the

people category for the photo of her son John, pond-skimming on skis at the Summit at Snoqualmie.

“Last year my older son did it and made it across,” Harris told the Record. “This year, my younger son had to try it. He too made it across! Bragging rights!”

Harris is always taking pictures, especially of her children at their sporting events, family gatherings and holidays.

“I have always enjoyed taking pictures,” she said. “My mom was notorious for having her camera/video camera with her at all times! I guess that’s where my passion for photography started.”

Harris is an avid skier, and takes photos to show her adventures to others.

“I usually send a picture to my husband or kids, we call ‘picture of the day’ with a caption that says, ‘the best day ever!’” says Harris. “A great action shoot, for me is taking pictures of my family doing what they are passionate about, skiing, wrestling, track, biking, playing or just enjoying life. I try to capture the moment as my mom did for me. I am carrying her torch.”

Absorbing the sceneRachel Mallasch, a North Bend resident and senior at

Mount Si High School, won second place in the people category for her sylvan portrait of her friend, Myia.

The two had been working on a video, so in January, they filmed a scene at a grove near North Bend’s TruckTown.

“I am her cinematographer for the project and while she was setting up, I started taking pictures because I loved the look of the light through the trees,” Mallasch said. “I love catching people when they don’t notice you taking a picture of them because there isn’t a precon-ceived emotion. When you take a posed photo, the sub-ject is told how to feel and act. Myia was in her ‘director mode’ and she was absorbed into the scene.”

Mallasch got her first camera in first grade.“I love photography because it traps memories,” she

says.She plans to study film at university.

Clockwise from top left, Cathy Harris captured her son John’s pond-skimming ski ride at the Summit at Snoqualmie won first place in the “people” photogra-hy category; Phani Kowta’s photo of a woman putting on make-up; Kendall Wright’s portrait, “Mariah”; Mount Si senior Rachel Mallasch’s portrait of her friend Myia, taken in a forest near Truck Town, won second place.

WWW.VALLEYRECORD.COM Snoqualmie Valley Record • April 2, 2014 • 11

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ReadeR Contest

A brief encounterAlan Hendrickson of North Bend won first place in the animal category for his shot, above, of a snowshoe rabbit

on Stevens Pass.“We are beginner snowshoe enthusiasts, and normally go to Snoqualmie Pass,” Hendrickson told the Record in an

e-mail. “But rain in the pass sent us toward Stevens for a new adventure. My new Nikon D7100 around my neck, we had just stopped for a sip of water, and this little cutie crawled out from under a tree.

“Fortunately, the movement caught my wife's eye and she quietly waved me over,” said Hendrickson. “But, he was either curious, or brave, or a ham for the camera, because he posed for a variety of shots as I stomped around in the deep snow trying to optimize the lighting.”

Good photography is hard, says Hendrickson, who took his first photography workshop 40 years ago. “It takes an artistic eye, extreme patience and diligence to get the per-fect shot, and, these days, a degree in engineering (which I happen to have!) for managing the camera. Good lighting is probably the most challenging. Maybe that is our lack of sun! The lucky shots are fun, but hard work, a good eye and attention to detail make a lot more luck.”

Photo by Alan Hendrickson

Snoqualmie ValleyBEST OF 2014

Above, a boy and his pup, by Carol Moore; Top right, Clara Leonard snapped a quick shot of a hummingbird; Right, Terry Adams captured a mountain goat and kid on camera on the back of Mount Si; Below, “Mommy’s bee” by Deborah Meyers.