As a Nature photographer, I am inspired by the beauty of the Pacific Northwest. I have always seen the world through the eyes of a lens. My interests in mountaineering and kayaking have brought me to serene settings. Waking before dawn while backpacking on the Pacific Crest Trail, I experienced truly moving moments where the light, mist, and dewdrops on a mountain lake became a surreal world in Promise of Dawn.

While kayaking, capturing the changing light in front of the lake grass in Ozette Twilight becomes a haiku. One of my favorite shoots was at dawn at a Wooden Boat festival. As I paddled past the boats the brightwork gleamed, even the drab areas danced with light. In another “shoot” I was floating in large swell in a kayak off Vargas Island and caught an image of the bleached tail of Bull Kelp draped provocatively over the shaft. I love to find the abstract in nature and reflections and details are favorite places to explore. I have a collection at the Northwind Art Center this Spring taken on a backpack through the Olympics. These were taken when wildfire smoke blocked the views but also provided saturated color throughout the day with orange sparkling light on the water; serendipity for the photographer.

I shoot in RAW format to capture all the elements of a scene to recreate it back on the computer as I remembered it. A JPG image is not unadulterated, many programming decisions make up the final look of a standard photo, and it can lack the reality and impact of the scene. The art is in knowing when and where to take it a step further so you can feel the heart of the subject and the mood of the moment in a more emotional way.

Recent works explore ways to “paint” images using a variety of tools and software filters to gain a totally new look. For my finished product, I often print images on metal due to the quality, vibrant color and durability.

                                                                                                                                  Debra Wuts