The Buttercup Wildflowers Are Blooming!

Well... I've got some pretty great personal news. About 5 years ago, I had a scary health incident that landed me in the hospital's ICU for a couple weeks. The doctors told me that I could never mountain bike or snowboard again for the rest of my life. It was too risky with the stent I had placed in an artery at the base of my brain. Last week, I had an appointment with my neurologist to review a recent MRI of my brain and it turns out that I have reached a place where I can now indeed get back to the sports I love most!!!! So, of course I immediately bought a new (used) mountain bike and yesterday I got out on a bike for the first time in 5 years!

It was so much fun, I forgot just how much I love biking. There was no wiping the huge smile off of my face the whole time I was out there. Of course... I brought my Canon camera because I had no idea what I would see. And lucky me, I saw some early blooming Buttercup wildflowers in one of the meadows. The meadow was a bit flooded with all of the snowmelt water, it made for some great photos, below is my favorite of the bunch.

Shot handheld with a Canon 5DS R and a 24-105mm lens. The camera's ISO was 400, the shutter speed was 1/200 of a second, and the lens aperture was f/18. No lens filters or flash were used.

This image is now available on my new website here: "Buttercup Wildflowers 1" Metal prints, framed prints, canvas prints, photo products and more are available for ordering, shipping is available worldwide.

Also... I am running a HUGE Mother's Day special through 4/26/2024. The coupon code MD2024 will get you a 30% off discount on any purchase of any print or product of any image on the new site. Just enter the code when checking out...

Okay, here's a couple of very happy selfies with the "new" bike. I had just picked the bike up from getting repaired and having a major tuneup. It rode great! And wouldn't you know... After five years, I remembered how to ride a bike, lol. So much fun!

Thanks for looking and I hope you are all having a great day!

Scott Thompson
Scott Shots Photography
www.TruckeeTahoePhotos.com

Camas at Sagehen Meadows near Truckee/Tahoe

"Sagehen Meadows at Night 1"

Many years ago, shortly after I had moved to Truckee, my family went for a hike with some friends to Sagehen Meadows. The hike there was nice but the meadow was incredible. It was filled with purple camas wildflowers surrounded by green pine trees. I knew I would have to go back some time with my camera.

In 2005 I went back with my Canon EOS3 film camera and captured the image below. It was an incredible year for the camas. I was very happy with the image I got but when I eventually made the switch to digital photography, I really wanted to capture the sea of purple again.

"Camas at Sagehen Meadow"

I have gone back to this meadow just about every spring since and unfortunately, it has never been quite as incredible. Some recent years, there has barely been any purple at all. But that changed this year! Sagehen Meadows was once again exploding with color! And this time I had my Canon 5D MarkII to capture the images in a resolution that could be printed big enough to do the scene justice. Below are a couple photos I captured recently (as well at the image at the top of this blog post).

"Sagehen Meadows Sunrise 3" - These Camas wildflowers were photographed at sunrise in Sagehen Meadows, near Truckee, California.

"Snowy Sagehen Meadows 2" - This field of Camas wildflowers was photographed during a snow storm at Sagehen Meadows, near Truckee, California.

Sagehen Meadows is next to Saghen Creek, on the west side of Stampede Reservoir, just outside of Truckee, California. Many people have asked me recently were the meadow is so I'll spill the beans. Here is a link to information on the hiking trail to the meadow:  http://sagehen.ucnrs.org/Documents/Lower_Sagehen_Creek_Loop_Trail.pdf  I will also tell you that there is a way to 4x4 on a dirt road to the location, but there are many forks in the road and it would be hard to explain without showing, sorry.

The camas have already peaked this year but you can still see some purple out there. We recieved a couple inches of snow in the meadow a few days ago and unfortunately, that did some damage to the flower petals so it's not quite as photogenic as it was. But even when the camas aren't blooming, it's still a great place for a hike so get on out there!

Here is a slideshow of images I've shot over the years. All of the images are available as large limited edition prints, printed by me personally. Thanks for looking!

-Scott Thompson





Sagehen Meadows - Images by Scott Thompson