We packed our bags for three days and two nights in Yosemite this past March. The mountains are still snowcapped and most of the rivers remain frozen over; best of all, the park is devoid of people and the hiking trails are uncrowded. We feasted like kings (first time ever having pork belly banh mi’s, and at camp nonetheless), rose for the sunrises, and stayed up past the sunsets.

After having missed it two years in a row, we thought we were finally going to be able to witness the Firefall, which is a spectacular phenomenon attributed to when the setting sun hits Horsetail Fall at a particular angle to illuminate the upper waterfall, casting a red hue on the water and thus, making it appear to be on fire. Unfortunately, we timed it poorly, again, and missed it by a week. However, we were able to see some remnants of the fall with a crowd of 100 or so people. If you’re a Californian, you can attest to how dry our state is; Horsetail Fall fell victim to the calamitous dessication and there was no water at all. The sun was still able to reflect off the slick rockface and we saw some reddening, but it was a lackluster performance. On the other hand, I don’t know about you, but I am an absolute sap when it comes to strangers spending time together to marvel nature. Maybe I cried, maybe I didn’t….I definitely did.

These were shot on Lomography 400, hence the light leaks. I did not meter for the shadows because the sky would have been blown out. Moving forward, I think I’m going to try to learn how to use flash so I can utilize some fill flash and maybe get some of the shadowed foreground to show. Anyway, hope you all enjoyed and are able to get outdoors this season. Happy shooting!

HAN PHAN

film diary

Posts tagged with national-park

YOSEMITE, MARCH 2022