Location Spotlight: The Woods of Sehmel Park
Location Spotlight: The Woods of Sehmel Park
Kopachuck State Park has always been my go-to for yummy mossy woods and ferns, but it is closing in June 2024 for a year-long facelift! Luckily, only 5-7 mins away, Sehmel park (pronounced ZAY-mul; I know this because my aunt dated one of the Sehmel brothers back when she was in high school, lol)) has us covered for families and seniors wanting the classic woods that scream "I Live in The Northwest!"
Pros: a fun adventure, stunning backgrounds, a boardwalk, moss, ferns, tall trees, not very crowded, even on weekends.
Cons: The biggest con is that is a walk, about 1/4 mile to the good stuff taking photos along the way. I do not recommend this location for small toddlers. I have done it now three times and all three times it was a bit of a disaster. It is slow going, they insist on walking themselves, and once down, there is something abut a trail that just want to RUN. And is slightly downhill the whole way which makes them trip.
Another con: There are always some walkers to avoid, but it's easy enough to let them pass. Light can be harsh on sunny days, but as long as we can keep it at your back, like in these photos, the final product will be stunning.
Another con: If it is cloudy on your day and the tree cover is still leafy, unlike these top photos, which were taken in March before the trees leafed out, the photos will not look like the ones here (summer examples at bottom of this page). It is still good though! Just maybe not as yummy since not as much light will come through. Examples at bottom of this page.
When it works: This route is perfect for either a 30 or 60 minute sessions. I prefer 60 so we can utilize all the cool spots.
You can park along the street. I'll send a map before your session. We will walk down to the boardwalk, about 10 minutes, snapping photos along the way and back) This session was on an April morning at 10:30am, so I would say it works best between 9:00-11am in the summer. It would probably also work well a couple hours before sunset (but I only offer 30 min sessions on weekdays only)
Be sure to look at all the examples below taken during different seasons
The following photos were taken in early March on a sunny day (clouds will look a bit different; keep scrolling down for examples of a cloudy day) and edited with my muted modern style (as always clients get to choose their edited style.)
These were taken in mid November when the big leaf maples change:
And finally, my favorite season for this location is winter (Dec-March)! The canopy is open and the greens really shine.
Late Spring and Summer are my least favorite seasons because the big leaf maples block the light and are verrry green. The clients below chose my modern style and it was cloudy:
The following photos were taken on a cloudy summer morning and edited in my classic natural style:
