yosemite changed it all

i've been griping so much lately about how much i miss california. it honestly eats at me everyday. the diversity of the lands there are a photographic dream. there's one place in particular that completely swept me away and i was not prepared. yosemite national park.

words really don't come close to the thrill of being in the presence of those incredible cliffsides... the lush color of the meadows. we were so lucky to visit this year due to the incredible rains california received in the spring. the waterfalls were completely full. the incredible heat (over 100) may or may not have caused me to have a headache majority of the time i was there, but the pain i was in was quickly forgotten about once hitting the valley. 

pictured above was a "secret" cave spot my brother-in-law told us to check out before we went on our trip. it was so sketchy to get to, but incredibly worth it. walking through that tunnel on a narrow side surface with shaky cement blocks was exhilarating in a way, but also terrifying. i was definitely whining about it the entire time every time we went to it, but i'm so glad we did. we also snuck some incredibly creepy tunnel pictures in while the coast was clear for cars. (because i live for creepy photo ops, picture of me taken by my super talented husband david!)

you're probably wondering why i fell so hard for this place. well,  i loved it before this particular moment, but this changed it all. deer and wildlife literally walking up to me and POSING. i mean. what a dream. i used to tell david all the time, "all i want is to have the opportunity to take dreamy floaty pictures of deer in a field". and i'm pretty sure my experience takes the cake over all photographic experiences i've ever had in my life. 

i mean, i somehow captured THE INSECTS floating around this beautiful creature's head. i was just speaking to a kind passerby literally a minute before this about how i longed to photograph a dear in this perfect meadow. i was incredibly joyful and moved with tears during this entire experience. it got so close to me that i was able to switch from my 70-200mm lens to my 35mm. i was SO CLOSE to this deer. ugh. i could talk about it for hours. just... unbelievable. 

and finally, every night we were in the valley we enjoyed the stars from this very same meadow. if you've never seen the stars in a dark and secluded place miles and miles from civilization before, i highly recommend it if you want to change your perception of yourself. you are small. but you are significant. the stars reminded me of this. i will surely dream about this place forever until i have the privilege of visiting again. and i hope it will be soon.