After sifting through numerous photos taken by Scott Smorra and Hans Gunnar Aslaksen, I decided that the work of the former appealed more to my personal preferences. Namely, the vibrancy of the colors and the crisp clarity in each image.

Scott Smorra is an active photographer currently based in Oregon. He mostly creates landscape and wilderness imagery in areas of the Pacific Northwest with the goal of capturing the “beauty, emotions, and moods of nature.” He takes each photo with the intention of helping the viewer feel the emotions he is experiencing in that moment while being surrounded by nature. Additionally, Smorra believes that the best way to experience his artwork is through a large fine art print rather than digitally.

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Attached here is a link to the GoogleDrive folder with a collection of Scott Smorra’s works. Below, I’ve included the names of the photos as well as some commentary I have for a few.

  1. Rowena Sunrise (2013)
  2. Alien World (2017)
    1. Depicted in this image is a snow cave from Mt. Rainier National Park. The green comes from the ice algae that grows near the surface of the snow while the blue color comes from the sunlight passing through cleaner snow. I believe this photo is one of a kind, as snow caves continuously melt throughout the summer until they finally disappear.
  3. Morning Reflections (2012)
  4. Reflections (2015)
    1. Elowah Falls in Oregon
  5. Cycle of Light
  6. Through the Glass
  7. Alvord Desert Sunrise (2010)
    1. Here, Smorra actually captured the image of a hotspring, but the air temperature was so cold that a layer of frost was able to manifest along the top of the water.
  8. Abiqua Falls Winter Monochrome (2013)
  9. Aquamarine Dream (2012)
    1. The blue tones of the water are due to the clarity of it; it is spring fed from a large aquifer.
  10. Hello New Day (2013)
  11. Celestial Existence (2012)
    1. Part of his The Dark of Night collection
  12. Wandering Stars (2014)
  13. Light My Way (2015)
    1. Taken in the Three Sisters Wilderness in Oregon, Smorra was able capture this beautiful landscape scene where the flowers also seem to be admiring the stars.
  14. Creeping
    1. Part of his Hawaii and Lava collection.
  15. Lava Burst
  16. Fresh Squeezed
  17. Makawehi Sunrise
  18. In Clover
    1. Part of his Flowers, Forests, Trees, and Wildlife collection.
  19. Veratrum and Wildflowers (2010)
  20. The Maple, Autumn 2017
    1. Part of his Japanese Gardens collection.
    2. I didn’t include the image, but Smorra actually came back to this maple tree a year later and took the same photograph, documenting the difference between the tree in its two different seasons.
  21. Go With the Flow (2018)
    1. The last few images were taken in Patagonia in 2018.
  22. Razor’s Edge (2018)
  23. Remembering (2018)
  24. Fangs (2018)
    1. Scott Smorra took this photo in Patagonia with a specific goal in mind: to capture the light and dramatic atmosphere surrounding these Patagonian peaks.

Though I am not sure if Smorra intended to have this as a recurring theme throughout his photos, many of the images that he captures display some degree of monochromatism. Take Rowena Sunrise (2013) for example: the bright yellow sunflowers that are scattered along the bottom of the image allow for a color continuity that immerses the viewer completely in the gold of the sunrise.

Light My Way (2015) is another example of Smorra’s monochromatic photos, with gentle purple hues incorporated throughout the image.

Many of his works also seem to focus on composition and balance, which I also found to be eye-catching.