May 22, 2012 at 3:53 PM
Himalayan Blue Poppies at the Rhododendron Garden
Posted by Bettina Hansen
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Jane Dittmar of Renton reaches to feel the fuzz of the Himalayan Blue Poppies at the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden in Federal Way Sunday May 20, 2012.
The rare sight of crinkly light blue and azure poppies, with a hint of deep purple, is a sight to behold at The Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden in Federal Way. The Himalayan Blue Poppies, or Meconopsis lingholm, are a fussy flower to grow, but the results can be stunning. They are still on display at the garden, blooming from late spring to early summer. Read more about the poppies in this Seattle Times article and find out about planning a visit at rhodygarden.org.
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Rain beads on a Himalayan Blue Poppy at the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden.
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Steve Kaffenberger of Bonney Lake takes a picture of a Himalayan Blue Poppy at the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden in Federal Way - he was shooting pictures to give to his mom as a gift.
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
John Wakeman of Kirkland takes a picture of a Himalayan Blue Poppy at the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden.
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Rain beads on a Himalayan Blue Poppy at the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden.
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Ann Dittmar of Seattle reaches for a yellow flower in the midst of the striking Himalayan Blue Poppies. Her daughter-in-law Jane Dittmar of Renton stands to the right with a red umbrella.
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Caryn Seifert of Bremerton walks through the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden in Federal Way Sunday May 20, 2012. Her pink gerbera daisy umbrella keeps her covered from the rain.
May 21, 2012 at 12:05 PM
Spring 2012 Star Times iPhone portraits
Posted by Bettina Hansen
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
From left, Forward - Jesse Klug - Senior, The Overlake School - Catcher - Reese McGuire - Junior, Kentwood High School - Outfield - Lexi Goranson, Jefferson High School.
Faced with the challenge of shooting three teams of twelve, (11 athletes and one coach on each) I pitched the idea of shooting portraits on my iPhone. Inspired by the Instagram craze, I decided to photograph each athlete individually with the camera phone, and used a 99-cent application called Camera+ to increase saturation and contrast, crop to a square, and add a thin black border.
The actual Instagram app sizes non-native pictures too small to be used for print, but Camera+ leaves them full resolution, which, for the eight megapixel camera on the iPhone 4s, is plenty. After fiddling around with a zillion different options, I realized that I didn't want the toning of the app to distract from the subject, I wanted to let them shine, so I chose a less-intense look. I like using Camera+ because it lets the user fade the intensity of the look of each filter.
After importing the pictures onto the computer, some Photoshop toning was done to help the pictures look consistent, but the majority of the editing was done in the phone itself.
The best thing about shooting with a phone is that it is less intimidating than our big pro cameras - it's not a big hunk of metal, it's the camera of the people. I really felt like it put the athletes at ease almost immediately, since we are all so used to photographing each other with our phones. Between the high quality of the images and the unobtrusive nature of the tiny camera, I think it worked out well for the project. It's not about the gear, it's about the athletes, and I feel that this technique and presentation allowed their personalities to shine through a bit more easily.
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Top row, from left: Infield - Levi MaVorhis - Senior, Archbishop Thomas J. Murphy High School - Outfield - Tyler Carlson - Senior, Enumclaw High School - Pitcher - Brandon Mahovlich, Issaquah High School.
Second row: Outfield - Theo Alexander - Senior, Lake Washington High School - Outfield - Jonny Locher - Senior, Highline High School - Infield - Jake Nelson - Senior, Lake Stevens High School.
Third row: Infield - Nick Pribble - Senior, Seattle Preparatory School - Catcher - Reese McGuire - Junior, Kentwood High School - Utility - Trevor Lane - Senior, Mount Si High School.
Fourth row: Pitcher - Reese Karalus - Senior, Mount Si High School - Baseball Coach - Mark Zender - Kentwood High School - Infield - Ryan Budnick - Senior, Edmonds Woodway High School.
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Top row, from left: Outfield - Lexi Engman, Kentlake High School - Outfield - Lexi Goranson, Jefferson High School - Pitcher - Allison Rhodes, Juanita High School.
Second row: Utility - Ronnie Ladinas, Arlington High School - Outfield - Anna Pisac, Snohomish High School - Infield - Hailey Willmann - Bainbridge High School.
Third row: Infield - Lexie Levin, Everett High School - Catcher - Alex Boyd - Woodinville High School - Infield - Makenna Weir, Woodinville High School.
Fourth row: Pitcher - Madi Schreyer, Woodinville High School - Coach - Liz McCloskey - Bainbridge High School - Infield - Jordan Walley, Tahoma High School.
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Top Row, from left: Forward - Michael Klavuhn - Senior, Decatur High School - Forward - Jordan Thompson - Junior - Newport High School - Midfield - Juan Machuca-Garin - Junior, Snohomish High School.
Second row: Defenders - Eli Peterson - Senior, Kentwood High School - Midfield - Jordan Morris - Junior, Mercer Island High School - Forward - Reilly Cross - Senior, Snohomish High School.
Third row: Midfield - Michael Crowley - Junior, Bainbridge High School - Defenders - Jacob Thoreson - Senior, Jefferson High School - Defenders - Baxter Hagan - Junior, Inglemoor High School.
Fourth row: Goalkeeper - Daniel Nadeau - Senior, Shorewood High School - Coach - Nathan Davis - Shorewood High School - Forward - Jesse Klug - Senior, The Overlake School.
May 20, 2012 at 11:04 PM
2012 Trike for Beers
Posted by Genevieve Alvarez
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Haley Clark, 26, tries to sabotage his girlfriend Jessica Taylor's (age 25) finish for the 2012 Trike for Beers in Queen Anne Sunday, May 20, 2012. The annual race benefits a fund for Seattle Motorcycle Riders and starts with beers at Targy's Tavern, with the route winding down Queen Anne hill and ending at The Streamline Tavern on Mercer Street.
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Many racers lost wheels or parts of their bikes during the 2012 Trike for Beers in Queen Anne Sunday, May 20, 2012. The annual race benefits a fund for Seattle Motorcycle Riders and starts with beers at Targy's Tavern, with the route winding down Queen Anne hill and ending at The Streamline Tavern on Mercer Street.
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Meaghan Asdea of Seattle coasted over the finish line of the 2012 Trike for Beers in Queen Anne Sunday, May 20, 2012 as a 'Wounded Warrior.' At the beginning of the race, she fell and acquired an egg-sized bump on her wrist but toughed out the race anyway. The annual race benefits a fund for Seattle Motorcycle Riders and starts with beers at Targy's Tavern, with the route winding down Queen Anne hill and ending at The Streamline Tavern on Mercer Street.
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Reiko Takizawa is wheeled across the finish line on a children's toy tricycle by her boyfriend, Steve Brennan, both of Seattle, during the 2012 Trike for Beers in Queen Anne Sunday, May 20, 2012. The race has been a Seattle tradition since 2008, and benefits a fund for Seattle Motorcycle Riders. "He didn't know what he was in for," said Takizawa, when she took Brennan shopping for wheels. "She suckered me into this," said Brennan, who pushed her the whole way. Brennan is the owner of Targy's Tavern, where the racers gather to put back beers at the starting line. The finish line is at the The Streamline Tavern on Mercer Street, with the route winding down Queen Anne hill. Elise Feigel started the race back in 2008, and although she no longer lives in Seattle, she doubts the tradition ends here. "There will be more," said Feigel. "Everybody loves it so much, we can't not do it."
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Ryan 'Ryano' Kraetsch of West Seattle gives a growl at the finish line of the 2012 Trike for Beers in Queen Anne Sunday, May 20, 2012. The annual race benefits a fund for Seattle Motorcycle Riders and starts with beers at Targy's Tavern, with the route winding down Queen Anne hill and ending at The Streamline Tavern on Mercer Street.
BETTINA HANSEN / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Ryan 'Ryano' Kraetsch of West Seattle gives a growl at the finish line of the 2012 Trike for Beers in Queen Anne Sunday, May 20, 2012. The annual race benefits a fund for Seattle Motorcycle Riders and starts with beers at Targy's Tavern, with the route winding down Queen Anne hill and ending at The Streamline Tavern on Mercer Street. Elise Feigel started the race back in 2008, and although she no longer lives in Seattle, she doubts the tradition ends here. "There will be more," said Feigel. "Everybody loves it so much, we can't not do it."
May 19, 2012 at 9:44 PM
Contortionist hula hooper performs at the University District Street Fair
Posted by Danny Gawlowski
ALAN BERNER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Contortionist, juggler and street performer Jon Coyne, known as "hoopsmiles," keeps four hula hoops in motion while entertaining at the University District Street on Saturday. Buskers such as Coyne receive no money from the fair, only donations from spectators. The fair continues Sunday.
ALAN BERNER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Jon Coyne, known as "hoopsmiles," is both a contortionist and a juggler using his own hoops made from plastic pipe and tape. He entertains this weekend along "The Ave" during the 43rd annual University District Street Fair. To see more photos from the Street Fair, visit the gallery.
May 18, 2012 at 5:46 PM
Looking back on Mount St. Helens' eruption
Posted by Kathryn Bachen
AP and THE SEATTLE TIMES
The 32nd anniversary of the eruption of Mount St. Helens is Friday, May 18, 2012. Clockwise from top left: In this May 20, 1980 file photo, a camper containing two victims of the Mount St. Helens eruption sits amidst the gray landscape about 8 miles from the mountain in Washington state. Markings in the volcanic ash in front of and behind the camper were left by a helicopter and a searcher who found the victims on Tuesday, May 20, 1980. (AP); A huge mud flow and splintered trees are on the flanks of Mount St. Helens above the South Fork of the Toutle River. (Rick Perry / The Seattle Times); In this 1980 photo, a worker at an auto dealership in Moscow, Idaho uses a blower to remove ash from the eruption of Mount St. Helens in Washington state, more than 350 miles away, from a car. (AP); For many months after the eruption, Ralph Killian, a Lewis county logger, repeatedly searched the devastation for signs of his missing son and daughter-in-law. (Chris Johns / The Seattle Times); In this May 20, 1980 file photo, trees knocked down by the May18,1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens are shown along a logging road near the south fork of the Toutle River in Washington state. (Rick Perry / The Seattle Times);
May 17, 2012 at 9:52 PM
Rolling out the red carpet for SIFF
Posted by Kathryn Bachen
The 38th edition of the Seattle International Film Festival kicked off Thursday night, May 17, 2012, at McCaw Hall in Seattle. In the coming weeks, 273 features and 186 shorts from dozens of countries will screen at various venues in and around Seattle. The festival ends June 10.
KEN LAMBERT / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Clockwise from top: Seattle Channel's Nancy Guppy turned heads arriving to cover the red carpet in a pet kennel on top of a car; Some retro-inspired fashion is seen walking the red carpet; SIFF-TV host Molly Spurgeon's shoes are seen as she stands ready to get a red carpet interview; Filmmaker Lynn Shelton, right, is greeted by SIFF Artistic Director Carl Spence as Shelton arrives at the red carpet.
May 16, 2012 at 8:44 PM
Setting up the King Tut exhibit at Pacific Science Center
Posted by Danny Gawlowski
ALAN BERNER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Conservator Eman Abouselhassab, from Egypt, carefully places a canopic container lid bearing a likeness of King Tutankhamun the Golden King, in a display case Wednesday at the Pacific Science Center. This 3,300-year-old artifact was part of a container bearing the internal organs of the king. For more photos, visit the gallery.
ALAN BERNER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Conservators Badawy Ibrahim and Eman Abouelhassab CQ check a wooden funeral figure called a shabti before its installation Wednesday. This was the main funeral figure found in Tutankhamun's tomb and was to help serve the king in the afterlife.
AARON LAVINSKY / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Museum officials discuss the installation of the King Tut exhibit at the Pacific Science Center on Wednesday May 16, 2012. The exhibit opens on May 24 and runs through January 6, 2013. This is the last stop for the travelling exhibit in the U.S.
May 16, 2012 at 12:53 PM
Surf's up at Shilshole Bay
Posted by Genevieve Alvarez
MARK HARRISON / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Carving out a stellar ride: Rob Casey glides over the crest of a tugboat's wake in his sea kayak to avoid contact with Don Kiesling, on the white surf ski. Casey says the waves are primo in Shilshole Bay when tugs emerge from the Lake Washington Ship Canal.
MARK HARRISON / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Rob Casey says riding a tug's wake in his sea kayak is as much fun and more convenient than surfing at Neah Bay.
STEVE RINGMAN, MARK HARRISON AND GENEVIEVE ALVAREZ / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Kayak surfers Rob Casey and Mark Volkert spend Wednesday afternoons chasing waves from regularly-scheduled tugboats just off Magnolia at Shilshole Bay. Sometimes the surfers wait for big container ships.Read more.