Adelman Peony Farm

The last thing Dale and I did before he headed home was visit the Adelman Peony Farm. I loved the large flowers with their variegated color, starting with a deep pink in the center and turning to a pale pink at the edges. For some reason they reminded me of a little girls party dress.

It's interesting when 2 photographers shoot in the same location how the pictures can vary so much. To check out Dales pictures of the farm check out his blog, he's even got another shot of me messing with my camera if you're interested.

                        This darned bee wouldn't get out of my shot!

Relaxing on the River

After spending the day in Portland, Dale and I headed to the coast where Dale's friend owns a house on the river. Almost as soon as we arrived we found ourselves in the boat taking a very peaceful ride. I was amazed at how calm the water was and how crystal clear the reflection. Looking over the edge of the boat was like looking into another world, it was almost surreal. The ride was so peaceful, after over a year of constant personal stress, I could feel myself relax a little.

                                            Isn't the reflection amazing

 I was intrigued with the pattern the boat's wake made on the water.

                                             Dale and his friend Harvey
We found this dock quite interesting . . . we even doubled back so that we could get some pictures. Pretty funny . . .

Friday Night in Portland

After we were done at the Chinese Gardens, Dale and I wandered around Portland. I learned one thing about Dale very quickly, he's not shy!! He had no problems asking perfect strangers for directions. And truth be told, he was better off asking the strangers . . . because as Dale learned quickly about me . . . . I am very directionally challenged!! When it came time to shoot the Portland city lights at night, I took us to the complete other end of Portland, instead of just across the river. But hey, at least Dale got to see ALL of Portland on our scenic drive. :)

If you'd like to see Dale's photo's of Portland (including one he shot of me) check out his blog.

                                  Dale shooting in Pioneer Square

                   Only in Oregon do the statues need umbrellas :)

                                             Hawthorne Bridge

                   I like this one because I captured a shooting star
      And just for fun, I zoomed my lens while I was taking the photo

Lan Su Chinese Garden

A couple months ago I my friend Dale drove up from California and we spent the weekend shooting everything from the Portland city scape to the coast. Our first stop was the Lan Su Chinese Gardens. I drove to the location expecting to see a garden on the outskirts of Portland when I arrived. Instead all I found was a wall. This walled in garden sits right in the middle of busy Portland. It was an interesting experience to walk through what almost felt like a private garden, all the while knowing people were going about their day on the other side of the walls.

If you'd like to see my friend Dale's fantastic photo's from this location, check out his blog.

                                                                     Dale

                                                                A flower hiding

           Bonsai trees always remind me of the Karate Kid movies :)

                                         This one makes me giggle :)

                                         I love the hidden gardens

                           I loved the light playing on these leaves

                Here you can see the city buildings behind the gardens

 I thought this was a very interesting flower, and I love the color

There were details everywhere . . . even the doors 

Iris Gardens

A couple weeks ago I had the opportunity to hang out with my friend Dale for the weekend. We traveled from Portland to the the beach. One of the many places we visited was the Iris Fields outside Salem. The fields were beautiful, even if we spent most of the time under cover from the rain. Even though we got rained out I managed to capture some great shots. If you'd like to check out Dale's photo's from the gardens check out his blog: http://dalehardin.blogspot.com/2012/05/schreiners-iris-garden-salem-oregon.html