The Montgomery Redwood Grove is one of only a handful of old-growth redwood groves that were protected from the heavy logging that took place in Northern California in the early 20th century. After the 1906 earthquake, the fires that consumed all of San Francisco meant that the city had to be rebuilt, and that meant lumber. Where there used to be endless groves of gigantic coastal redwoods throughout the Pacific Northwest, now there are only a handful left, preserved by forward-thinking land owners.

In this vertical VAST photo, it was my goal to convey how tall these magnificent trees are. When displayed as a VAST Print on a wall, the viewer can feel like they are there, standing among the giant redwoods.

I can’t believe how great the conditions were for this shoot. As a photographer, you can do everything right, but if the weather doesn’t agree with you it becomes an entirely different picture. Once the sun dipped below the tree line, the light became warmer in tone, and since I was the only one here, the only noise was the creek slowly making it’s way through the valley floor. I was completely alone, and it was a magically peaceful moment that I was able to capture in this unique VAST photo.