Behind the Lens: A Week in Olympic National Park
Olympic National Park is one of the most unique and diverse national parks out there. After spending a week exploring, I was left wanting more. The typical guidebook highlights a variety of photographic opportunities—powerful ocean scenes, serene rainforests, waterfalls, and even some wildlife.
For me, I just wanted to explore the park, grab a few photos, and get a general lay of the land for future visits.
My agenda:
• Stay at a cabin in Sequim
• Visit the Hoh Rainforest
• Drive to top of Hurricane Ridge & explore
• Fast stop by La Push Beach
• Hiking at Lake Crescent
• Ocean photography at Crescent Bay
My goal wasn’t to photograph as much as possible (though I certainly tried), but to scout the area, enjoy the park, and spend time with family. Over the week, I took 1,822 photos and ended up with about 60 images I’m happy with. Out of those, maybe 12 will see the light of day.
Let’s break down those numbers:
• 60 selects / 1,822 photos = 3.29%
• 12 finals / 60 selects = 20%
That’s a low percentage of selects, but I’ve found it to be fairly normal. As a numbers guy, I like tracking these details to gauge my discretion and accuracy in the field—how much shooting translates into quality photos. My goal is to increase the percentage of selects, giving me more options for final images.
It may seem counterintuitive, but the fewer photos I take, the more efficient I can be in the editing room. This also challenges me to shoot with more purpose and intent. I enjoy this personal challenge—it takes confidence in your skills to nail the right settings for a well-exposed photo while experimenting with various compositions.
Now, let’s take a tour through some of the photos that highlight some of my time in Olympic National Park.
Photography
Crescent Lake
This is one location I need to come back to and explore more compositions. I found the lake is hard to access via different parts of the shoreline, so perhaps going out on a kayak will create more opportunities and unique compositions.
I settled for a standard ‘tourist’ image her to capture the beauty of the bright blue lake with the majestic Olympics in the background.
Sony A1 + FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM
35mm f/8.0 1/320 sec ISO 100
Barnes Point
This location is on the shore of Crescent Lake at the popular Barnes Point. Here you can visit the Lake Crescent Lodge, Storm King Ranger station, and hike a variety of accessible trails along the way.
To me this image captures the essence of summer camp at the lake - perhaps during a more youthful period of my life. Moments like these are worth capturing and soaking in as they can help inspire you to seek a more fruitful life while also showing the beauty where nature meets exploration and recreation.
Sony A1 + FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM
17mm f/9.0 1/80 sec ISO 10
Storm King Ranger Station.
A less common destination with the park, I was excited to stop by and check out this ranger station and grab a few pictures. A fascinating location that warrants further exploration, this station was built in 1905 and received a few remodels and a relocation over the years.
There is something about the history of this building that fascinates me. Staying here well over a hundred years ago required some serious commitment to the cause - mad respect to those rangers who dedicated their lives to the outdoors. Thankfully, this building still stands in memory to the history of the park and those who protect and advocate for places like this.
Sony A1 + FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM
27mm f/5.6 1/125 sec ISO 100
La Push Beach
This image was captured during a brief visit to La Push Beach. I provide more context behind this shot in my other blog article here if you are interested in learning more.
When I visited the Olympic National Park, I had zero intention of doing any bird or wildlife photography. However, for scenarios such as this I tend to bring my 200-600 lens and leave it in the truck, because well, you never know!
Thankfully, I was able to put it to good use, get some reps in with birds in flight in poor conditions, and walk away with a few photos that I am happy with.
Sony A1 + FE 200-600mm F5.6-6.3 G OSS
441mm f/6.3 1/1600 sec ISO 1600
Hoh Rainforest
I have heard nothing but amazing things about the Hoh Rainforest since moving back to Washington State. This location is very isolated and quite a long car ride from the Seattle area, so visiting is best done when staying in the area.
My first impression was how old this forest felt - how untouched and pure the whole place seemed. I did my best and STILL failed to beat the tourists, so next time you can bet I will plan to be here before the sun rises.
Sony A1 + FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM
16mm f/11 2.5 sec ISO 100
Hurricane Ridge
Sometimes you head out with one expectation and end up with another. That was the case with this photo.
The plan for the day was to drive up Hurricane Ridge Road, a limited-entry, 17-mile road in Olympic National Park. But, in typical Washington fashion, the entire mountain was shrouded in fog.
At the summit, it was raining, with almost no visibility. But on the way down, I managed to stop and capture this photo, which became one of my favorites from a week in the park.
I’ve edited this photo countless times, trying to strike a balance between capturing the essence of that foggy morning and avoiding over-editing that might misrepresent the scene.
This is the most common challenge at my stage of photography—finding the balance between artistic expression (style) and staying true to nature. Something tells me this struggle will always exist, creating a healthy creative tension for years to come.
Sony A1 + FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM
36mm f/9.0 1/20 sec ISO 100
Hurricane Ridge
Most of my landscape photography is done with a 16-35mm lens, capturing big, open vistas with large subjects both far away and sometimes close. So when the opportunity arises to extend my reach, I eagerly embrace it.
I am actively working on enhancing my ability to pick out unique elements in the field, focusing on pieces of the landscape or mountains to find more obscure expressions of nature. I believe this approach has great potential to expand my catalog and offer deeper insights into how different people perceive the same scene.
Sony A1 + FE 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 GM OSS
100mm f/4.5 1/640 sec ISO 500
Crescent Bay
When I think of capturing the essence of the Pacific Northwest, images like this come to mind. It’s challenging to distill the PNW into a single image because of its incredible diversity—mountains, forests, wildlife, rivers, and lakes all embody that PNW vibe.
Yet, there’s something unbeatable about the power of the ocean where water meets land. I could photograph the ocean every day and be content.
Sony A1 + FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM
16mm f/9.0 1/100 sec ISO 100
Crescent Bay
Taken just down the shore from the other photo above, there is something about this visual that I love. Maybe it is the chaotic and peaceful essence of the ocean backed with a father and his sons admiring the view. Either way, coastlines in the PNW will always be some of my most memorable locations to visit.
Sony A1 + FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM
16mm f/8.0 1/250 sec ISO 100
Final Thoughts
The Olympic National Park is an excellent location for a large variety of photographic opportunities. The park in general favors recreational activites wthout a singular point of focus, so you can make the most of your time as you see fit.
I brought my full kit just to be prepared, but in hindsight mainly used my 16-35 and 100-400 lenses. Tripods are a must for low-noise images, given that your weather conditions are very unpredictable. However, if you stay to the main hiking trails and attractions prepare to arrive as early as possible for the best compositions, lighting, and less crowds.
A circular polarizer is also a recommended item to have given the wet and green nature of the park. I didn’t have one unfortunately which lead to a lot of images not making the cut due to unnecessary reflections from green foliage and water.
I would also recomend Anthony Jones’s paperback: A Landscape Photographer’s Guide to Olympic National Park. I found this to be an invaluable resource to better plan my daily agenda and go after the locations and photos that were most important to me.
Olympic National Park is a large destination, so don’t try and tackle too much. Focus each day on one or two primary locations, and leave yourself plenty of time to relax and explore one of the most unique national parks in the country.