With temperatures dipping below 30, and sometimes down to the low teens over the past couple of days, all the exposed wetness seems to be frozen. Thankfully it hasn’t rained or snowed yet, otherwise we’d be reliving the frozen Portland two years ago.

Taking advantage of the dryness in December, which is almost unheard of in Portland, my friend Steve and I drove out to the lovely Multnomah Falls for some wicked pictures. Landscape photography is something that I’ve never really been good at, so coming out here was more of a challenge.

After getting there, I realized it was pretty much a photographer’s playground. Every other person had some kind of a pro to prosumer dSLR. One guy even brought a medium format film camera. About 1 out of 3 dSLR shooters hauled tripods. One guy even had the new Canon 17mm Tilt Shift with a 5D mark II. I have never seen so much pro gear at the Falls in one visit. It must have been pretty special. I shot with my widest lens in my arsenal, the lowly but goody 35mm f/2.

I am stitching together some shots as I type this, since 35mm isn’t all too wide for large landscapes.

After visiting the famous Multnomah Falls, we had planned to go to Bridal Veil Falls, which is just down the road. However, we came from I-84 and not the historic highway, and to get on it means we had to drive a couple miles to actually get on it from the parking lot. In doing so, we passed by Horsetail Falls, which was even better than Multnomah Falls itself. The fall was closer, there was more ice, and far less people. Here is one shot I took. Far more breathtaking in person.

Iced over Horsetail Falls

Tags: Cold, Horsetail Falls, Ice, Multnomah Falls, Portland