I always love a chance to get into the mountains for an adventure photography session. So when this lovely family of four wanted to have their images taken in the Cascades with Mount Rainier in the background, I was super excited. Not only is late summer the perfect time to head up there (with the snow all melted) and the weather still warm, but we also had some out-of-this-world beautiful sunset light with the wildfire smoke that had blown in to the southwest, creating some pretty amazing colors. Thankfully, the smoke didn’t reach us that day, but it was awfully close!

We met up at the base of the gondola at Crystal Mountain and then took the ride all the way to the top. There are some great trails up there that meander through the huge ski area, so it’s really a great place for a full-day outing too. After a few photographs with their Christmas card outfits, they changed into their main outfits, which had a lot more muted color and really fit the setting quite well. With a mix of muted oranges, blues, textures, patterns, and subtle prints, their main outfits were perfect! They popped against the trees and as the sun set, the complemented the colors in the sky quite well too! They all looked absolutely amazing! And I loved capturing the connections they share, including their two adorable kids together! They are such a beautiful family! We did have to walk a ways, but it was all part of the adventure experience of course.😊

We played a few games and I pulled off some of my signature puppetry while taking photographs ninja moves and by the end, had captured so many beautiful moments! It’s always exciting just before the sun dips below the distant peaks. The light is just so so good then! And with the wildfire smoke refracting the light even more, the colors were absolutely gorgeous! It was perfect!

Thank you all so much for the wonderful family session! I had an incredible time with you and I’m so glad we had such a great day up there! Enjoy a few of the many highlights!