faves018 by Ben Kuhn

I moved to the pacific northwest after college back in 2002 for work, and fell in love with the outdoors and scenery here. Since then, I've taken up backpacking, kayaking, snowshoeing, cycling, and just about anything else that gets me out & about. It's a wonderful place to live, and stunningly beautiful. This site is my way of sharing what I've discovered with you. I hope you enjoy the photos here as much as I do.

How I take pictures...

I think that with enough time & creativity, and a bit of photoshop work, most pictures could be made interesting & visually appealing (sometimes it would take a lot of creativity. Borell Luc does amazing work with cell phone pictures). I want to show you through the lens of the camera what I see, and what appeals to me. My retouching is mostly limited to dust removal, straightening, and adjustments to exposure or color, though some images may get a bit more attention as needed.

Ordering prints

I've ordered some paper samples, and my recommendation for paper is the Epson Premium Photo Lustre for a glossy print. It's more reasonably priced than some of the other choices, and has a nice pearlescent finish without the glare of a glossy paper (if you want that high glare look, the Epson Premium Photo Glossy has that shiny from the photo printer's appearance). If you do want something that has a matte / paper look, with great color saturation but not so much glare, try the Hahnemuhle Photo Rag. It has great detail with a no-glare look that should make lighting it very easy. I don't really recommend canvas for most of the images that I have up here, but if you do want to go that route for the artsy feel of it, try the PremierArt Matte Canvas. I personally think it shows a bit more detail than the non-Matte variation.

For the gearheads...

I'm really just getting started in photography. Up until just a few years ago, my idea of a camera was the grown-up version of a cheap kids camera. You push the button, and sometimes you get something that you like. From a very simple point & shoot, I moved up to a Nikon D70, and from there, there was no going back... today, I primarily shoot with a Nikon D300. Eventually (if you buy enough photos) I might even be able to justify buying a film camera body as well. As for lenses, most photos here are taken with an 18-70 AF-S ED or 70-200 AF-S ED VR Nikon lens.